Haha! Although I am retired, 81 is my house number. I really liked the s300. But I seemed to notice some grit in the higher frequencies and hoped the 700s would remove that. I was not prepared for such an improvement across the board, right out of the boxes.
richter250, have you ever considered adding DWM bass panels to your 3.7is? My set up is the 3.7is, DWM bass panels being driven by M1200s. Adding the DWM bass panels gets you really close to the bass slam you can get with 20.7s, without the size and expense. I got deeper overall bass and a lot punchier mid bass by adding them.
Great suggestion @davidnapo and I have thought about that myself. However, I use a JL Audio Fathom f113 in a fairly small room. Not sure the DWM would offer me any benefits. I can get the sub to match up pretty well with the Maggies using a low crossover point.
If you already have a sub and you’re happy with it I probably wouldn’t spend the money. I have an I-beam in my basement that limits height so 20.7s are out for me. I also have a very long, narrow room. It’s pretty bass hostile. I’ve had the opportunity to hear 3.7is, 20.7s, & even the 30.7s in the same space at the listening room in Chestertown, MD. I will say the DWM panels offer true Magnepan bass. It is very fast and musical in a way I don’t typically hear with a sub. To be fair, most of my friends are multi system folks meaning they have a mix of 2 and multi channel. My set up is 2 channel only and I would never suggest my arrangement for movies. I don’t know if you have the luxury of borrowing one or more from your dealer or not. If you can, I’d recommend you try them. Like a sub, you can place your 3.7is and the DWM independently for best effect.
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Ok, I have no issue with your issue. I suppose the Hypex SMPS1200A400 power module could be considered a very cheap power supply as could the input buffer designed by Sparcos Labs using their discrete opamps. The other comparison I made was to the Benchmark AHB2. Perhaps that is the more fair comparison because running two of them in mono mode would be the same price as the M1200.
Yes, I agree. I think Hypex price to the point that manufacturers can use them OEM and keep their prices sensible, and many manufacturers do so. The Hypex and Purifi are designed to be used with the Hypex power unit unmodified (but they do bespoke tweaks), whereas the ICEPower are designed as a platform specifically to be modified, so I fully accept why PS Audio chose to use them (not because they are so cheap).
The AHB2 is a fair comparison and I posted a review from last month elsewhere a few minutes ago. There are a lot of Class D hybrids at the M1200 price point with seriously good power supplies. The first one I used was Linn Dynamik in 2009, it is now much improved.
As I mentioned, in the UK we have Nord making identical units to VTV at the same prices, it’s pick-and-mix audio.
I saw Arek now does an active valve input stage, which I think you mentioned you have, which might be comparable to Daren’s board.
http://www.hattor.com/tubeactivestage.html
It’s quite expensive at $1,900. Stick that in front of a Hattor Ultimate and you are up at $5,000 already, but have a very high spec product.
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Haha…good heavens. I use the analogy for the physical and performance aspects only, not the sentient and spiritual. When I was studying in Jerusalem, we had quite the rousing debate about the Nephilim and Rephaim and got to travel through the Valley of the (Giants) Rephaim. It left quite an impression on me.
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Besides studying Noach as one of my son’s Torah portions, the other son (called Noah) was obsessed with a book called Noah and the Space Ark. I must have read it to him 500 times. It’s a fantastic book. It may seem difficult to enjoy reading the same book 500 times, but if there is one, that’s a good choice.
I’m sure you are aware that the Hebrew text does not always translate well, like Moses’ horns. There’s not much of Israel I’ve not visited, and my youngest is doing his masters at IDC in Herzliya from October.
Thanks for sharing. That’s the kind of personal info that makes this audio hobby worthwhile for me. Me, I’m the most Zionist goy you will probably ever meet. I confess to a multiple split personality with degrees in chemistry, law and theology. Talk about a witches brew, lol. My Hebrew is even weaker than my Greek, so I leave the translating up to the experts.
I had the best time of my life studying at the Holy Land Institute located in the old City of David section of Jerusalem. Our main program of biblical geography and archaeology led us to every square mile of Israel proper and quite a bit of the adjoining areas. It’s incredible to me that just about every climate, and geographical feature in the world is all packed into such a small area. The snow on Mount Herman, the tropical springs near Masada, the vast desert of the Negev, the fertile plains etched by wadis, the beautiful beaches on the Med… There is no place else on earth where you will see such variation in a few hours drive. I think the only thing missing is a glacier. Just incredible.
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We are amusingly similar: organic chemistry, philosophy, law, music.
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Since our current culture has turned diversity into an abomination, I just say, “let’s celebrate our weirdness.”
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It is remarkably varied. We once did spa-hopping from Carmel a few miles form Haifa to Bereeshit at Mitzpe Ramon in the middle of the Negev. You see everything except glaciers. One of the remarkable things is driving from Jerusalem down to the Dead Sea after it rains, which happens once every few years. Besides dropping 4,000ft elevation in 20 miles, the desert goes from brown to green in about an hour. The only thing similar, on a bigger scale, is driving from Bristlecone Pines in California to Death Valley, about 11,000 feet drop but over 130 miles.
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To be honest, my wife and I were discussing the other day that after all this Covid-19 thing ends, all we want to do is go to a place on the corner of Ben Yehuda and Arlozorov and have hummus, falafel, pitta, salad and some tea. Not a lot to ask.
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An excellent plan.
I like to think the combination of left and right brain activities is a good thing.
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= Patent Attorney? 
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Another excellent review for the M1200. My favorite line “The M1200 is not a good amplifier; it is a superb one.” I couldn’t agree more. Thanks PS Audio. My Maggie 3.7is have never sounded better. The class D haters really need to take note and take a listen.
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Hi, I know it’s some time since your post - would you be able to share your thoughts on how the M1200s compare to the NAD M22? I have the M22 so would be very interested in hearing how it went for you.
Welcome @Interested!
This thread is growing bigger and bigger, and here is my little dilemma:
I currently have the M700s and love them, wanting to upgrade straight to M1200s, until, however, I got really tube curious after acquiring an McIntosh C22 pre-amp. I know the M1200s are tubes hybrid, but I really want to hear what a full tube power amp would sound…
So for the price of a pair M1200s, I can get: a Primaluna EVO 400, or a McIntosh 275, how would these three power amps compare side by side against each other? I’d love to buy all 3 and just forget about it, but that’d be too crazy in my book. Maybe there is a 1st, and 2nd and third purchase priority in them, over a span of say 3 years?
Would love the hear from someone here who had/has experience with all three and what’s their impressions are…
Cheers.