MICHI 8 Amp(s)

Michi 8 Amp(s) Review

For reference, previous to the Michi 8 I owned Bob Carver M 350, Pass Labs X350.8.350.5, Atmosphere M60-3.3, Krell amps and several others.

I was interested in these amps after reading Michael Fremer’s review in which he compared these to his $ 170,000 darTZeel NHB-468 amps. Rotel Michi M8 monoblock power amplifier | Stereophile.com

Now, I know due to the extreme cost difference’s they cannot be a one-on-one exchange, but this review definitely got my attention. I mean these amps output almost 2000 watts per channel @ 4 ohms!

So, I ordered a pair, with a 60-day money back guarantee!

Once I received them, some of the things I noticed:

First off, man are these amps heavy! About 140 lbs. each! And the build quality, though not necessarily jewelry like were mighty fine looking (to this ole’ audiophile anyway).

So, I connected them up with my previous speaker cables and fired them up, they sounded pretty good, but I was wondering if they could sound better. So as any self-described audiophile would do I set out to experiment.

What I found was these amps need heavy gauge speaker cables, I mean after all they can produce 1800 watts per channel! So, I bought 2 pairs (bi-wire) of Goertz M-3 Divinity cables. These cables are 7 gauge each. And oh, ah, much better, so, no wimpy thin cables need apply.

And long breakin is required. Out of the box (s), they sounded ok, but they didn’t produce the sound or bass that I thought amps of this power rating should. After 200 hours they were better, but 400 hours were much better. I guess when you consider the massive power supplies used in the design, they needed time to develop. Today, after many hours on them, I am convinced these amps are awesome. Thus, my review.

The soundstage is very wide, deep, dynamic, and inviting. I am again enjoying my audio music collection. Beit cd’s, files or streaming, everything sounds so different and lively.

The Michi name is part of the Rotel family and that in its self made me first think of mi-fi quality. But boy have I been impressed.

These amps must be the best bang for the bucks this century.

ozzy