First, I didn’t see a post about this. I know this is a slippery slope. I’ve owned my M1200s for a little over a year. This is after owning M700s that I was never going to part with. Yeah, right. The music room has a pair of BHK 300s, in black, that are still under warranty until December 2022 for $7299.00. Does anyone have first hand experience listening to both and what differences could one expect to hear? I’m sure there’d be something.
I say it’s a slippery slope because I’m interested enough in the BHK 300s to seriously consider them. The trouble is my P-12 wouldn’t cut it. Would a P-15 be enough or would I need a P-20?
I can’t help you with any of your questions, but I will say that’s a great deal on those 300’s. I own the 300’s, and the 1200’s are on my want list to power my woofers in a bi-amp setup. Let us know whether you end up getting them, and how you think they compare.
Ask if you can try the BHK300’s in your system for a few days. If you hear and like the difference & can afford the price, grab them.
If the power difference is an issue for your setup & listening levels, keep in mind the 1200’s (which is their 4 ohm rating) are rated 600W into 8 ohms and are not 4 times the power of the BHK300’s. Also, the BHK300’s are rated 1000W at 2 ohms, the 1200’s rated as “stable for music transients”. I don’t know if that 2 ohm rating represents a meaningful, real world difference but may be worth checking out depending on your loudspeakers.
I love my M1200’s but I will own a pair of BHK 300’s someday! Someday soon. I did the same route as @davidnapo M700 to M1200’s. I’ve read and I’ve heard there is a improvement over the M1200’s which I don’t doubt. I sure we will being seeing lots of preowned BHK 300’s once the BHK 600’s out out!
I have a P10 which should suffice since it was used the prior to the P15 and P20’s existence. With what I’ve read and learned here on the forums the P10 might be the minimum for the BHK 300’s. The 15 or 20 would be preferred and the P12 may be pushed over the limits. Good question for @jamesh!
Here’s perhaps a silly question. I have a P-12. A P-20 is rated at 2000 watts. A P-12 is rated at 1250 so two of them is 2500 watts. Could you plug one BHK 300 into each one and divide your source components between them? That seems reasonable to a mechanical engineer. What say the electrical folks? I’m going to take a bath on trading the P-12. Also, I need to look at my component rack with a measuring tape to see if all these large components would fit. I custom built the rack for the basement so changing that would be really difficult.
Yes, you could do that but still, you’d be better off with a single P20. The reason is the P20 sounds sooooo much better than a P12 for whatever is plugged into it.
Thanks Paul. I was looking in the manual for the BHKs but didn’t see recommended clearances for air flow. That’s something I need to keep in mind as I dream about this.
BHK 300s need space around them to breathe. Had them in a Salamander S323 with and without side panels and mesh doors. They ran much cooler without the side panels and mesh doors.
I have said it before but it bears repeating, BHK 300s are down -3 dB at 200kHZ and switching based amps are down -3 dB at 50kHZ. These specs, although well outside the audible range, impact upper harmonics we can hear. This in turn makes the top end of these amps sound different.
Hello Davidnapo,
Nice upgrade I guess from the 1200 to the 300… I’m more at the beginning of the journey, dreaming to move from the 700 to the 1200.
To prepare that next step, I’m interested to repurpose my current P3 to sources only and would consider a P5 to feed the monoblocs placed in center position between the speakers then.
Just send me a PM if you decide to go for a P15, or P20. I would be ready to host your P5.
Whatever the path for you, good continuation. You’ll still have to upgrade to the 600 in a couple of years…
Damn, that’s a darn good deal for a pair still under warranty!! I’d be nervous about plugging the 300s into a P12. A P15 would easily power both though. And of course a P20 would fit the bill even better.
It wasn’t me. I really, really thought about it but I’d have needed a P-20 as well and those three big components wouldn’t fit in the custom rack I built in my audio room. Also, the $7400 deal would have quickly turned into $15,000.
Yes it does add up fast! It wasn’t my purchase either tho I think I can make it work with my P10. Till that time comes I will thoroughly enjoy my M1200’s!
