Thanks, Tarun. An excellent review as always. As an amateur amp builder I always enjoy your "under-the-hood" tours that you give us. The last commercially built amp I owned was one of the "affordable" Musical Fidelity amps from the '80s, an A100. The sound was excellent but I may have had a bad example of the breed. In the first 12 months of ownership it failed three times and went back to the factory for repair. The customer service was impeccable, taking 2-3 days to fix on every occasion. I sold it at 14 months old in favour of a slightly more costly and better sounding pre/power kit combination which my son now owns and is still in use today. Today I prefer the "dark side" and build my own valve/tube amps with no regrets...
I always learn something new from your videos Taurn. You have to be one of, if not THE BEST, audio reviewers out there. Thank you for taking the time to make these videos. ;-)
TARUN, 🤗 GROWING UP IN THE UK , and being much younger …your audiophile journey is much different than mine ,So I appreciate UTUBE makes it possible to have the benefits of sharing this with everyone…PROVING,IMHHO that this is the best time to be an audiophile 👍😎💚💚💚
Greetings from New Zealand. I have used a M6-500i as my amp for years. Your review also sums this integrated up. Neutral and for an integrated uniquely able to drive my power hungry 801 nautilus speakers with ease. These are great amps…. You can never have too much power! Great review.
I just moved from the 6500 to the M8xi and it was a nice step up overall. I would have never said the 6500 was lean on bass, rather it had huge control and I love that. There is no point to this kind of power unless you appreciate live levels, though. I do and the fact there is ZERO compression is something even a 200w amp can't muster.
Tarun , your channel is fast becoming the definitive channel for objective reviews which combine in-depth technical understanding and comparative insights from now and the past . Hope the channel continues to grow and you can review a broader range of products at higher price points . I have a ch precision a1.5 power amp which I consider endgame and these feed stenheim alumine 3 floor standers . I was a bit lazy when I paired them in that they often play together at audio Shows around the world . I am toying the idea of introducing a pre amp rather than Use the volume control from the dac. But I can’t reconcile the idea that a wire with gain can cost so much !
Great to see a Musical Fidelity review. A very under-reviewed brand. I started in serious hifi with their x-ponents and stuck with them for years, my last big piece being the two box Kw DM25 cd transport and DAC. It says a lot that their Michaelson era stuff still commands high prices in the second hand market.
@legrandmaitre just saw your comment. Interesting to hear you say that. My experience has been the opposite, with 25 year old components still going strong, and I suspect Carlos (Carlito Melon) above would agree. He has a houseful of lovely MF gear !
I always enjoy you reviews and the detail you go into. Extremely educational. I'm hoping at some point you may be getting in the Exposure 3510 Mono Power-Amplifiers in for review as something that's maybe a little more in reach. Thanks for your excellent reviews!!!
Thank you Tarun for the review. I used to own a predecessor Musical Fidelity combo - offering a 500 Watt some 15 years ago. I recognise many findings in your review! Neutral and grip of the Dynaudio Contour 3.0 speakers. Big amps can be subtle and I enjoyed my ownership.
I have ordered an M6si 500 yesterday. The M6si 500 will replace my Cambridge Audio Azur 840A V2. I´m very excited about this AMP. Thanks for your interesting video.
Another nice review Tarun, thank you. I purchased the MF M6si after a recommendation from my dealer for my Bowers and Wilkins speakers. I have my deck (via a separate pre amp), CD and DAC connected to it and also use the Home Theatre input when watching films alongside a Denon amp driving the other speakers. The sound really suits my taste and has plenty of power in reserve. Good solid amps all round.
After A LOT of research I've concluded that the Musical Fidelity M8s-500s power amp paired with Wharfedale ELYSIAN 2 speakers and REL S/812 subwoofer will be my end game stereo setup.
Tarun I own both! Have previously responded about the A1000 I have owned since new. Going without TV in my new flat for over a year to buy the amp. About 5 years ago I found an F15 in virtually unused condition. It is wonderful, sounds bigger and yet more focused and much less cosy at the same time but not as glorious nor as special on close mic'd stuff as the A1000. That truly is special.
Gear matching: I got a pair of Polk Reserve R200 from my wife as a gift (I selected of course based on several recommendations), my old amp was a 20 years old Sony home cinema receiver and ohh I was disappointed mainly due lack of bass control, poor bass performance overall. I noticed that the amp runs extremely hot, after some research I learned about Ohms, speaker sensitivity and hard to drive speakers (= Polk Reserve). OK, so I needed a new amp, with my limited budget I jumped on a used Musical Fidelity M2si and not only bass control was lovely to my ears but the fast changes in sound level and dinamics were on such a Hugh level that I (accidentally) managed to scare some people with some Song-Starts where these was a loud drum as a first note for example. I am happy (w my gear) since I have this combo....
I have an NAD 208 power amp. I doubt there is a speaker it cannot drive, but there are speakers harder to drive than Maggies and the NAD 208 is well up to the task with a very robust power supply and quite capable of 6 dB of headroom. There are plenty of high power amps that can play big league ball. I’m sure that others out here have some that play in this power league. The thing about having a big amp isn’t always about the power it has, but how fast it swings volts and how fast it settles. This amp can play low volume and handle sudden transients very well. It can be a brute, but what I also like is how it delivers details. It’s up for a recap soon. Will take a while to do the job. Good job Tarun explaining the what and why and especially the dreaded word of audio gear, compromise. No gear is immune of some small shortcoming. Finding gear that pleases your ears is key to true music enjoyment. Bravo Tarun, keep the fire on and no slack allowed. Truth is far better than hype!
Another great review. Having owned and driven both those vehicles I understand your metaphor. Sorry for your cough! Thanks for your sense of humor. Get well soon.
Hope you're feeling better. I love big power supplies and high capacitance (current capability) amps. For the money, I went into a parasound a21+ and bang for the buck it does what I wanted. It just cruises along, has great dynamics and bass weight and authority and grip are just top notch. I drive difficult towers to high sensitivity stand mounts and everything just seems to sound superb when woken up with the juice it puts out! Viva current delivery!!!
I recently acquired vintage Klipsch La Scala speakers, displacing Magnepan LRS and Klipsch Heresy IV. My amp of choice for the Heresy and LRS was a Carver Crimson 275 tube amp. I also have a McIntosh mc352 solid state that I would run the LRS when I craved a more punchier sound. I tried the tube amp with the La Scala’s, which was pleasing, but then tried the 350 watt McIntosh and wow it really sounds great, better than the tubes. It just goes to show how you never can be quite sure which amp will work best with which speaker until you try!
Good review. I too have recently discovered the benefits of high powered amps, using the 300 watts per side of a McIntosh MA9000 to drive a pair of B&W 803D3's. Whilst B&W claim their 803's will work in a range of 50 to 500 watts, 50 simply gets them going. The drive of 300 watts brings a power, control and scale that the previous Naim 250DR and it's 80 watts simply couldn't deliver. But at £13k for the amp and the same for the speakers, it's end game for me (although I've said that before).
Addressing your question at16mins or so: For high sensitivity single driver loudspeakers, I much prefer the First Watt Sit-2 power amp (1-2 wpc) to Bel Canto Ref 500s, E1x or Naim 140 power amps. My preferences change when using ls3/5as.
Thanks TARUN🙏🏼 I am not an MF fan generally speaking. Matching amplifiers with loudspeakers is the tricky but FUN part of our mutual audiophile game and hobby. As an integrated amplifiers lover I first listen to a certain loudspeaker model and on the long run I find which works better with the other “in my room” and I simply go for brands that are mostly under the radar. It’s pure joy and music 🎶 is what matters in this joyful hobby.
I'm running the Musical Fidelity A1008 integrated (with off-board power supply) & Bowers & Wilkins PM1 speakers. The combination is perfect, IMO. They are fairly insensitive monitors - the MF 250w grabs the speakers & controls them beautifully. Even the integrated DAC sounds excellent.
Thanks! Yes, the learning curve on A/V is finding out with 11 channels driven one needs and amp that is rated 145+W to get 100W delivered and that is with -0- ohm characteristic cables. Had to redo things once to get it right proving you get what you pay for.
Hi Tarun, thank you for another amazing review as usually. My previous system was a Yamaha A-S501 paired with my Q-Acoustics 3030i. They sound very nice, really nice for the price being a entry level system. Recently I upgrade my system with a Musical Fidelity M6si, wich is a monster compared with the A-S501. Since I'm not even decide what new spaekrs I will buy, I keep my 3030i works with the M6si, and damm, those little speakers changed his face totally, they sound into another level of richness when they are feeded with a high power amplifier, really awesome. That's the importance of a high power deliver amp, make any speaker better exploding all his capacity.
QotD: Amp-Speaker combo... The vintage, warm Sansui 551 amp and the Klipsch RP-600M horn speakers..... Bliss!! And obtainable for around £500 second hand.
Tarun, Get well ....I just got through the same situation....not fun. Thank you for all of your work here. It is much appreciated. How about a visit from your family Pup? It would be nice to see the little guy/gal. Take care of yourself....best wishes for a prompt recovery.
I have the lesser 6s pre and pxr and I'm super pleased. Bass control is great as is 3D sound stage. I believe Musical Fidelity have good damping factor. I also use an Avid phone pre amp.
Hi Tarun, Hope you are getting better, thank you for the great insight as always. I once had a Heed preamp used with two Linn Klout power amps in bi-amp mode. Enough vice-like grip and control for most speakers. I now use a powerful integrated that has a passive pre-amp with very responsive bookshelf speakers. In a bookcase. ps Thank you for the great tip of damping around speakers actually used within a bookcase. Very noticable improvements👍😊
Hi Tarun, great review. I’m with you on those caps, plenty of room to upgrade in there. My choice would be DNM slit foils for the main power caps and Elnas for the rest. Pretty sure that would fix the bass deficit as it did on my A308. On that subject, it seems the neutrality and speed continues to be the MF house sound for their A/B amps. I’ve used the baby X-150 before the A308 and whilst lacking the grunt to drive my floor standing Monitor Audios to their full potential, it was tonally similar. I wish I’d held on to it for my second system.
The A1000 was on my unattainable dream list as well. I really wish/hope Musical Fidelity will bring back the A1000 and A1. The X components were cool too. Bring back the fun!
@@matldn2697 I've owned the Sugden A21 Signature for a couple of years. Great amp. I just always liked the idea of the MF A1000 separate power supply. It also has 50 watts. The Sugden just 23 watts or 30 watts in SE form. It's always good to have extra choices.
Yikes indeed! Thank you for another entertaining and informative review, I wholeheartedly agree that big high-power amps can do things that our little class A or tube amps can't. Particularly in this era of inefficient speakers. But then again class A or triodes just have a certain rightness to their sound. Plus there's something appealing to me about doing more with less (power).
I had the x50s and the X200 monos with KEF 104/2s (and the Kube) for a long while before going a bit more technical sounding with bryston/atc 40scm. I wish I had bought the Tannoy DC3000s instead. Not only that, but I realized my setup was getting a bit classically/jazz orientated and wanted to get away from that, and I'm glad I did. But good memories of getting MFs regular newsletters and watch offers etc, the founder was quite a good clarinet player IIRC.
I drive my B&W 804 D3 floor standers with a Bryston 4Bcubed amp (300 W per) and a Michi P5 Amplifier. The Michi actually warmed up the sound for me somewhat (I replaced my Bryston pre). I think I have a good combination going on. I decided also to add a sub to the mix for a bit more impact.
@@philrob4468 I wasn't impressed with the 20 - I think too many options built in. The Michi P5 in an A/B test was better than either my 17 or the 20. I love my Bryston 4Bcubed - quiet power.
Thank you. I can't afford amplifiers at that price range unfortunately. I tend to favor integrated amplifiers for cost and convenience reasons but these look great.
Nice video - I've always liked Musical Fidelity - I used to own an A100 many years ago which I loved - I would be curious to compare this combo to the Hegel H590.
Hi Tarun. I also love MF gear and used to own the nu vista 3d cd player a absolutely loved the rich sound it gave and it also had great looks. Sadly I had to sell it to raise funds through difficult times. I demonstrated one of their smaller amps with the LF6 speakers and they sounded excellent. It would be interesting to see how this combo would fair against Exposures new pre/ monoblock combo. I love the sound of both Exposure and MF products.
Hi Tarun , MF has been using the low cost and mediocre Jamiecon caps from the 90s to all their amps regardless of price and in the past, I would always get my techie to change to Nichicon or Oscon or FS Panasonic.Mundorf caps would be overkill.😂
I had a real bad experience with Musical Fidelity, where I bought them based on specs, size and the sheer brut looks. Got the amp home and boy my heart dropped when I sat down to listen. It felt as if the bass had disappeared and couldn't understand where the circa 500w had gone. I quickly put my Roksan Blak in and wow.... you can be sure I'm not going to look at changing that anytime soon.
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Hi Tarun, I have a question about crossover frequency specifically HPF on my amplifiers. I am using two Crown XLS 1502's in bridge mode rated at 1050wpc at 8ohm, 1550wpc at 4ohm. yes I know it's overkill but it sounds amazing. My speakers are Focal Aria 926's which are rated down to 45Hz. Should I cut at 45hz or lower or give them full range? I listen at 65-85dba. Thanks
I purchased the Musical Fidelity M6si integrated and found the sonic character to be more modern day electronics: great separation, bass and sound stage, but curiously not precise in terms of realism with voices or as full and warm as I'd prefer in the mids. This audition was with the focal 936. I expect as you state they are likely best matched for larger rooms, larger floostanders and lower efficiency speakers. I think sonic 'nirvana' is close to the MF products and I'd really like to hear them with a better lower mid. Room correction helped, but I still found the MF a bit aggresive with the focals and a bit off with vocals.
I do believe that capacitors in the signal path do affect sound quality quite dramatically, but capacitors in the power supply don't usually affect the sound. Yes I understand power supplies are very important to sound quality, but using very expensive "designer" caps when their use is not beneficial to the sound is just upping the prices for no reason. I think Musical Fidelity know a little bit more about this subject than the average audiophile.
No, not really true. More expensive capacitors usually have significant lower impedance than cheaper versions. Lower impedance means faster reaction to current demands but also better suppression of HF noise. Same with the bridge rectifier Standard rectifiers are fairly slow and create additional noise which leads to a bit nervous musical presentation.
Great video as always Tarun. Always puzzled why these more expensive pieces of equipment have phono stages built in. If you’re spending this kind of money on amplification you’re surely going to have a separate phono stage. Hope you are feeling better
I own the NuVista M3 and it has the factory upgrade puts out 305wpc and is one of the best integrated or separates I have heard, love the MF NuVista gear, Thanks for the video 👍
Thank you for this review, Tarun. This is close enough to the M6Si500 integrated amp that they have as well. I’d really like to have this setup. Either one actually. This is a very picky critique here of MF, but I much preferred the red LED readout when they had that one instead of the current blue. It had sort of a Mark Levinson look with the red. That’s a minor pick though. Thanks again! Cheers from Texas
Hi Tarun, Another excellent video. From your video, although the price for this matched pre-amp / power-amp combination is for many (myself included) quite extravagant, they are actually a "good value". Some manufacturers spend their money on "flash", whereas here it appears that while the chassis is of high quality, the internal components and related engineering are top-notch. That cannot always be said, even in this price range in my view. That is not to say that at this price point every manufacturer will not provide great components... I know that you have a Hegel H190, which is an extraordinary integrated amp. In fact, in my opinion it is the "best value" in the Hegel line as it has the power and fidelity to do 90+% of what their flagship H590 does at a third of the cost. The real question that needs to be asked, is a personal and subjective one: Will you hear the difference? I am not sure, with my preference for early 1980s Rock and Pop, that I would hear a substantial enough, if any, difference to justify the additional expense. With different styles of music, this may not be the case. Before I forget: Thank you again for the tips on speaker placement. I did what you said in terms of moving the speakers a bit closer together with less of an angle. While the width of the sound stage has shrunk a bit, the depth has definitely increased. 😊😊😊
Great to have your perspective Tasha. You are right about the H190. It is a great allrounder. A lot of that 80s Rock and Pop isn’t recorded that well. The H190 is probably as far as most will need to go 😊👍
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Ohhh I think you are being very generous concerning the H190 as it is probably a good bit "further" than "most need to go" (especially with early 80s Rock and Pop). In fact, it is probably further than even those interested in far more musically complicated genres, such as classical, need to go. The real limiting factor, once the amp is sorted, would be the speakers in my view. 😊🤗
Great review tarun,my first musical fidelity amp was the class A amp A1 then the mono A50s, great amps, also had some electra range, over the years, loved the gloss Black finishes, also used some of the x series of components as well, could never afford the top end stuff though, it did sound very good though, I have the clarinet cd and watch they sold over the years, as souvenirs. Glad to see them under new ownership making great equipment again, but the price is rather high for my budget.
I think that Musical Fidelity have changed their way of doing things, compared to the 1980'ies. They don't seem to pursue ultimate sound quality any more, but rather a very powerful sound with lot's of watts and ooomph. I've listened to M6Si and it's the same idea. Looks wise, I would have designed the cooling fins the same way on both casings. That must be an "oops, I forgot that". I'll keep my old Musical Fidelity then ;) Thanks for sharing.
I've said it before Tarun.... But we're clearly ofthe same era (having lusted over some of the exact same gear from the past ).... BIG amps with compact stand mounts.. Hmmm, well when I chose my Parasound JC5 power amp it was to pair with Audiovector loudspeakers... But for a few months I had the amp with (original) Kef LS50....... and that is the best that I've ever heard those sound anywhere! Whether passive, active, meta whatever... but of course its ridiculous to suggest £7k power amplification (now at £10k!) with £0.8k loudspeakers... But as you allude to.. a large power supply/high current and the control afforded over the drivers can stun with such a combo...results astonish even more with my R3 Arreté. .. Really enjoyed this vid 👍🏻
@@abritishaudiophile7314 if you can find a pair used you should consider them. Not expensive at all, but they will knock out far more expensive stuff. I am blown away by the sound. Preamp is a Heed thesis Alpha.
Thank you for another helpful review. Would love to hear your opinions on the Musical Fidelity 3si or 5si integrated amps if you get a chance to review them.
M8 700M mono blocs are the ones to go for I heard them and they rival the US esoterica and also good enough to pair with the EAR Yoshino 912 tube pre amp. Wow!
Yes I own a pair with the m8 pre they drive my martin logan motion 60 speakers better than my musical fidelity a370 and I don't have to play it as loud the bass is handled buy 2 jl audio f110 fathom subs via a mini dsp and was calibrated to my room by a certified technician money well spent
Contrary to common thought you can have too much power. My hi fi journey started over 30 years ago with Audio Innovations 500 Valve amp. After a valve went “carrot” (overheated) it was rewired to provide just 12watts triode mode. So when I got the chance I built some very high sensitivity replicas of Carfrae Little Big Horn. The max recommended watts for the original speakers was 20watt per channel. With 105db per watt I can chase fidelity with much simpler circuitry. I currently run the super simple Nelson Pass designed Class A Amp Camp Amps as bridged mono blocks 15watt. But ultimately 2.25watt Decware Zen triode has to be the end game.
Your review matches what I heard over youtube demos - clean agile sound but lacking in body. I think the combination of Denafrips Athena preamp plus Keces S300 power amp would give it a run for its money.
Have you compared then to the M6 pre/power combo? Antony Michaelson famously wrote a letter once where he claimed that you needed minimum 500 w per channel to drive speakers properly but considered that maybe 250 W would just about do it. I think he quoted Keith Howard as his guru for that and no doubt it was reasonably self-serving in true AMS style. Intriguingly he said that top amplifiers should actually sound slightly boring because there are no artefacts or distortion which reviewers tend to mistake for something else. Thinking the likes of Naim here. But nonetheless, he makes a good point which you refer to in terms of headroom. Just wondered if you'd managed to compare the two M8 Vs M6 and had any thoughts? Thanks for another excellent review
Hi Tarun, very nice review of these 2 beasts. A Little bit off topic: It would be interesting if you could make a video about biwiring and biamplification. Sure a complex topic and even a controversial one, as far as i understand. But i think It could help many people like me, relatively new to this hobby. Thanks
Thank you for this review. Should we be concerned with regards to powering a bookshelf speaker with powerful amps of this nature, in terms of potentially overloading the speakers?
I, too, like a little bit muscularity to the presentation. Added the Schiit Loki 4-band-eq and beefed up the midrange ! You should review that little Loki. The best value in our system my wife says.
Thank you for the review, I appreciate the in-depth inside look you always give. I have to say at their price, I was not at all impressed with the build quality and components of the amp. The preamp looks good, but you are not going to get enough of a sonic benefit to justify the ridiculous size of the preamp. The power of the amp is great but again given the price, I would think the components would be of much better quality along with the capacitance. I also think the layout overall cleanliness of the amp is in serious question. What a mess on the inside... The screams of general AVR quality... Thank you again for the review, I think you do some of the best out there currently!
Thank you for sharing Sammy. I can see why people may have an issue with the quality of capacitors in particular. However, given the extra expense of the dual mono and balanced topology and the number of output devices, transformer size, etc. they had to draw the line somewhere 😊
"free spiritedness" I was already thinking about Exposure. I'm missing that luscious "Zing!" and depth my 2010S2 had, although Hegel H120 is, indeed, better performer, but has that "flaw" of sounding solid state, which is clearly audible. Constantly wondering if I should went with 3510 instead of H120. I do "need" balanced inputs for my Schiit Gungnir though as I find Hegel integrated dac far inferior in transparency and detail. Hence my question; From your experience so far, does any solid state amp comes close to Exposure sound? Perhaps colorized, but extremely emotional and engaging.
A Sugden A21SE would be worth considering. Tonally richer than Exposure with perhaps similar soundstaging width and depth. I need to get one in to compare again. Other than that I can’t think of anything 😊
great review as usual my brother, just an idea perhaps try there “good Value “ line integrated m2 si thru m8 si honestly they will surprise you my friend!!! takecare great review
@@abritishaudiophile7314 i love your channel , you do complete review and give your viewers a look inside each unit !! excellent my brother … just a suggestion, perhaps do a budget review on gear that out performs gear thats 2or 3 x more $$$$…. just a thought ( break it down amps/pre amps/intergrated// sorce / speakers …
Thank you for your lovely reviews! This one too. I selected to view this one because I was wondering if this poweramp would be a nice match with my recently bought ATC SCM40's (occasion). And yes, you mentioned in the video checking out this match.... is it mainly because of the 500 watts this poweramp delivers? In that case I can try to get a second 851w and bridge it with the 851w I already have, that will make 500 watts each channel too. Or is there sound quality difference? .....how to find 'the best' matching poweramp for my lovely ATC SCM40's...?? Any suggestions? (Right now a use a Primare pre30 but want to switch to tube preamp). Thenx for sharing your ideas on this one
Musical Fidelity IS GOOD~For those with a limited budget, Musical Fidelity M6S PRX and PRE are more worth testing~ After reading your test, I replaced the speakers with ~PMC 21i and now I want to change the power amplifier. I hope you can test Musical Fidelity M6S PRX and PRE thank British Audiophile
If you have low sensitivity speakers (78-80dB SPL 2,83V/1m), enough power is highly recommended. I would definitely choose the MF over the Hegel, but I am actually more curious about the amps from Teac.
Perhaps you spoke to this in pervious videos. Are you running on a dedicated power line with higher amp circuit breaker? Although not required, my experience is these thirsty amps like there own low gauge line and larger breaker in the fuse box. Nice review! And is amp well broken in?
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Set it, you’ll be surprised as I was! Also used ps audio outlets. I followed a article I found on line, by a reviewer, with skepticism. Immediate diff. Got even better after break in.
Hello Tarun, Have you thought of doing something like pairing a Pre Amp like the M8 s Pre with a different manufacturers power Amp . I paired my M6 Pre with a NAD C298 (Cyrus CDi and Proac D20 R ) and it works very well . any chance you could do a similar type of thing for review to see where different kit can maybe compliment each other ?
It is a bit of a minefield matching pre and powers from different brands. The success rate is pretty low from my experience but still worth a go when I have time 😊
Hmmm…I have been sick with similar nonsense that I just can't shake…be well… Love the tour inside both units, as always, (even if it’s out of my electronic knowledge pay grade 🤓).. I thought the pair were going to have a much larger price tag, though. These would be a no-go for me as your disappointment in somewhat lacking bass & mid-bass would be a deal-killer for my stand-mounts…but I like that you countered with the amps (with that kind of power), being made for floor-standers, which would hopefully bring more bottom-end into the party… Now…about that drool-worthy M1000…🤤🤤🤤
Hi Tarun, not many reviews on the music fidelity, great review! I am eyeing out the m8 power amp againstthe anthem STR woundering if you ever heard the Anthem power amp STR and give any thoughts which would come more recomended.
Tarun, there is a boutique and "budget" American Hi-Fi manufacturer, who makes solid state amps that I'm sure will match your Exposure equipment as far as sound statlging goes, And then some. Check out Audio by Van Alstine. I have a pair of Van Alstine DVA M225 monoblocks for sale on US Audiomart right now. I am replacing them with a lower powered Van Alstine because I'm moving into a high efficiency speaker situation. If you're interested in paying for shipment, I would take them offline and send them to you for review from the states. Matt
Hi Tarun, You asked me to get back with you when I got a chance to try out the Cambridge Audio DacMagic 200M. Well, I purchased it... I was so disappointed in it that I sent it back. I ran it for probably 20 hours or so (which should have plenty of time for any break-in to occur). It was shrill... that is probably the only way to describe it - extremely harsh. It was very fatiguing to listen to. Although it uses a very modern, twin 32bit Sabre processors, it sounded worse than the 29 year old DAC built into the Pioneer Elite PD59. I tried hooking it up with both optical and co-ax inputs, but there was no real change. It was very, very disappointing. 😔
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Hi Tarun, Perhaps you would have better luck than I did. I purchased. direct from Cambridge USA, a factory refurbished unit. It was supposed to have been reconditioned to factory-fresh specs. I played Diana Krall "All For You" CD, and it sounded incredible. I was so happy... it was the first thing I played through it. Then I played Def Leppard "Pyromania" (the remastered edition) which I know sounds great... and the upper end was so shrill, so fatiguing, that I thought something was seriously wrong with my Pioneer PD59. I removed the DAC, and the shrillness disappeared immediately. I then hooked the DAC up to an old DVD player and looped a CD, for about 20 hours or so.... hooked it back up to the Pioneer, and it was just as shrill as before. Quite literally the ancient internal DAC in the Pioneer sounds light-years better. 😌 I played probably 15 or so CDs through it in total. Styles like performed by Diana Krall and Neil Diamond, it sounded great... 80s Rock and Pop (my favorite)... Ohhh Jesus!! Perhaps the DAC I received was defective in some way.
@@AgentPepsi1 very interesting Tasha. It could be that Cambridge have dropped the ball with this DAC or like you say a defective unit. John Westlake traditionally designed their DACs who was very well respected but I don’t know who designs the current ones 😊
Thanks, Tarun. An excellent review as always.
As an amateur amp builder I always enjoy your "under-the-hood" tours that you give us. The last commercially built amp I owned was one of the "affordable" Musical Fidelity amps from the '80s, an A100. The sound was excellent but I may have had a bad example of the breed. In the first 12 months of ownership it failed three times and went back to the factory for repair. The customer service was impeccable, taking 2-3 days to fix on every occasion. I sold it at 14 months old in favour of a slightly more costly and better sounding pre/power kit combination which my son now owns and is still in use today. Today I prefer the "dark side" and build my own valve/tube amps with no regrets...
Thank you John. I admire you building your own 👍
I always learn something new from your videos Taurn. You have to be one of, if not THE BEST, audio reviewers out there. Thank you for taking the time to make these videos. ;-)
Thank you Michael. That is very kind 😊👍
I do too. Tarun rocks!
I love your reviews, can’t get enough, your ear and explanation of sound are top tier!
Thank you Rob. Very much appreciated 😊👍
TARUN, 🤗 GROWING UP IN THE UK , and being much younger …your audiophile journey is much different than mine ,So I appreciate UTUBE makes it possible to have the benefits of sharing this with everyone…PROVING,IMHHO that this is the best time to be an audiophile 👍😎💚💚💚
It is great the ways in which we can share our journeys these days 😊
Greetings from New Zealand. I have used a M6-500i as my amp for years. Your review also sums this integrated up. Neutral and for an integrated uniquely able to drive my power hungry 801 nautilus speakers with ease. These are great amps…. You can never have too much power! Great review.
Thanks Andrew. I appreciate you sharing 👍
I just moved from the 6500 to the M8xi and it was a nice step up overall. I would have never said the 6500 was lean on bass, rather it had huge control and I love that. There is no point to this kind of power unless you appreciate live levels, though. I do and the fact there is ZERO compression is something even a 200w amp can't muster.
@@reynolds8532 thank you for sharing 😊
I got the M8xi one year ago and I still am very happy with it, specially for the price you get a lot.
Thank you Wolfgang 😊
@@abritishaudiophile7314 i wonder how it compare to m8 500
Tarun , your channel is fast becoming the definitive channel for objective reviews which combine in-depth technical understanding and comparative insights from now and the past . Hope the channel continues to grow and you can review a broader range of products at higher price points . I have a ch precision a1.5 power amp which I consider endgame and these feed stenheim alumine 3 floor standers . I was a bit lazy when I paired them in that they often play together at audio
Shows around the world . I am toying the idea of introducing a pre amp rather than
Use the volume control from the dac. But I can’t reconcile the idea that a wire with gain can cost so much !
Thank you Mr.S. Very much appreciated. It is amazing what a good preamp can do for a system but I still can’t explain why 😂👍
@@abritishaudiophile7314Tarun, You are so humble. The British Audiophile is now my favorite audio review channel on RUclips.
@@davidstein9129 thank you kindly David. That is very much appreciated 😊👍
Great to see a Musical Fidelity review. A very under-reviewed brand. I started in serious hifi with their x-ponents and stuck with them for years, my last big piece being the two box Kw DM25 cd transport and DAC.
It says a lot that their Michaelson era stuff still commands high prices in the second hand market.
Thank you Jim 😊
Hi Jim!
Reliability issues plagued many of their products though.
My local Sevenoaks re-named them: Musical Fatality.
@legrandmaitre just saw your comment. Interesting to hear you say that. My experience has been the opposite, with 25 year old components still going strong, and I suspect Carlos (Carlito Melon) above would agree. He has a houseful of lovely MF gear !
@Carlito Melon Hi yourself ! Just saw your Hi.
A British Audiophile, iWii and Zero Fidelity are the standout reviewers on RUclips. But you are my absolute favourite. Thanks for all that you do!
Thank you my friend. That is very much appreciated 😊👍
Terrific review again, Tarun! The cough at the end was genius! 😂👍👍😂.
Thank you buddy 😊👍
I always enjoy you reviews and the detail you go into. Extremely educational. I'm hoping at some point you may be getting in the Exposure 3510 Mono Power-Amplifiers in for review as something that's maybe a little more in reach. Thanks for your excellent reviews!!!
Thank you Glen. Much appreciated. I am planing to get them in 😊👍
Big fan of you showing us around the internals. Thanks!
Thank you buddy 👍
I have always loved Musical Fidelity and Sugden too! This new product seems to be as good as expected. Thank you for another intelligent review
Thank you my friend 👍
Always so simple but very informative. Thank you and get better asap :)
Thank you my friend 😊👍
You certainly know how to pack product information and brand nostalgia in a nice well thought-out package - thanks!
Thank you my friend 😊👍
Can’t wait for the new vista review. Another great review Tarun.
Thank you. Watch this space 😉
Once again, a solid review. Thanks.
Thank you Jim 😊
Nice review!
I have the Ms8 preamp paired with an Parasound Halo JC5 and find it a wonderful combination!
Cool 😎
Thank you Tarun for the review. I used to own a predecessor Musical Fidelity combo - offering a 500 Watt some 15 years ago. I recognise many findings in your review! Neutral and grip of the Dynaudio Contour 3.0 speakers. Big amps can be subtle and I enjoyed my ownership.
Thank you Wouter. Great to learn about your experiences 😊
Hi Tarun, your technical insights voice here would be perfect for golf commentating.
Thank you Barry. That would be cool to do ⛳️👍
I have ordered an M6si 500 yesterday. The M6si 500 will replace my Cambridge Audio Azur 840A V2. I´m very excited about this AMP. Thanks for your interesting video.
@@dietmarrundel3400 great. Enjoy our new amp 😊
Another nice review Tarun, thank you. I purchased the MF M6si after a recommendation from my dealer for my Bowers and Wilkins speakers. I have my deck (via a separate pre amp), CD and DAC connected to it and also use the Home Theatre input when watching films alongside a Denon amp driving the other speakers. The sound really suits my taste and has plenty of power in reserve. Good solid amps all round.
Thank you for sharing David 😊
After A LOT of research I've concluded that the Musical Fidelity M8s-500s power amp paired with Wharfedale ELYSIAN 2 speakers and REL S/812 subwoofer will be my end game stereo setup.
@@dragonstone6594 cool 😎
Tarun I own both! Have previously responded about the A1000 I have owned since new. Going without TV in my new flat for over a year to buy the amp. About 5 years ago I found an F15 in virtually unused condition. It is wonderful, sounds bigger and yet more focused and much less cosy at the same time but not as glorious nor as special on close mic'd stuff as the A1000. That truly is special.
That is great to know my friend. I am very jealous 😊
À1000, holy grail!
Gear matching: I got a pair of Polk Reserve R200 from my wife as a gift (I selected of course based on several recommendations), my old amp was a 20 years old Sony home cinema receiver and ohh I was disappointed mainly due lack of bass control, poor bass performance overall. I noticed that the amp runs extremely hot, after some research I learned about Ohms, speaker sensitivity and hard to drive speakers (= Polk Reserve). OK, so I needed a new amp, with my limited budget I jumped on a used Musical Fidelity M2si and not only bass control was lovely to my ears but the fast changes in sound level and dinamics were on such a Hugh level that I (accidentally) managed to scare some people with some Song-Starts where these was a loud drum as a first note for example. I am happy (w my gear) since I have this combo....
Great. Thank you for sharing Peter 👍
I have an NAD 208 power amp. I doubt there is a speaker it cannot drive, but there are speakers harder to drive than Maggies and the NAD 208 is well up to the task with a very robust power supply and quite capable of 6 dB of headroom. There are plenty of high power amps that can play big league ball. I’m sure that others out here have some that play in this power league. The thing about having a big amp isn’t always about the power it has, but how fast it swings volts and how fast it settles. This amp can play low volume and handle sudden transients very well. It can be a brute, but what I also like is how it delivers details. It’s up for a recap soon. Will take a while to do the job. Good job Tarun explaining the what and why and especially the dreaded word of audio gear, compromise. No gear is immune of some small shortcoming. Finding gear that pleases your ears is key to true music enjoyment. Bravo Tarun, keep the fire on and no slack allowed. Truth is far better than hype!
Thank you Mark. Much appreciated 😊👍
Another great review. Having owned and driven both those vehicles I understand your metaphor. Sorry for your cough! Thanks for your sense of humor. Get well soon.
Thank you buddy. I bet you enjoyed both of those cars for different reasons 👍
Hope you're feeling better. I love big power supplies and high capacitance (current capability) amps. For the money, I went into a parasound a21+ and bang for the buck it does what I wanted. It just cruises along, has great dynamics and bass weight and authority and grip are just top notch. I drive difficult towers to high sensitivity stand mounts and everything just seems to sound superb when woken up with the juice it puts out! Viva current delivery!!!
Thank you Eric 👍
I recently acquired vintage Klipsch La Scala speakers, displacing Magnepan LRS and Klipsch Heresy IV. My amp of choice for the Heresy and LRS was a Carver Crimson 275 tube amp. I also have a McIntosh mc352 solid state that I would run the LRS when I craved a more punchier sound. I tried the tube amp with the La Scala’s, which was pleasing, but then tried the 350 watt McIntosh and wow it really sounds great, better than the tubes. It just goes to show how you never can be quite sure which amp will work best with which speaker until you try!
Very true. Synergy can be elusive. Thank you for sharing 😊
Nice to see a review of a fully balanced amp. Good stuff.
Thank you Paul 😊
nice...
back around 2008 i had their A3.2 CD player, and the A3 24 DAC...they were chunky beasts too!
Cool 😎
Good review. I too have recently discovered the benefits of high powered amps, using the 300 watts per side of a McIntosh MA9000 to drive a pair of B&W 803D3's. Whilst B&W claim their 803's will work in a range of 50 to 500 watts, 50 simply gets them going. The drive of 300 watts brings a power, control and scale that the previous Naim 250DR and it's 80 watts simply couldn't deliver. But at £13k for the amp and the same for the speakers, it's end game for me (although I've said that before).
Thank you for sharing Andy 😊
Addressing your question at16mins or so: For high sensitivity single driver loudspeakers, I much prefer the First Watt Sit-2 power amp (1-2 wpc) to Bel Canto Ref 500s, E1x or Naim 140 power amps. My preferences change when using ls3/5as.
Thanks Mark 😊
Thanks TARUN🙏🏼 I am not an MF fan generally speaking. Matching amplifiers with loudspeakers is the tricky but FUN part of our mutual audiophile game and hobby. As an integrated amplifiers lover I first listen to a certain loudspeaker model and on the long run I find which works better with the other “in my room” and I simply go for brands that are mostly under the radar. It’s pure joy and music 🎶 is what matters in this joyful hobby.
Always great to have your perspective Hamid 👍
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Thank you Sir TARUN 🙏🏼
I have an M8xi integrated amp, love your reviews mate.
Thank you Barry. Much appreciated 🙂👍
I'm running the Musical Fidelity A1008 integrated (with off-board power supply) & Bowers & Wilkins PM1 speakers. The combination is perfect, IMO. They are fairly insensitive monitors - the MF 250w grabs the speakers & controls them beautifully. Even the integrated DAC sounds excellent.
That is great. Thank you for sharing Steven 😊
Thanks! Yes, the learning curve on A/V is finding out with 11 channels driven one needs and amp that is rated 145+W to get 100W delivered and that is with -0- ohm characteristic cables. Had to redo things once to get it right proving you get what you pay for.
Hi Tarun, thank you for another amazing review as usually.
My previous system was a Yamaha A-S501 paired with my Q-Acoustics 3030i. They sound very nice, really nice for the price being a entry level system. Recently I upgrade my system with a Musical Fidelity M6si, wich is a monster compared with the A-S501.
Since I'm not even decide what new spaekrs I will buy, I keep my 3030i works with the M6si, and damm, those little speakers changed his face totally, they sound into another level of richness when they are feeded with a high power amplifier, really awesome.
That's the importance of a high power deliver amp, make any speaker better exploding all his capacity.
QotD: Amp-Speaker combo... The vintage, warm Sansui 551 amp and the Klipsch RP-600M horn speakers..... Bliss!! And obtainable for around £500 second hand.
Ooh! I can see how that could be a great combo. Thank you Dean 😊👍
Tarun,
Get well ....I just got through the same situation....not fun. Thank you for all of your work here. It is much appreciated. How about a visit from your family Pup? It would be nice to see the little guy/gal. Take care of yourself....best wishes for a prompt recovery.
Thank you John. Bob is doing great and I should get him to make another appearance soon 😊👍
@@abritishaudiophile7314 sounds good…take care
I have the lesser 6s pre and pxr and I'm super pleased. Bass control is great as is 3D sound stage. I believe Musical Fidelity have good damping factor. I also use an Avid phone pre amp.
Cool 😎 thank you for sharing 😊
Hi Tarun, Hope you are getting better, thank you for the great insight as always. I once had a Heed preamp used with two Linn Klout power amps in bi-amp mode. Enough vice-like grip and control for most speakers. I now use a powerful integrated that has a passive pre-amp with very responsive bookshelf speakers. In a bookcase. ps Thank you for the great tip of damping around speakers actually used within a bookcase. Very noticable improvements👍😊
Thank you my friend. Glad to be of help 😊👍
Hi Tarun, great review. I’m with you on those caps, plenty of room to upgrade in there. My choice would be DNM slit foils for the main power caps and Elnas for the rest. Pretty sure that would fix the bass deficit as it did on my A308.
On that subject, it seems the neutrality and speed continues to be the MF house sound for their A/B amps. I’ve used the baby X-150 before the A308 and whilst lacking the grunt to drive my floor standing Monitor Audios to their full potential, it was tonally similar. I wish I’d held on to it for my second system.
Thank you Mark. Glad you enjoyed the review 👍
The A1000 was on my unattainable dream list as well. I really wish/hope Musical Fidelity will bring back the A1000 and A1. The X components were cool too. Bring back the fun!
Look up Sugden class A. Very nice amps.
I would love to see both of those legendary MF amps return too 👍
B200x.
@@matldn2697 I've owned the Sugden A21 Signature for a couple of years. Great amp. I just always liked the idea of the MF A1000 separate power supply. It also has 50 watts. The Sugden just 23 watts or 30 watts in SE form. It's always good to have extra choices.
@@yippie6862 The MF was a powerhouse, but I found it too slushy in sound.
I use the two box, A1 Final Edition, which has been refreshed by John Sampson, it's a constant delight.
That is great 😊
Yikes indeed! Thank you for another entertaining and informative review,
I wholeheartedly agree that big high-power amps can do things that our little class A or tube amps can't. Particularly in this era of inefficient speakers. But then again class A or triodes just have a certain rightness to their sound. Plus there's something appealing to me about doing more with less (power).
I agree. That is why I haven’t come across the perfect amplifier as yet 👍
I had the x50s and the X200 monos with KEF 104/2s (and the Kube) for a long while before going a bit more technical sounding with bryston/atc 40scm. I wish I had bought the Tannoy DC3000s instead. Not only that, but I realized my setup was getting a bit classically/jazz orientated and wanted to get away from that, and I'm glad I did. But good memories of getting MFs regular newsletters and watch offers etc, the founder was quite a good clarinet player IIRC.
Thank you John. Great anecdote 👍
I drive my B&W 804 D3 floor standers with a Bryston 4Bcubed amp (300 W per) and a Michi P5 Amplifier. The Michi actually warmed up the sound for me somewhat (I replaced my Bryston pre). I think I have a good combination going on. I decided also to add a sub to the mix for a bit more impact.
Great Bob 👍
Being canadian I really like the idea of going a full bryston seperates setup with the bp20 and probably the 3b...
@@philrob4468 I wasn't impressed with the 20 - I think too many options built in. The Michi P5 in an A/B test was better than either my 17 or the 20. I love my Bryston 4Bcubed - quiet power.
Thank you. I can't afford amplifiers at that price range unfortunately. I tend to favor integrated amplifiers for cost and convenience reasons but these look great.
Thank you. These are at the upper tier of what I currently review 😊
Nice video - I've always liked Musical Fidelity - I used to own an A100 many years ago which I loved - I would be curious to compare this combo to the Hegel H590.
Thank you David. That would be a cool comparison 😊
Hi Tarun. I also love MF gear and used to own the nu vista 3d cd player a absolutely loved the rich sound it gave and it also had great looks. Sadly I had to sell it to raise funds through difficult times. I demonstrated one of their smaller amps with the LF6 speakers and they sounded excellent. It would be interesting to see how this combo would fair against Exposures new pre/ monoblock combo. I love the sound of both Exposure and MF products.
Great to hear about your experiences Steve 👍
Hi Tarun , MF has been using the low cost and mediocre Jamiecon caps from the 90s to all their amps regardless of price and in the past, I would always get my techie to change to Nichicon or Oscon or FS Panasonic.Mundorf caps would be overkill.😂
Thank you. They are probably happy with that supplier and the performance on offer 😊
Hi! Thanks for sharing knowledge! I have a cousin to this, the M6i and there is power enough to drive my wife crazy😂😂 and a pretty good sound!
Great 👍
I had a real bad experience with Musical Fidelity, where I bought them based on specs, size and the sheer brut looks. Got the amp home and boy my heart dropped when I sat down to listen. It felt as if the bass had disappeared and couldn't understand where the circa 500w had gone. I quickly put my Roksan Blak in and wow.... you can be sure I'm not going to look at changing that anytime soon.
Thank you for sharing 😊
@@abritishaudiophile7314
Hi Tarun,
I have a question about crossover frequency specifically HPF on my amplifiers. I am using two Crown XLS 1502's in bridge mode rated at 1050wpc at 8ohm, 1550wpc at 4ohm. yes I know it's overkill but it sounds amazing.
My speakers are Focal Aria 926's which are rated down to 45Hz.
Should I cut at 45hz or lower or give them full range? I listen at 65-85dba. Thanks
@@sportsmachinerr1401 depends on many factors but generally for so channel listening run them full range 😊
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Brilliant thanks for the reply 👍🏽
Spot on review as usual , let's hope Sir Lewis will get #9 this year !!! 😎😎👍
Thank you Gene 🙂
I purchased the Musical Fidelity M6si integrated and found the sonic character to be more modern day electronics: great separation, bass and sound stage, but curiously not precise in terms of realism with voices or as full and warm as I'd prefer in the mids. This audition was with the focal 936. I expect as you state they are likely best matched for larger rooms, larger floostanders and lower efficiency speakers. I think sonic 'nirvana' is close to the MF products and I'd really like to hear them with a better lower mid. Room correction helped, but I still found the MF a bit aggresive with the focals and a bit off with vocals.
Thank you for sharing 😊
I do believe that capacitors in the signal path do affect sound quality quite dramatically, but capacitors in the power supply don't usually affect the sound. Yes I understand power supplies are very important to sound quality, but using very expensive "designer" caps when their use is not beneficial to the sound is just upping the prices for no reason. I think Musical Fidelity know a little bit more about this subject than the average audiophile.
That you for sharing 😊
Thank You for posting this
No, not really true. More expensive capacitors usually have significant lower impedance than cheaper versions. Lower impedance means faster reaction to current demands but also better suppression of HF noise. Same with the bridge rectifier Standard rectifiers are fairly slow and create additional noise which leads to a bit nervous musical presentation.
Great video as always Tarun. Always puzzled why these more expensive pieces of equipment have phono stages built in. If you’re spending this kind of money on amplification you’re surely going to have a separate phono stage. Hope you are feeling better
Thank you. I am over the worst of it. I am with you and would get an external phonostage 👍
Can you compare the M8s-500s with the Rotel RB-1590? And MICHI S5?
@@dragonstone6594 I appreciate the suggestions 😊
I own the NuVista M3 and it has the factory upgrade puts out 305wpc and is one of the best integrated or separates I have heard, love the MF NuVista gear, Thanks for the video 👍
Thank you 😊
Thank you for this review, Tarun. This is close enough to the M6Si500 integrated amp that they have as well. I’d really like to have this setup. Either one actually.
This is a very picky critique here of MF, but I much preferred the red LED readout when they had that one instead of the current blue. It had sort of a Mark Levinson look with the red. That’s a minor pick though.
Thanks again!
Cheers from Texas
Thank you buddy. I wounded if you can switch colours. I would have to check 🤔😊
Hi Tarun,
Another excellent video. From your video, although the price for this matched pre-amp / power-amp combination is for many (myself included) quite extravagant, they are actually a "good value". Some manufacturers spend their money on "flash", whereas here it appears that while the chassis is of high quality, the internal components and related engineering are top-notch. That cannot always be said, even in this price range in my view. That is not to say that at this price point every manufacturer will not provide great components...
I know that you have a Hegel H190, which is an extraordinary integrated amp. In fact, in my opinion it is the "best value" in the Hegel line as it has the power and fidelity to do 90+% of what their flagship H590 does at a third of the cost. The real question that needs to be asked, is a personal and subjective one: Will you hear the difference? I am not sure, with my preference for early 1980s Rock and Pop, that I would hear a substantial enough, if any, difference to justify the additional expense. With different styles of music, this may not be the case.
Before I forget: Thank you again for the tips on speaker placement. I did what you said in terms of moving the speakers a bit closer together with less of an angle. While the width of the sound stage has shrunk a bit, the depth has definitely increased. 😊😊😊
Great to have your perspective Tasha. You are right about the H190. It is a great allrounder. A lot of that 80s Rock and Pop isn’t recorded that well. The H190 is probably as far as most will need to go 😊👍
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Ohhh I think you are being very generous concerning the H190 as it is probably a good bit "further" than "most need to go" (especially with early 80s Rock and Pop). In fact, it is probably further than even those interested in far more musically complicated genres, such as classical, need to go. The real limiting factor, once the amp is sorted, would be the speakers in my view. 😊🤗
Great review tarun,my first musical fidelity amp was the class A amp A1 then the mono A50s, great amps, also had some electra range, over the years, loved the gloss Black finishes, also used some of the x series of components as well, could never afford the top end stuff though, it did sound very good though, I have the clarinet cd and watch they sold over the years, as souvenirs. Glad to see them under new ownership making great equipment again, but the price is rather high for my budget.
Thank you Paul. Great to hear from you 👍
I think that Musical Fidelity have changed their way of doing things, compared to the 1980'ies. They don't seem to pursue ultimate sound quality any more, but rather a very powerful sound with lot's of watts and ooomph. I've listened to M6Si and it's the same idea.
Looks wise, I would have designed the cooling fins the same way on both casings. That must be an "oops, I forgot that".
I'll keep my old Musical Fidelity then ;)
Thanks for sharing.
You may want to check out the new A1 that I just reviewed 😊
I've said it before Tarun.... But we're clearly ofthe same era (having lusted over some of the exact same gear from the past )....
BIG amps with compact stand mounts..
Hmmm, well when I chose my Parasound JC5 power amp it was to pair with Audiovector loudspeakers... But for a few months I had the amp with (original) Kef LS50....... and that is the best that I've ever heard those sound anywhere! Whether passive, active, meta whatever...
but of course its ridiculous to suggest £7k power amplification (now at £10k!) with £0.8k loudspeakers... But as you allude to.. a large power supply/high current and the control afforded over the drivers can stun with such a combo...results astonish even more with my R3 Arreté.
.. Really enjoyed this vid 👍🏻
Th am you Marcus. I bet we are both of a similar vintage. Great to learn about your experiences 👍
Power is always fun.. but I bought a pair of clones audio PM55 monoblocks on a vim a while back. And my God it's a revelation on the proac db1's.
Cool 😎
@@abritishaudiophile7314 if you can find a pair used you should consider them. Not expensive at all, but they will knock out far more expensive stuff. I am blown away by the sound.
Preamp is a Heed thesis Alpha.
Thank you for another helpful review. Would love to hear your opinions on the Musical Fidelity 3si or 5si integrated amps if you get a chance to review them.
I hope I can get to them in time 😊
M8 700M mono blocs are the ones to go for I heard them and they rival the US esoterica and also good enough to pair with the EAR Yoshino 912 tube pre amp. Wow!
Cool 😎
Yes I own a pair with the m8 pre they drive my martin logan motion 60 speakers better than my musical fidelity a370 and I don't have to play it as loud the bass is handled buy 2 jl audio f110 fathom subs via a mini dsp and was calibrated to my room by a certified technician money well spent
Contrary to common thought you can have too much power. My hi fi journey started over 30 years ago with Audio Innovations 500 Valve amp. After a valve went “carrot” (overheated) it was rewired to provide just 12watts triode mode. So when I got the chance I built some very high sensitivity replicas of Carfrae Little Big Horn. The max recommended watts for the original speakers was 20watt per channel. With 105db per watt I can chase fidelity with much simpler circuitry. I currently run the super simple Nelson Pass designed Class A Amp Camp Amps as bridged mono blocks 15watt. But ultimately 2.25watt Decware Zen triode has to be the end game.
Thank you for sharing Steve 😊
Funny how they have the small resisters mounted in the power amp, I personally never seen them doing that, axtually smart.
Try Parasound JC1+ monoblocks! but their preamp is old and not good...Get a holo Serene for your preamp.
Thank you 😊
Your review matches what I heard over youtube demos - clean agile sound but lacking in body. I think the combination of Denafrips Athena preamp plus Keces S300 power amp would give it a run for its money.
Thank you for sharing 👍
I love power. I have two Crown xli1500 monoblocks they are class AB monsters ....
Cool 😎
Have you compared then to the M6 pre/power combo? Antony Michaelson famously wrote a letter once where he claimed that you needed minimum 500 w per channel to drive speakers properly but considered that maybe 250 W would just about do it. I think he quoted Keith Howard as his guru for that and no doubt it was reasonably self-serving in true AMS style. Intriguingly he said that top amplifiers should actually sound slightly boring because there are no artefacts or distortion which reviewers tend to mistake for something else. Thinking the likes of Naim here. But nonetheless, he makes a good point which you refer to in terms of headroom. Just wondered if you'd managed to compare the two M8 Vs M6 and had any thoughts? Thanks for another excellent review
@@jamesparsons6759 thank you. I haven’t reviewed the M6s 😊
Love your channel! I hope you get the opportunity to review some Audio Note amps. Would love to hear your thoughts on the Cobra and OTO.
Thank you Mr X. Much appreciated 😊👍
I have the M5s with SCM11s and a C1 Mk2 sub. This is like my hifi’s big brother!
Nice system 😊
Hi Tarun, very nice review of these 2 beasts. A Little bit off topic: It would be interesting if you could make a video about biwiring and biamplification. Sure a complex topic and even a controversial one, as far as i understand. But i think It could help many people like me, relatively new to this hobby. Thanks
Thank you. I appreciate the suggestion 😊
Nicely said !
Thank you 👍
"Cozy nostalgic feelings..." Wow! A lot of sharing there.
… and I thought I was understating things 😂
I was interested in the M8S pre but it's missing tone controls, L/R balance
----
source=Apple Music lossless quality
@@mrpmj00 thx for sharing 😊
Thank you for this review. Should we be concerned with regards to powering a bookshelf speaker with powerful amps of this nature, in terms of potentially overloading the speakers?
No, as long as you keep the volume to the limits of the speaker’s capacity 😊
I, too, like a little bit muscularity to the presentation. Added the Schiit Loki 4-band-eq and beefed up the midrange ! You should review that little Loki. The best value in our system my wife says.
Cool 😎
Love 90s MF stuff.. an era (from mid/late 80s onwards) of great looking audio products. Michell, Acoustic Energy etc
Thank you Will 😊
Glorious!
Cool 😎
Thank you for the review, I appreciate the in-depth inside look you always give. I have to say at their price, I was not at all impressed with the build quality and components of the amp. The preamp looks good, but you are not going to get enough of a sonic benefit to justify the ridiculous size of the preamp. The power of the amp is great but again given the price, I would think the components would be of much better quality along with the capacitance. I also think the layout overall cleanliness of the amp is in serious question. What a mess on the inside... The screams of general AVR quality... Thank you again for the review, I think you do some of the best out there currently!
Thank you for sharing Sammy. I can see why people may have an issue with the quality of capacitors in particular. However, given the extra expense of the dual mono and balanced topology and the number of output devices, transformer size, etc. they had to draw the line somewhere 😊
Great video thanks
Thank you Bryan 😊
No pro em really enjoy your videos especially the one about cheap tweaks
"free spiritedness" I was already thinking about Exposure. I'm missing that luscious "Zing!" and depth my 2010S2 had, although Hegel H120 is, indeed, better performer, but has that "flaw" of sounding solid state, which is clearly audible. Constantly wondering if I should went with 3510 instead of H120. I do "need" balanced inputs for my Schiit Gungnir though as I find Hegel integrated dac far inferior in transparency and detail.
Hence my question; From your experience so far, does any solid state amp comes close to Exposure sound? Perhaps colorized, but extremely emotional and engaging.
A Sugden A21SE would be worth considering. Tonally richer than Exposure with perhaps similar soundstaging width and depth. I need to get one in to compare again. Other than that I can’t think of anything 😊
great review as usual my brother, just an idea perhaps try there “good Value “ line integrated m2 si thru m8 si honestly they will surprise you my friend!!! takecare great review
Thank you my friend. I would like to do that 😊
@@abritishaudiophile7314 i love your channel , you do complete review and give your viewers a look inside each unit !! excellent my brother … just a suggestion, perhaps do a budget review on gear that out performs gear thats 2or 3 x more $$$$…. just a thought ( break it down amps/pre amps/intergrated// sorce / speakers …
@@fattnersgeekfile5478 thank you buddy. Much appreciated. I am trying to get some more affordable gear in to review 😊👍
@@abritishaudiophile7314 great my friend !!! i will be looking forward to it
Thank you for your lovely reviews!
This one too. I selected to view this one because I was wondering if this poweramp would be a nice match with my recently bought ATC SCM40's (occasion). And yes, you mentioned in the video checking out this match.... is it mainly because of the 500 watts this poweramp delivers? In that case I can try to get a second 851w and bridge it with the 851w I already have, that will make 500 watts each channel too. Or is there sound quality difference? .....how to find 'the best' matching poweramp for my lovely ATC SCM40's...??
Any suggestions?
(Right now a use a Primare pre30 but want to switch to tube preamp).
Thenx for sharing your ideas on this one
Thank you René. If your amp is bridgeable, then adding a second one may be beneficial. The ATC SCM40s appreciate power 😊
Musical Fidelity IS GOOD~For those with a limited budget, Musical Fidelity M6S PRX and PRE are more worth testing~ After reading your test, I replaced the speakers with ~PMC 21i and now I want to change the power amplifier. I hope you can test Musical Fidelity M6S PRX and PRE thank British Audiophile
I hope to get to them in time 😊
If you have low sensitivity speakers (78-80dB SPL 2,83V/1m), enough power is highly recommended. I would definitely choose the MF over the Hegel, but I am actually more curious about the amps from Teac.
Thank you for sharing 😊
Perhaps you spoke to this in pervious videos. Are you running on a dedicated power line with higher amp circuit breaker? Although not required, my experience is these thirsty amps like there own low gauge line and larger breaker in the fuse box. Nice review! And is amp well broken in?
Thank you. My hifi system doesn’t have a dedicated line 😊
@@abritishaudiophile7314 Set it, you’ll be surprised as I was! Also used ps audio outlets. I followed a article I found on line, by a reviewer, with skepticism. Immediate diff. Got even better after break in.
Hello Tarun, Have you thought of doing something like pairing a Pre Amp like the M8 s Pre with a different manufacturers power Amp .
I paired my M6 Pre with a NAD C298 (Cyrus CDi and Proac D20 R ) and it works very well . any chance you could do a similar type of thing for review to see where different kit can maybe compliment each other ?
It is a bit of a minefield matching pre and powers from different brands. The success rate is pretty low from my experience but still worth a go when I have time 😊
Poor Tarun! How you managed to avoid "Everything this week sounded muffled, distant and with no top end..." - impressive, hope you feel better soon.
Thank you buddy 😊👍
Hmmm…I have been sick with similar nonsense that I just can't shake…be well…
Love the tour inside both units, as always, (even if it’s out of my electronic knowledge pay grade 🤓)..
I thought the pair were going to have a much larger price tag, though.
These would be a no-go for me as your disappointment in somewhat lacking bass & mid-bass would be a deal-killer for my stand-mounts…but I like that you countered with the amps (with that kind of power), being made for floor-standers, which would hopefully bring more bottom-end into the party…
Now…about that drool-worthy M1000…🤤🤤🤤
Thank you Bob. Get well soon 👍
Rest well!
Thank you Andrei 👍
I always wanted that A1000 amp... never did though.
Ditto 😉
Hi Tarun, not many reviews on the music fidelity, great review! I am eyeing out the m8 power amp againstthe anthem STR woundering if you ever heard the Anthem power amp STR and give any thoughts which would come more recomended.
I have only heard the STR at a show so can’t say 👍
Tarun, there is a boutique and "budget" American Hi-Fi manufacturer, who makes solid state amps that I'm sure will match your Exposure equipment as far as sound statlging goes, And then some. Check out Audio by Van Alstine. I have a pair of Van Alstine DVA M225 monoblocks for sale on US Audiomart right now. I am replacing them with a lower powered Van Alstine because I'm moving into a high efficiency speaker situation. If you're interested in paying for shipment, I would take them offline and send them to you for review from the states. Matt
Thank you Matthew. They are on my radar 👍
Hi Tarun,
You asked me to get back with you when I got a chance to try out the Cambridge Audio DacMagic 200M. Well, I purchased it... I was so disappointed in it that I sent it back. I ran it for probably 20 hours or so (which should have plenty of time for any break-in to occur). It was shrill... that is probably the only way to describe it - extremely harsh. It was very fatiguing to listen to. Although it uses a very modern, twin 32bit Sabre processors, it sounded worse than the 29 year old DAC built into the Pioneer Elite PD59. I tried hooking it up with both optical and co-ax inputs, but there was no real change. It was very, very disappointing. 😔
Thanks Tasha. That is a shame. I was considering reviewing it myself at some point 🤔
@@abritishaudiophile7314
Hi Tarun,
Perhaps you would have better luck than I did. I purchased. direct from Cambridge USA, a factory refurbished unit. It was supposed to have been reconditioned to factory-fresh specs. I played Diana Krall "All For You" CD, and it sounded incredible. I was so happy... it was the first thing I played through it. Then I played Def Leppard "Pyromania" (the remastered edition) which I know sounds great... and the upper end was so shrill, so fatiguing, that I thought something was seriously wrong with my Pioneer PD59. I removed the DAC, and the shrillness disappeared immediately. I then hooked the DAC up to an old DVD player and looped a CD, for about 20 hours or so.... hooked it back up to the Pioneer, and it was just as shrill as before. Quite literally the ancient internal DAC in the Pioneer sounds light-years better. 😌
I played probably 15 or so CDs through it in total. Styles like performed by Diana Krall and Neil Diamond, it sounded great... 80s Rock and Pop (my favorite)... Ohhh Jesus!! Perhaps the DAC I received was defective in some way.
@@AgentPepsi1 very interesting Tasha. It could be that Cambridge have dropped the ball with this DAC or like you say a defective unit. John Westlake traditionally designed their DACs who was very well respected but I don’t know who designs the current ones 😊