Article: McIntosh D1100 Digital Preamplifier DAC Review - Part One

[med_designer]

Chris -

 

I own a D150 and was considering upgrading to a D1100 or adding a PS Audio Direct Stream Jr. I also have a MCT450 CD/SACD transport. I like DSD and SACD quite a bit and like the idea of the DirectStream Jr taking all PCM and doing it's thing with PCM signals.

 

However, part of the Mac appeal is the how they handle the analog side of the equation which it very important and this is where their 50 years of audio expertise really starts to shine. The transport is a 50 pound tank and the over performance is very impressive. I am wondering how much of an improvement one would see with the D1100 over my current setup vs. the Direct Stream which would definitely change the analog side of things. D150 would still do SACD in that case.

 

Downstream it is all tube pre-amp and amp although I could bypass the pre. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Very nice article - thanks for writing up. Lot's of folks ignore Mac and while it can be expensive I personally do see the value in it and have drunk their Kool-Aid. :-)