Benchmark or McIntosh....


Brain says two Benchmark ABH2 as monoblocks. Heart says Mc because meters and more power. A little background info:

Mixed-use theater/listening room. More listening versus movies. Primary source is a Hifi Rose RS150B into an Anthem AVM 70 pre/pro. Current amplifier is a Wadia A315 at 150x2. Speakers are NHT M6 monitors (a 6 ohm/ 250w sealed speaker, which is exceedingly rare and why I still have them.) I have seven 21" subwoofers so it is fairly equivalent to a live concert when everything is fired up but I need a little more oomph from the monitors.

I was set on a pair ABH2s earlier this week, but I keep getting drawn back to McIntosh - primarily monos MC601 MC611 MC1201 etc...

Do I pick Mc with more power (will probably be a second-hand model due to availability/wait times/budget etc) or so I go for the Benchmark with superior SNR (pre/pro is 110db and Hifi Rose is 117db)

TIA for any real-world feedback!

128x128shoup1cobra

A bit more oomph? All these amps are within less than 2 dB of each other and 3dB more than your current amp. A bit is about all you’ll get. All you can get. While you may rightly love your NHTs, you need to take a jump up in speakers to even begin to match up to your subs. JBL 4367s come to mind.

 

McIntosh 100%, build quality, sound, resale, warranty, etc. you won’t regret it! 

7 subwoofers... what for... you'll probably go deaf before much longer so which one you pick doesn't matter. Anything higher than 95db starts moving you towards hearing loss.

I have MC611's and love them. Going on three years now. They are used with the C2700 preamp. The majority of my listening is vinyl.