Mcintosh 6900/Klipsh Cornwall III - a good match?


Do they work well together?

Also:

My room is pretty small (15.sqm) and square so I'll have to put them right agaisnt the back the wall (is it OK?) and the distance between the front panel and my sofa (which is also right against the front wall) will be approximately 340 cm. Is it enough? Will they overpower the room?
antonkk

Showing 2 responses by wireless200

No way I'd do that combination. First while the 6900 sounds ok but a little harsh on the highs, putting it through the horns will not produce a plesant listening experience. It's pretty hard to get any modern SS amp to sound good through horns. The Mc 6900 doesn't even sound that great through Focals and JMLabs speakers I've heard it through. There are at least 5 or 10 other SS amps I'd choose over the McIntosh. Now if you upgrade further to Mc's high end stuff or tubes you'll be doing better.
regards, David
Generally it's not the power people buy the 6900 for but the autotransformer. Evidently that component reduces the graniness somewhat heard with the 6300/6500. It's still there, just less so. If you must go with the Mc integrated line, it's clearly the best sounding of the three in my listening tests. You'd do yourself a favor by listening to all three and more importantly other brands.

I'm a Klispch fan since the 70s and owned a half dozen models of their various lines. Every new model produced after 1990 was unlistenable not mention the drop in quality of construction (peeling veneer). I've got a pair of Forte's sitting in another room I can't bear to part with. I'm thinking about mating a Cary SLI-80 with them. I used to use them with pure analog in the mid-80s.

In any case I tried many different SS setups with the many models of Klipsh I owned with mostly poor results. They sound great with a turntable or a tube CD but otherwise the horns are pretty painful sounding. The Forte's sounded tolerable at times with Marantz gear oddly enough. Still be careful before you shell out. I speak from my own experiences.

I gave up on using Klipsch with modern digital and have gone with Aerials which do a pretty good job.

regards, David