Posted by Lew on September 20, 2002 at 06:58:55:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Time to upgrade amps....to what????? posted by Albertporter on September 19, 2002 at 17:14:56:
No one could argue your point about the cost difference between the MA2 and the Wolcotts. However, I have to ask whether your MA2s had been upgraded to the "Mk II" input circuit; i.e., did your amps have 12AT7s or 6SN7s in the input stage? This upgrade (which was done across the Atma-sphere line of products about 3-4 years ago) really profoundly improves the sound of the MA2 AND of the MA1. So, if you haven't heard the Mk II version amps in your system, I think your critique is a bit out of date. Upgrades that came after the Mk II transformation are on the order of "gilding the lily", but they too made a difference in a positive direction. Duke, who has heard both the Wolcotts and the latest MA1s and MA2s driving M1s, has a more even-handed assessment of the MA2 vs the Wolcott. To save money, the less expensive MA1 Mk II could do the job driving the M1/A1/U1, IF one applies the Sound Lab factory backplate modification, the Zero autoformers made by Paul Speltz or the Atma factory product, and/or dials in a little NFB on the MA1 (to lower the output Z).