This is an old review that I wrote, but as this amp is still available and gets some recognition from time to time, I thought I'd post my "old" review here:
Equipment list: Music Hall a25.2 amp, super pro 707 external DAC (modded), Onkyo DVCP 704 dvd/cd changer, Onic x-ls classics, Onix x-sub.
since then, I have upgraded the power cord to a Jell Fish and IC's to MAC Coppers..
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This review has been long overdue, and I think it’s mainly due to the semester finals that ended last week, which had taken a big toll on my desire to write/type and even look at a computer screen for a long time, AND I wanted to listen to the MH a bit more before I write the “review”.
It is funny that I ended up with the last one on the list of my potential choices in the 1st post of this thread…first I didn’t want it because it didn’t have tone controls or on/off on remote…but since the 1st time I listened to it, it has won me (and wifey) over, so let’s see why I like it so much…
I know it’s not really fair to compare it to my Onkyo mini receiver, due to a lot of reasons, but that’s what I’m upgrading from, so I hope it’s ok.
As most of you know I really, really liked the performance and SQ of the Onki…a lot.
Here’s what I see as the special strengths of the MH…in regard to SQ:
I thought the Onki was pretty musical, especially with the modded DAC; until I heard the Music Hall: Now this is what “musical” means to my ears..this is a subjective term, I know, so I will try to explain what it means to me, in several “segments”:
--control/imaging:
Now, the onkyo receiver was able to present music in a rather “filled” and “full” way, but it sounded like it could not have “control” over it: what some people describe as “wall of music” was always there (this improved greatly with the modded 707 DAC) , especially with congested passages of music. One good example is the “mer de noms” CD from APC, where all tracks are like that: dense, and complex, many instruments. The Music Hall made this CD more “listenable” and enjoyable more than anything I’ve tried before: clear, good separation of instruments, and no “crowding” of vocals by instruments.
Listening to “Take 5” by Dave Brubeck, I could really “see” the players at their different positions. The Onkyo did this, I must say, also very well, way beyond the capabilities of a mini system receiver, but with the MH this depth of imaging so much more pronounced.
--“naturalness”: The other aspect that I found pleasing was the “elegance” with which the MH presented jazzy music like Gretchen Lieberum/Norah Jones. The Onkyo sounded good, but it still sounded “reproduced”…The MH made me forget the equipment, and just think of the music. And amazingly, it did all this without any tone controls…which, for me, was something new. It was every bit as revealing as the Onkyo was, but the vocals have such a “human” quality to it, which makes me feel like the singer is there: cliché, I know, but true. For me, this is what “musicality” should be all about: making you just enjoy the music, by presenting it the way it is meant to sound. These 2 specific CDs had a “softer” quality to them, compared to when litstened with the Onkyo, but something tells me that this is IT: the real music, the way it was recorded. The MH, I think is also a very good match to the very revealing nature of the 707 DAC.
Next specific example is the track “round here” from the Counting crows CD “august and everything after”: it begins with what pretty much sounds like silence, before the e-guitar intro begins, and I never really heard what was in those first few seconds before that: during the initial listening session when I was seated in the living room, not straining to listen to anything, with the Music Hall, at normal listening volume(30/80), I heard, for the very 1st time, clearly, a KEYBOARD!!!, just before the guitar (where we thought was silence)! Now, I noticed this instantly, and of course I connected the Onki again, and listened: sure, now I can hear it, because I know to look for it, but it is so faint, and I have to stand right in front of the speakers, and strain to hear it. Needless to say, I was overjoyed from that moment, and that’s when I thought “this amp is a keeper”.
Now, some of you may remember that I auditioned a Cambridge Audio 640A amp sometime ago at a store (different speakers) and it could do nice, jazz-vocal type music great, but failed miserably when it came to more powerful rock/grunge/alternative type music; well, the difference with music hall is, it can do both! Equally well. It is NOT a bass heavy amp (and this, I think might be the only complaint one could make if one tried to find something lacking in the MH I think), but the bass is so well controlled, and fast. And by no means is it a slouch in that dept, and I’m not a bass head, so it suits me just fine. The onkyo has a more bassy presentation, but it is comparatively more muddled and boomy, and not so “quick” to separate dense bass passages; good e.g. is the song “Jambi” by Tool (from 10,000 days album): listen to it (esp the intro), and you’ll know what I mean.
With the MH, it is just right: tight, and precise, and the x-sub round it out very well.
It is just great to listen to an amp which can play Norah Jones so elegantly, but also play music like Tool and Pink Floyd in a way that makes you feel the power of it.
Best way I can describe the MH is:
the other amps I’ve heard so far (in this price range) made me think of the amps themselves; the MH just makes me think of music.
Those are really the only sound quality based observations I’m going to make, because those observations were the key reasons that I decided to keep the MH, despite it not having on/off button on the remote...I have gotten used to pushing the button to turn it on, and it doesn't feel like a chore; oh and the 50 wpc @ 8 ohm is cool: It is widely documented as being more than that, and I believe it. The vol scale (not a real dB scale) goes from 0-80; I can never get past 30 or 35. and it is still clean and pure at that level, and very cool running.
Now, the MH has also become part of other aspects of my audio “maturity” I think, and these aspects are not sq based, but are still very important, I think. see below the pic.
It brought some new things to the way I enjoy music:
I always wanted comfort, and was not a big fan of minimalism, and the Onkyo has tone controls, which I always thought was “needed”…yet it never really sounded musical the way I imagined some pieces of music should sound like. The MH, with no controls, taught me how good a simple, but well made amp can sound without any tone controls…never did I feel, for a second “I need more bass/treble…it plays everything just perfect (for my ears). This new found admiration for minimalism have become so important to me, and I hope to continue this aspect of the journey in the future.
Impressions of the physical design: it is very heavy, built like a tank, with very good craftsmanship. All the connectors and jacks and knobs look and feel superb. The volume knob, like I already hinted in earlier posts, is a joy to operate by hand. (can be also remote controlled). It is a digitally-controlled analog audio volume control PGA 2311 IC from Texas Instruments, according to MH. The knob is heavy, and so smooth in operation, I often find myself playing with it just because it’s so much fun. Remote vol adjustment is very precise…it just commands “respect”
I remember asking Patrick (SetterP) about his shrimp and asking him if he missed remote vol control, and he told me how good it feels to operate the vol knob of the shrimp just for the tactical experience of it…MH is no shrimp for sure, but Patrick: I know what you meant now. This is where the MH blows (for e.g.) the Cambridge amps out of the water, the CA amps had wobbly, poorly implemented hardware. I know they do sound good, but they felt so cheap to touch and operate, and light. The MH does have remote vol. control, btw
I love the round display window, with the blue display, which shows vol level and input. It is very classy and elegant looking. The display can be dimmed to 3 levels.
I also like the side by side horizontal arrangement of the banana connectors for speakers, and all the jacks are very solid, and gold plated. The removable power cord is a plus, and the remote is very well made and looks classy, too.
The pre outs of course are great to have, and it enables use of my X sub, and or a power amp in the future, if I ever feel I need more power. (and if that power amp has loop puts like Parasound amps often do, I can still use the x-sub).
The headphone quality, using my rather low end Yamaha headphones, is really good, and loads better than the HK receiver I once tried.
I think the MH deserves better ICs’ and PC than what I have now; will upgrade them asap.
In the end, I found the MH from audiogon (3 mon old, mint condition) for $375 shipped, and I returned the audioadvisor demo/audition unit for a refund under 30 days. and if think about the $$ I got from selling the extra onki receiver and the swans pc speakers, and after deducting shipping back to aa, the end price for my MH upgrade was something like $240 or so...I'm pretty happy with it.
That’s it, guys; Thanks for reading.
