Back in the early 80’s I owned a Phase Linear 700mkII which had the coolest looking meters I’ve ever owned. While I think meters look great, they actually do not represent any facet of music I care about.
It is sound first and cosmetics second. But all things being equal, I’d rather have meters than not! |
SAE 2400 and 2600 had 2 big a...ss meters that were Awsome. You could set the meter sensitivity as well as the gain through buttons on the front.
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Mmmmmmm.... and equalizers with all those red LED's and a SPECTRUM ANALYZER..... I'm tempted to buy one and feed it with just an input signal so I can have the cool lights.... (dead serious) |
I own a pair of Accuphase P-4500's
I love the meters, I do at times depending on my mood, simply switch them off and the signal by-passes them and the meters go dark
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Meters cost more originally, and later sell for money than same model without meters. I sold my McIntosh MC2250 (no meters) earlier in the year. Originally the version with meters was +$800.00 more, and definitely costs more used than my amp without meters. People love them, but, they are not well understood. Sensitivity switches are/were needed (just to get them to move) as most music needs very little power, unless you have low sensitivity speakers. Here is Roger Russell's McIntosh site, click on 'Amplifier Meters', and 'Power Guard'.
http://www.roger-russell.com/mcintosh2.htm
As for balance, I prefer my ears, and find the Stereo Reverse option of McIntosh pre-amps very helpful. Then, I love my remote balance so I can tweak any individual track from my listening position. It is amazing how much difference a very slight balance adjustment can make. If I had meters, fun at first, but after a while I am sure I would want them dimmed or off. Some cover them with tape if off feature does not exist. |
Tuners with oscilloscopes are the best tuners @andrewkelleyThis has always been true, and no one can dispute it. |
I e got some old carver m500 amps. Love how the light up the room. Thinking about upgrading the lights in one to led. |
A tuner’s oscilloscope offers the user real tangible benefits.
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I thochingught when I bought my Mac 4100 was col with the colored led power indicators were cool for a while, but got annoying watcing them bounce up and down after a while. |
My amps meter is a voltage meter...cuz it’s cool. |
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I don't see a need for meters, except as a built in tube biasing aid. My linestage has a meter on it, but it is primarily there because the builder used an ancient chassis, and without the meter, there would be a big ugly hole in the faceplate. |
I find meters distracting and don't care for them. The only indication that my stereo is on is a led on my ARC preamp and the glow of tubes on my Mac monoblocks.
On another note, the only amp I ever blew up was one with meters.
BillWojo
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I like VU or power meters. Also like frequency analyzers when they're well done (which may be seldom), but mostly VU. I have a few pairs and there are times when they're plainly distracting to me, but mine I can completely switch on and off easy, so it's no problem.
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The thread about this thread is much better. |
I think having nice big analog VU meters, on the face of a vintage amplifier, makes for an easier sale to novices. I know they're useless, but they do look cool on some vintage gear. A MAC would look naked without those big blue meters staring out at you. |
"Any visual distraction disrupts your ability to listen." My wife always says that when i see her braless......... |
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My Marantz 4400 quad system. I would stare at the ocilloscope and it sounded the best....duuude. |
I have two Pioneer Spec-4 amps and can't imagine them without the big meters. When I'm really into the music, I'm too busy dancing around to be distracted by them. Also have an Accuphase E-202 integrated that has power meters, but they are defeatable. Just to show how warped I am, the first Spec-4 I bought had a non-functioning meter. I refused to use it, bought another very nice Spec-4, and searched e-Bay for a year before finding a replacement meter. But don't write me off - I also own gear by Cary and Musical Fidelity. IMHO, it's all good for what ails us. |
I use the meters on my preamp and they have a practical purpose. I can monitor (and adjust) the phono stage gain or monitor the output level that shows me my system has around 15-20dB of headroom at normal listening levels... oh and I can switch it off too. |
I must admit that I’m a sucker for pretty meters |
I'd love to have an amp with big meters! I very nearly pulled the trigger on a Mac, but simply too expensive, and not a fan of the Autoformer. I'd bet if Emotiva packaged their $1200 amp with nice big analog meters, they could easily sell it for $2000. There simply are NO big-VU-meter amps out there for under $4000.... (new that is).
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Hey @Mirolab,
Right? One of the prettiest, the Yamaha M5000 - $12k
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I have always thought that meters were a homage to the Julian Hirsh school of measurements leading us to better audio.But I do love them on my EAR 912 they impress the neighbors. |
For an admittedly prototype 833-A SET and a GM70 SET for the center channel I put in milliampere meters between one side of the cathode and ground to know what kind of condition the tubes are in. This is simpler than power output meters the McIntosh uses. If you want to defeat the lighting in the meters it would not be difficult to find one wire to the lights and insert a switch. McIntosh will supply you with a schematic and maintenance sheet to help you see what wire to interrupt.I do not defeat the purple LED lighting I put in my meters because the 833-A cathode at 10 Volts, 10 Amps is, in effect, a 100 Watt light.
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With your eyes closed, green ketchup tastes the same as red ketchup. Open your eyes and it doesn't.
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I have an ARC GS150 with meters. But they are linear and don't move at all at lower levels. They should be log meters, like what Mac uses. But the printed scales on the meters are log. I told ARC about their error but they ignored my comment
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Or consider amps with incomprehensible meters.
The Marantz SM-11S1 has an enigmatic porthole, front and center in the faceplate that contains a digital numerical read-out that constantly varies in values and, for the life of me, I can never fathom what it is that Marantz expects people to get out of this tech for tech's sake. Useful information is the last thing it provides.
OTOH, I totally love all other aspects of this amp, especially the sound quality and bullet-proofness of build & operation. |
Gregj, perhaps your letter wasn't threatening enough.
Anodyne, you need to enjoy the incomprehensible and enigmatic, not question it. Mr Squires certainly doesn't and look at how many of us have responded to his thread.
Grasshopper |
It doesn't matter either way. I think amps with meters look no different than a receiver. Just lights. If you find that distracting to your listening experience, then you have other problems! |
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I like meters.
i had a mac2105 and c28, TD 125 with a Rabco tone arm AND a SAE Mark VI tuner Nixie tubes and ocilloscope......they all LOOKED GREAT to me and anyone coming over to listen and didn’t like the presentation could just as easily close their eyes.
Just my opinion.....thx for the post |
