Sam loves the McIntosh MCD205. Do You?

I wrote a review of this changer a couple of months ago in this forum here at audiogon. Do a search under Mcintosh in the "digital" forum and it should come up. I thought it an excellent sounding changer for those not interested in hyper-detail and the ultimate high-end. It is smooth, clear, and coherent. However, ultimately I believe that those looking for outstanding digital sound will want to use an external DAC. I have mine connected to an MSB Platinum Plus and the combo delivers a sound I could live with for a long time. BTW: I had no static-pop problem and am not worried about it because I know MAC would fix it if it happened (they have really good customer service).

To the person who asked for a comparison to the Anthem CD-1: I used to own the CD-1as well. The CD-1 sounded great, and I loved that it had HDCD (the 205 does not) and an XLR digital output. In the end though, I used it as a transport for the Perp. Tech gear. As a transport I did not like the internal magazine it had. It was noisy and slow. The 205 is internal as well but is is less noisy, and actually very fast. I do wish I could change discs while playing one, but only carousels seem to be able to do that.

I hope this is helpful, good luck,

I disconnected the MSB DAC to remind myself what the 205 sounded like. You know, it sounds great. Really. I don't think the DAC was a big enough of an improvement to warrant keeping it, and in fact, I think the sound of the 205 is more open and less dark than with the Platinum. I have sold the MSB and am thinking of putting the money toward an upgrade of speakers or maybe a SACD player.

This just goes to show you that you have to live with your equipment for a while to get to know it and fully appreciate all you can do.