McIntosh MC402

Has anyone had any experience running directly into a 402 from a DAC with volume control? Thanks.

I just tried to run a Benchmark DAC-1 I bought for a friend to run into my MC402. It worked fine, actually. The Benchmark´s output level can be adjusted, in fact, by switching internal jumpers. I listen to vinyl, too, and I only had the Benchmark briefling in my house and system, but I was surprised at how good the sound was.

I am currently running a Mark Levinson 390s directly (balanced ic's) into a pair of MC501's with superb results.

As for the 501, I have found this to be a wonderfully balanced amp - the bass control, midrange liquidity, top-end smoothness and soundstaging are utterly impressive for an amp in this price range (at any price really). IMHO, you would have to spend considerably more to realize any subjective "improvement". Of course, this is all dependant on sytem matching, but I would definitely try to audition a pair of 501's at home.

I am particularly interested in how well the Benchmark works into the 402 (thanks Hassel -- did you have to make internal adjustments to the DAC-1 or not?) but am interested in all such setups with the 402 (thanks Aldog).

hi all,
any ideals will the Cary 303/300 match well when connected directly to the MC402? Will the volume step be enough?

Thank you.