McAlister Audio Tube Amp In The House

ND13

I know, just joshing. I think I'm going to end up having an Odyssey built for me, right here in Indy. Will be meeting up with Klaus(the owner) later this week.

You have that Rotel priced very fair.

SCompRacer

ND13 wrote:

I think I'm going to end up having an Odyssey built for me, right here in Indy.

Thats kewl. :cool: Do they do custom builds too?

ND13

From my talk a few minutes ago with Klaus, it sure seems that way.

madmax

I've already sent an e-mail to have an amp and preamp built for me by mcalister. I hope he agrees!!! Thanks for the heads up on the biasing. I have several Jolidas which I bias regually but a houston I have hasn't been biased since I got it a few years ago mainly since you have to disassemble it to do the task. This is a really good thing to ask for. I'm pretty excited about getting a mcalister amp and pre. I hope it meets my expectations! One thing I have a problem with is re-sale value with the mcalister products. Oh well, I just hope they deliver on the sound. If they do, there will be no problem on the re-sale aspect.
madmax

SCompRacer

I suppose you could ask him if he would resell it if you didn't like it. I don't think it's ever happened with any of the amps he has sold so far. Only thing is you don't get instant gratification, you wait for it to be built. He just asks for a deposit up front, balance due when finished.

Like I mentioned he does do custom work. I am having a brass overlay plate installed on the top of the pre amp engraved with the tube numbers. We are having MM phono sections added too. We will have four inputs and two outputs. Option of two volume knobs, or one volume, one balance. No remote volume option though I may explore that on my own with his input for adding it. I think Norm wants one pair of outputs on the front of his pre so he won't have to buy longer interconnects. I want all my inputs and outputs on the back.

He will do balanced inputs on the pre, but that requires adding another tube. Or he can install them without the tube but they wouldn't be true balanced inputs. The pre amp has a seperate power supply too. I asked him to put it on the smallest chassis possible.

I sure hope you like it. If I didn't like mine, I wouldn't have said I did or sold my Rotel.

EDIT: He will build an MC phono pre amp but it costs much more than the MM. I don't have enough vinyl to make it worth upgrading my TT. IIRC, he wouldn't add a MC section to the pre amp, it would have to be seperate.

ND13

Rich,

How much of a deposit does he require?

SCompRacer

I gave him a $200 deposit on the amp.

fredv

Hi Rich,

This is probably a stupid question because you are using the amp with your SDA. Is the amp common ground? Or, you are using an AI-1. I want to use it with my SDA SRS 2.3. I am going to order the PL-10 first. I told him that I had no plan to use headphone and would be straightly preamp. I also wanted a phono stage, and here is his response:

Good to know exactly what application you intend for the pre-amp. I do make
some small changes to the gain stage to match better as a pre-amp. In
regards to the phono stage I could add to the pre-amp but this phono stage
requires 4 additional tubes- this is an all tube MM that would cost an
additional $100.00. This is one of the better phono stage amps on the market
at any price with shunt regulation and no transistors.

I am sold and ready to put in my order. The last piece is what sort of "enhancement" such as make the bias adjustment more accessible I should request?

Thanks,

SCompRacer

Hi Fred,

First off, it's not a stupid question. That was one of the first questions I asked him and yes, the amp is common ground and I am using the standard Polk manufactured interconnect.

In regards to the bias adjustments, he prefers them inside the amp, but will make them externally adjustable for $50 or so. Like the chassis mounted scewdriver adjustments you commonly see. He told me one fellow wanted them on the top with knobs. That sounds scary cause if you bump one while dusting and the bias is adjusted improperly, you can destroy the output tubes in a matter of minutes.

madmax

I asked him if it is common ground and he said it is so SDA is no problem. He also commented that for $50 additional he will put the trim pots for bias and connections for the a voltmeter where you can get to them without removing the case. Give all this some thought. It would be a shame to forget about something you want given that it can easily be spec'd in right now.
madmax

madmax

I forgot to ask if he is using 4 or 8 ohm taps and if both could be provided.
madmax

SCompRacer

We talked about the load question once. He interleaves four secondary sections in a series parallel configuration in his output transformer which gives incredible performance with very little HF loss or overshoot. He believes the sound would be compromised using a transformer design with different taps out of the secondary windings. The amp will work with either 4 or 8 Ohm loads, keeping in mind speaker impedance varies anyway.

ND13

MM,

What types of custom adds did you request? I really need to make some sort of decision, in the next few days, as to what and which type of amp I'm gonna get to drive the SRS 2s. It's down to this amp, an Odyssey SS, a Lazurus Hybrid, or a Parasound Ultra High Current series(HCA) or Halo series.

Does anyone have any experience with Lazarus hybrid amps??? The one I'm looking at has 385 wpc @ 4ohms. That would be plenty.

madmax

I just got done ordering mine.

My preamp (PL10) will have 6 inputs, 2 outputs and will be adjusted to match best as a line amp rather than for use with headphones.

The amp (PP150S) will have the front configured the same as the SE30 amp pictured on the website with the gold plate and connections on the front. I also ordered the accessible bias controls for an additional $50.

madmax

ND13

Thanks, I would only need the amp, as I just got my MLP about an hour or so ago.

I was just wondering what you had done to the amp as far as options go. The accessible bias pots would be a must....but from what Rich has discussed with me(if I followed him right) the bias, once adjusted, will not drift very often if at all. I would have to think that when replacing tubes, it would come in mighty handy, wouldn't you agree?

TroyD

Easy access to the bias controls are a BIG plus......

Hmmmm...I'm REALLY interested in what MM thinks of the PP150S when he gets it.

BDT

madmax

TroyD wrote:

Hmmmm...I'm REALLY interested in what MM thinks of the PP150S when he gets it.

BDT

Yea, MM is too!

I hope it sounds better than the Jolida/AI combo but I've been disappointed before. Now I just need to forget about it for about 4 weeks...

madmax

TroyD

Judging by the prices on the website, if they sound as good as advertised, they are a STEAL.

I'll be on the edge of my seat until your review.

BDT

fredv

madmax wrote:

I just got done ordering mine.

My preamp (PL10) will have 6 inputs, 2 outputs and will be adjusted to match best as a line amp rather than for use with headphones.

The amp (PP150S) will have the front configured the same as the SE30 amp pictured on the website with the gold plate and connections on the front. I also ordered the accessible bias controls for an additional $50.

madmax

Hi MM,

Does the PL10 require bias adjustment as well? Or, it is not as important as the pwoer amp? Also, did you order the MM phono stage?

madmax

I passed on the phono stage for now. I might try one later but doubt it will sound as good as the acoustech. Good price though. It was only $250. As I understand it only the power tubes need to be biased.
madmax

fredv

Thanks, madmax. I can see my green backs flying to Peter within a week. PL10 pre-only with phono stage for sure. PP150S is being debated by my left and right brain :-) I am thinking about order one exactly like yours with the speaker binding posts upgrade to 5 ways.

SCompRacer

madmax wrote:

Yea, MM is too!

Too bad we didn't live closer to where we could hook up and you could demo it. I know I don't have the seat time you do in audio gear, but do know I have been very fortunate to have moved up in sound quality for very little money spent. I'm proud but not stupid. If it didn't sound good, $850 doesn’t seem like much to have gambled with in audio gear and it would be gone.

I also wanted to state that I have no affiliation with McAlister other than to be a happy customer due to a word of mouth referral from another happy customer. You should talk to him at least once to hear the passion he has for his product. I was unsure of trying one until I spoke to him first. I may not have much experience with audio gear, but I do know how to read people.

madmax

Oh, I see, now that I've ordered one you now have no affiliation... Just kidding.

Hey, we all take the chances when we try something new. Good or bad it is all part of the fun. Heck, even if I like it I will probably be ready to try something new in a year or so. There really wasn't any reason to even try them given my content with the Jolida. It's fun, what can I say. Even if I hooked it up and it sounded like an AM radio I would just mark it up to experience. I've been very lucky with a lot of stuff too so statistically it is about time for a fall.

madmax

Edit: I just re-read that and it could have sounded a little negative maybe. Not meant to be. I'm sure the McAlister will be a great product. You know how it goes, no matter what the quality of a particular product sometimes in a system you get that special synergy, sometimes you don't. Thats all I meant.

It's going to be really hard to wait for them to be built, I'm very excited about it!!!

Normanality

Just arrived home from a week's vacation up to South Dakota and
this was here waiting for me.....

Normanality

Make sure to specifically request the brass 3 way binding posts

ND13

Congrats Norm!!! :cool:

Let us know what you think and once Madmax has his and I see a trend, I'll most likely give Peter a call myself.

Not that I don't trust you Rich, you know that.. I just want to see some consistency in the product is all.

Norm's is prettier

madmax

Why request the 3 way binding posts. I still have time if necessary.

ND, just put in the order... The price can only go up. If it is anything at all the asking price is way too low. It is only slightly higher than a used Jolida and I have been assured it is in a different class. (I hope it's a higher class)

I'm glad you got it ok Norm. Be sure to give us a song by song performance report. I got nothing better to do than read about it for the next 6 weeks or so... I'm going nuts here.

madmax

W WALDECKER

ND13 wrote:

Congrats Norm!!! :cool:

Let us know what you think and once Madmax has his and I see a trend, I'll most likely give Peter a call myself.

Not that I don't trust you Rich, you know that.. I just want to see some consistency in the product is all.

Norm's is prettier

Hey ND13, the PP 150S looks promising, dont you think? are there any reliable reviews on any of this gear that you know of ?i might want to pull the trigger on a amp like this one just so i can power a pair of SDAs in a second 2 channel rig. the PP 150S looks to be a dual mono design i wonder if it is a common ground unit also? i will have to look into it....thanks....WCW III

ND13

W WALDECKER wrote:

Hey ND13, the PP 150S looks promising, dont you think? are there any reliable reviews on any of this gear that you know of ?i might want to pull the trigger on a amp like this one just so i can power a pair of SDAs in a second 2 channel rig. the PP 150S looks to be a dual mono design i wonder if it is a common ground unit also? i will have to look into it....thanks....WCW III

Yes, it does look very promising. As soon as I have a couple of things wrapped up with deals here with a couple of members, I will call Peter and order one. Any equivalently powerful tube amp on the market is at least twice as much and still probably not as robust, just prettier. I do know that it's fine to run with SDAs so no ground issues there. It's just a departure from the norm in the design and tube compilation compared with almost all the other offerings out there and to be honest, that's one of the main attractions to me.

Rich's and Norm's reviews are reliable enough for me.

madmax

fredv wrote:

Thanks, madmax. I can see my green backs flying to Peter within a week. PL10 pre-only with phono stage for sure. PP150S is being debated by my left and right brain :-) I am thinking about order one exactly like yours with the speaker binding posts upgrade to 5 ways.

Oops, sorry fredv, somehow I totally missed your post. Pre's normally do not require adjustment, they are self biasing. I checked on the MC external preamp and it was an awesome price but I decided to pass for now because I just bought two other ones to try out. He does an internal MM preamp for a REALLY cheap price. Just figure out which one you plan on using.
madmax