Lexicon MC-12, Anthem AVM-20, B &K Ref 30?


I'm confused. Will I hear a difference on these three pieces? I mean a "real world" difference that a novice or a non audiophile could hear? Which one has the most flexibilty, sound quality & bang for the buck? I will purchase a Theta Dreadnaught or a Krell (5 channel) amp. I do 80/20 Home Theater v. music. My head is spinning with all the choices. Lastly, do I really need balanced outputs?
kostab99

Showing 1 response by theshow

I will keep this short... IMO the Lexicon MC12 is the better choice. I have done a side by side comparison between the B&K, Krell and Lexicon. The Lexicon was the winner with Krell a close runner-up. For the price the B&K Ref 30 is not a bad choice, you may also want to listen to Parasound if you are trying to stay with in a certain budget.

Lexicon has a nice trade-in/up-grade policy (I am not sure of B&K or Anthem). Bottom line... listen to the processors you are comparison shopping for and purchase the one that sounds best to you. As I am sure you know what sounds good to me may not sound good to you or John Doe.

I purchased the Lexicon MC1 and six months later up-graded to the Lexicon MC12 balanced with no problems.

B&K does offer worthwhile features and is built well. You get high end sound at a mid-fi price tag.

Good Luck and happy listening.