Sabrina X Amp Suggestions

I shopped in reverse in that I purchased a McIntosh MA12000 first and then shopped speakers at McIntosh dealers. I went McIntosh because I wanted good resale value.  I liked the idea of an integrated, but after buying what was, for me, a very big purchase, another &19K for a speaker was a stretch, but after hearing the Sabrina X, I realized that the purchase of the MA12000 would go to waste without a good speaker. Well, that rational pushed me further down the rabbit hole. I soon realized that I much preferred vinyl over streaming, so purchased a great turntable.  Then I reasoned that a separate phono amp was probably a better way to go, power cords, interconnect, power outlets, a very comfortable low back couch and room treatment.  I also wanted what I'm missing, so picked up a pair of REL s/812. That’s the problem with the small Wilsons...everything counts.  Now, five months out, I'm still waiting for the Sabrina X to arrive.  I hear that Wilson is having issues with delivery of one of the speaker drivers.  Any more delays and I'll have to sell some of my cars to feed this obsession.

@audiomaxi

I received them and my dealer set them up.

The first thing that I noticed was that the sitting position was overly far away from the speakers and when I brought them closer the soundstage improved. Also, when I slumped in my chair, the soundstage, with some music, greatly expanded. So, the speakers need to be raised, or tilted back a bit.

Since posting, I have upgraded most of my system. I’m sure that there is some improvement to be had, but I believe that would involve a substantial outlay of cash.

I now use an external phono preamp. For the price, it had better best the built in phono section of the MA12000. Secondly, I have added an external DAC and upgraded my streamer. The DAC2 is very good, but the upgrade did improve the musicality, but to be honest, once I moved to the external DAC, I upgraded my interconnects and my digital out from the Aurender streamer isn’t long enough to reach the MA12000, so I haven’t gone back to A/B.

To my ears my system has much tube character. Everything is musical, detailed and voice is just amazing. I suspect that the McIntosh lacks the last bit of micro detail, but I haven’t been left wanting. I’m old and have spent a lifetime with poor hearing. Like most older men, my high frequency falloff is pretty alarming. I have never been a fan of equalizers, but I am now using the built in equalizer with a boost at 10K and this really made things come alive. I’m not sure if there is a penalty for using the equalizer, perhaps a very small collapse of the sound field in really well recorded classic music..perhaps. So, to answer your question, I’m really happy with the MA12000 and it drives my small Wilson speakers with ease.