MCINTOSH 901 MONOBLOCKS & Sonus Faber SE 17 - How Do You Connect These?

Today I walk you through how to connect my mcintosh 901 monoblocks with the Sonus Faber SE17 loudspeaker. This is going to be a good education video for many of you who dont have a clue how to connect speakers that have such capabilities. Enjoy it!
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#mcintosh
#sonusfaber
#highendaudio
#cables
#hifi
#amplifier
#loudspeaker

[@brentcollins9727]

I’m so glad these ultra rare birds are getting this detailed, in depth review, instead of sitting in someone’s house.

[@sdgtech2]

10K views in just 2 days suggesting many McIntosh lovers. This American brand can not be ignored

[@DW11111]

or it suggest many people who want to watch the cable hookup itself and don't care about amps from a company that forces their employees to get the jab.

[@craigkeehn4223]

I love that these amps are getting some attention! Before I switched to horns, I was planning on running these to power my towers. Great choice

[@badbruise]

About time someone showed this stuff being hooked up.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Did you do your job of sharing this video and liking it ?

[@stifoli]

Happy Mcintosh has finally entered the Lab!!!!

[@dannyramanand2551]

Love to see guys like you connecting these hi end audio i can only dream about

[@nathanbell6962]

Your living the dream Jay!

[@snomofilms]

Thanks for that detail. Need to show us how you set the crossovers on the amps though to match your speaker.

[@mcaxz]

Beautiful amplifier....thanks for the video.

[@druboudreaux3673]

Can’t wait to see the review. I hope you love them

[@louisperlman8030]

Great stuff, and I’m very much looking forward to the listening sessions.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thanks for listening

[@DrBroncanuus]

wow the 901's have been my dream amps for awhile....

[@jdl8422]

Keep these types of videos going! I'd love to see more, show how you hook up sources, ECT. Thanks for the videos

[@jpthill9030]

Top interesting and useful content ! Thank you. Now let's listen to the result 🙂

[@jaysaudiolab]

Soon

[@pyntzer]

very nice video Jay

[@brown-eyedman4040]

Thanks, Jay for sharing the fun. Interesting amps, looking forward to your review. Btw, back in the day, I saw the premier of the Grateful Dead's 'Wall of Sound'. Possibly the biggest stack of McInstosh amps ever.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Very cool!

[@RickP2040]

Jay you got to hear the all new Apurna TM Audio Amps from France your never forget it for the rest of your life ! OMG...World's Best Gear ??

[@johnkal8403]

Thanks Jay for the great videos. Those Macs do look beautiful.

[@jaysaudiolab]

They are!

[@MrRay-nt6vb]

Great video; I learned a lot. Thank-you.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Glad it was helpful!

[@soberspine]

Thank you for the video, highly apreciated.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Glad it was helpful!

[@770Stephens]

Great video Jay. I own these amps as well and have configured them many different ways. Just a suggestion. Get another amp for the 15’s. Class D even. Run the 901’s with the back on the 10’s and the front on the mids/tweets. It will give the best sound and the most adjustability. Last, consider using the 8 ohm taps in this configuration. If the overall rating is 4:ohm, splitting the load is not 4 ohm and may work better on the 8 ohm tap and have more power. My meters on 4 7 foot panels never move as much as what I’m seeing with yours. Thanks for giving these amps some justice!

[@jaysaudiolab]

Awesome advice

[@InPursuitOfLiberty]

I saw these next to the McIntosh MA12000 integrated amp I bought. They look so freakn gorgeous! And wow the sound!

[@mahasidha9]

Did you happen to audition the McIntosh MA9500? I promised my wife no tubes. We have the Martin Logan Expression 13A ESL

[@kurthill7030]

Great can't wait for your opinions on the monos

[@jaysaudiolab]

You and me both!

[@TheRollorokka]

That was the first time for me to see Mcintosh MC901 amp being used correctly. Really interested what you think of them sound wise.

[@stephenbarnes8817]

Times have changed. Mac’s in the house. Very interesting. Listening with my brand new T&A wireless headphones now. Only problem is I hear your breathing while you’re talking as well too, lol

[@rw3915]

Keep up the nice work Jay.👍

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thanks, will do!

[@user-wr4vp4mt7e]

Beautiful amplifier s..thanks for the video s ...mega nice info,,,,,

[@jaysaudiolab]

Glad you liked it!

[@BobFrostV]

The Mcintosh looks phenomenal

[@sidvicious3129]

INSANE!!!!

[@breakoutpete210]

Great informative videos of a dream system 👌👌👌

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thanks for liking

[@jeffreythurston1822]

So beautiful Jay. Please share a video with you setting up the crossover adjustment.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Will do!

[@christiansundeqvist6077]

Fantastic amps! Is there a reason you have chosen “direct” on the tube input and “composite” on the solid state input? It doesn’t make any sense to me to only use the internal crossover on the low section and not on the high section. 🙂

[@gmoney1961]

Nice 👍🏽👏🏽👏🏽

[@adrianadrianp5305]

Gotta hand it to you for going out and trying all this amazing kit, keep it up Dude

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thanks, will do!

[@adrianadrianp5305]

@@jaysaudiolab I still love my original Sonus Faber Extremas so great too see you with today's top SF speakers (well just yesterday's !)

[@imosolar]

Jay - great KZbin channel and please do more of this content 🎉

[@jaysaudiolab]

Then share this video in as many places as you can to help and I’ll do the rest.

[@imosolar]

@@jaysaudiolab I always do share

[@PopeOfBuffalo]

Hi Jay, I’ve had a number of McIntosh amps over the years and I would highly recommend trying the 8ohm taps as well. After I A/B things, I always seem to stick with the 8ohm taps.

[@carminedesanto6746]

Excellent 😎

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@jazzlouise]

Liked the install and more importantly I will be excided to hear how they sound with the Mac gear.

[@jaysaudiolab]

You and me both!

[@ridirefain6606]

Cannot wait to view your experience with them. 😁

[@jaysaudiolab]

Soon - just do me a favor and share this video in as many places as possible.

[@tommyv8584]

Exquisite !👍🎶🤚…..

[@jaysaudiolab]

Many thanks!!

[@danielesbordone1871]

Best way to bi-amp or tri-amp is with an electronic crossover.

[@allenh.7373]

I would love to tell Jay a very funny (to me) joke and start cracking up, only to see him look back at me straight faced and expressionless.

[@chasehatton3691]

It would be great to hear "Fast Car" again with this most recent setup.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Soon

[@Finery_Binary]

Have you tried experimenting with different permutations of amp connections. Does it alter the sound significantly?

[@ac81017]

I would recommend you try connecting the main cables to Deep Low plus and Low minus, and the Jumpers from Deep low minus to low plus.

[@eddievega1100]

Back in the late 70’s up until the early 2000’’s .DBX dynamic range expanders were a price of gear to have . I k ow of some record shops that had them hook up to there systems. Would they still be a viable price of gear to own today ?

[@geir8849]

Jay, I really like this video, and can't wait to listen and hear your take on the amps. Feels like you are taking a different path now. Can you tell what source/Dac you will use together with them?

[@jaysaudiolab]

Lampizator horizon Dac

[@geir8849]

@@jaysaudiolab Wow. Interesting.

[@Hector_Malot]

the lifting crane is supplied with these monoblocks (82 kgs)?

[@nigelbrittonaudiophilemusi6272]

Always been interested in how the top Macs do in a High end system

[@samuelcain5426]

Hey Jay how about antother American audio co latest. Mark Levinson 536 mono's 400wpc and 526 preamp

[@rrd1975]

Please come to my home and bring those Mighty Macs with you! You can show me how to connect those beasts and of course, leave them here for an extended visit. Just think how much cooler your listening room will be without the heat generated by those huge amps! All kidding aside, thank you for this presentation.

[@Tom-zg1yj]

Hii! Thanks for the shows and info. I think I see you hooked up the speaker wire on the Class D to the sub low and not the mid/low- …so I think your speaker wire running to the mid/low is best for resolution- and jump to the sub low as the sub low will be less affected then the mid low from the jumper cable. Best, Tom

[@Tom-zg1yj]

Any thoughts on what I wrote? I think that is why you used your best cable for the tubes- hi input- obviously if you go through straight cable it’s the best connection and the sub low will be the least affected by going through the jumper cables… what ya think?? I was hoping to get your thoughts. Best, Tom

[@hemen-dex]

Best audiophile channel on YT!

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thank you

[@starzas1998]

Hey there jay thanks for the video , really excited to see how will these 901s do against apex and other ultra high end amps, when can we hear your opinion about these beasts?

[@jaysaudiolab]

Next month

[@jiyadas]

Great video Jay, you can try the 8 ohm taps as suggested by another gentleman. On my MC1.25KW I run the 4 ohm to my MA Platinum PL500, I use jumper wires as my speaker cables are not bi-wire able. But I am in the process of buying another pair of the same cables. 4 ohm will go to the high terminals, and the 8 ohm will go to the low terminals. I have been advised that this combination works very well on the quad balanced design of the MC1.25KW. But in your case, using all 8 ohm taps will be better, the amplifier architecture is different on the 901s

[@jaysaudiolab]

I plan to do this as well. What’s confusing is that amps put out more power at lower impedances so going to 8ohms from 4ohm should actually feed less power to the woofers.

[@jiyadas]

@jaysaudiolab yes but mcintosh has the same power at all ohms, unlike other companies. So my MC1.25KW is 1200 watts at 2, 4 and 8 which also means if I am using 2 different taps one won't be louder than the other. On other amps 4 ohms tap will be louder than the 8 ohm but most other amps don't even have different taps just one, so you can't even do it.

[@Attlechief]

Ciao jay from Australia 👍🙂😎

[@jaysaudiolab]

Hello there!

[@friedmule5403]

I am very interested in how you'll react to that sound. In one way is it clearly a downgrade, both in power and details, but on the other hand do you get a warmer sound that may please you more. Do you want a no F given truck or a small sporty car? :-)

[@dabigguardian5138]

Just wondering why 4ohm tap,wondering if you tried the 8ohm,might give a sonic difference, i'm sure you must have had tried both,your configuration gives better justice to sonos, i bet you must be looking for another McIntosh for your tens

[@marksironi3324]

Those locking banana connectors remove most of my objection to banana plugs, that they loosen over time. That said I'm running Boulder to Wilson so I can use whatever I want as long as it's spades. I'm not a huge fan of McIntosh, at least of the pieces I've heard, either the sound or the aesthetics. Too much sonic sugar coating for my tastes. But I've never heard those amps. The concept of the tube + SS for bi-amping is intriguing. Although I'm not giving up my Boulder/Wilson combo any time soon. :)

[@RobFishbein-ju2yk]

Stellar display of gear. Impressive. congrats. Room treatment screen would love to hang out. Appreciate the insight. Are you broke now? Looks like your shirt came from the dollar store. Just kidding. You’re the coolest. Cheers

[@jaysaudiolab]

Broke for sure after all this stuff !

[@SUFCDave51]

Looking forward to your opinions on the sound quality ...

[@helgar791]

Thanks Jay. As usual a concise and well delineated video. What bothers me however is how people would bother to even find the time to dislike your video. To what end? In my mind it's either pure jealousy or ignorance.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Good point!

[@johns9349]

Because many audiophiles who have been doing this much longer than jay, know that most of this is nonsense and that you don’t have to spend these exorbitant amounts on hifi to get good sound. I can afford all of this gear and much more, but would never spend that much because I know it does not produce better sound. The prices have just gotten stupid. and people mistake clarity for good sound. Good sound is being able to listen all day without fatigue and still having all of the attributes you want out of a system. Too many noobs on here lusting after overpriced gear. Look in many of the engineers houses. The designers. Many microphone designers and record producers. They have very nice equipment, sure. But not ridiculously overpriced nonsense. And no expensive cables. jay either does not know any better, or he’s hustling you. he seems like a nice guy, so perhaps he just does not know any better. he swaps speakers and electronics out like crazy and thinks that makes him an expert. It does not. Many of the speakers he’s had in that tiny room are too big for that room, anyway. he’s a salesman. he’s running a business. And playing with toys. It’s pretty sad that so many guys come on here and drool over this stuff. I’ve heard systems that cost a fraction of what his cost that sound far better than his systems sound.

[@helgar791]

@@johns9349 I've also been doing this for a very long time as well. I bought my first system 50 years ago. Over that time I've heard many systems. Not only at shows, but much more often in peoples homes, as well as my own. I also know for a fact that throwing money at a problem does not always translate into success, no matter the field. Here's my problem with your assessment. After being in bands for 20 years and going to hundreds of concerts, listening to a thousands of bands and orchestras, hearing many real instruments in real spaces, often up close, I've noticed three important factors: real music has far more high frequency energy, more mid range energy than most systems portray, and only small combo jazz, classical quartets, and small combos of modern musics give you any real, precise imaging. Real instruments also produce tons of natural, even order distortions. When I do hear these distortions produced in homes it becomes fatiguing. Why is that, and why can the human ear distinguish a real instrument from a reproduced one in an intimate environment? I don't know. But IMO, systems which are non-fatiguing, which please the ear, and lack that high frequency energy and impact is just as unnatural as systems with fatiguing highs and "thunderous lows". But most importantly I've come to realize that the best system in the world is the one that you like, the one that pleases you. I'm happy that yours pleases you. When you start saying single ended horn systems are better than large, high wattage, multi speaker systems, and they're better than small near field systems, which are better than open backed systems; that highly detailed systems are better than lower resolution, organic, musical systems, that tubes are better than solid state, my response is you're immediately wrong, you're too full of yourself, and the world of Hi-Fi is bigger and better than your prejudices. If you're happy with your system, congratulations and happy trails.

[@mormodog]

Cool video. Jay where is your McIntosh wrench?

[@jaysaudiolab]

In the box lol

[@davidlee4358]

How does sound?

[@belfort777]

Jay, why don’t you test Spectral gear? Wilson Audio was using it (i am now sure if still) on alll its presentations on faires. Maybe you miss something spectacular. They strongly cooperate with MIT.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Someday

[@tehseenamir6666]

could you make a video about how to connect magico analog cross over mxo with magico m9 speakers.? If possible please make it for me.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Cant. I don’t own m9

[@tehseenamir6666]

@@jaysaudiolab do you explain on paper how active cross over like mxo connect with speakers.

[@damaisentosa4631]

Directly from DAC to Amp? Without preamplifier?

[@jaysaudiolab]

Yes

[@jiyadas]

​@jaysaudiolab I think you will benefit running the 901s from a proper preamp.and not using a DAC as a pre. There are many pros and less cons to such an approach. No matter how good a DAC a proper pre-amp is required for best sound.

[@KT88gs]

Audiophile gloves Jay?!

[@perfectsoundpursuit007]

From my experience, bi wire have more stage, more detailed. After i make this, i never use single wire.. I use more cables to woofer, copper, silver.. I think you have same experience with stage. BR

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thanks for sharing

[@jaysullivan9545]

Ooooh. Ahhhhh.

[@gadymarcus2362]

Bello/Magnifico.💪✡️✡️✡️✡️✡️✡️

[@oohtob6685]

BANG 💣 LOL OOPS. 😢

[@tseumd58]

I prefer boulder amps.

[@CarlVanDoren61]

Quarter million setup? 😮

[@jaysaudiolab]

More like $500k

[@user-vr3sq1kq6i]

Folks - I have been in this hobby 40 years ,,,,,, I will give you a tip ..... there is no way in the world that you can look at a system and know if you will like it . Some of the most incredible looking systems had sound that I dd not like. On the reverse some very humble looking systems had extremely engaging wonderful sound.. Examples of this - I have heard field coil speakers which were spooky good and yet were basically modified ALTEC 19 ....... I have heard old Quad electrostatic speakers which had almost perfect vocal reproduction ,,,,,,, I have heard Omnidirectional speakers such as the German Pyskics that blew my mind .... bottom line is you MUST go to the audio shows yourself and with your own ears and educate yourself . Also some of these brands sound good in one very small sweet spot - you move and the quality drops quicky and dramatically ....... this is a hobby where you want to be a sceptic .

[@johns9349]

Completely agree. I’ve heard systems costing $20k that I already know sound better than jay’s rig. Nothing against jay or this gear, but nothing compares with the presence of classic horn designs.

[@johns9349]

Also, I’ve been into high end audio over 30 years. people today drool over everything. Some of the ultra high end is shamefully boring and terrible sounding.

[@donaldbryant5295]

If I could only hear 'em...

[@glenncurry3041]

Where is the crossover? Are you bypassing the speaker's internal one? Are you using an electronic one? Is one built into the Mc? You can't just bypass the speaker's internal crossover and feed full range to the mid/ tweeter!

[@jaysaudiolab]

It’s inside the 901s. I didn’t show it

[@glenncurry3041]

@@jaysaudiolab Being me, yes I looked into it and they do provide the Xover in the design. I suggest you cover that as well. Lest someone bypass theirs with biamping and not know!

[@mahasidha9]

Two years ago you said this iconic brand has a long way to go to catch up to the leading edge brands; you even cited the auto formers as a reason for compromised sound. Has it improved so much in two years? kzbin.info/www/bejne/aIvWZodtateInM0si=TY9yvhoUjHDWhsPG

[@jaysaudiolab]

Stay tuned to find out

[@mahasidha9]

@@jaysaudiolab Absolutely will do as I have my eye on their McIntosh MA9500 2-CH Integrated Amplifier $12,000.00 as an all rounder; great phono stage specs and their best built in DAC which I will never use but I am hard pressed to find 3 separates amp pre amp phono stage for equivalent money that will out perform it including their own separates. Of course Constellation amplifiers are more resolving but prices are not even close to the MAc integrated; they have a 1.0 but it is down on power and no phono stage.

[@einarbk885]

"musical cables" ok

[@johns9349]

It sounds silly, but I have to defend Jay here. Some cables make the system sound more musical. This is a better way to say it. When you swap out dozens or even hundreds of cables and do blind a/b tests, you learn what “musical” cables are. But I don’t think it’s the cable itself. It’s obviously just tweaking something that affects the sound such as inductance, impedance, capacitance, shielding, etc. He’s playing with some very high end products. If he couldn’t hear a difference between cables that cost that much, that would be sad. Now the question is, does one need to spend that much on cables to achieve the same sound. Answer: of course not. Cables are just a huge profit machine for audio. Make your own. you’ll be more satisfied and learn how they work.

[@jaysaudiolab]

Thanks

[@einarbk885]

@@johns9349 placebo is powerful. the only thing that matters in cables is resistance, ind/cap and that is dirt cheap to get right. you would fail any credible blindtest.

[@earlpayne5265]

I'm curious what the 300 watt tube with McIntosh digital 500 watts would sound like so much cheaper

[@dota9280]

Well another important topic is that all cables are sensitive to mechanical induced stress. Dressing them in the proper way is critical to the end result. And it is very easy to implement...with simple tools like cables elevator. They can be of any kind and types ( Small wood strip, cork etc) to support those cables as long as they are non magnetic it will do the trick if you do not have deep resources. the best places are the output and input of your electronics. And also one or two between your amp and speakers cables.You will need to experiment with the placement on the 3 positions in order to achieved the desired result. So a minimum of three and more will do and if you need more of them to fine tune it to your taste please do. Over tightening your binding post on any electronics and speakers will also change the soundly introducing more mechanical stress. I know that not everybody has the time or space or resources to do it. But this hobby is all about experimenting, And to this day only one brand has tackled the problem to its core ( Vertex). I am not promoting them. Good result can be achieved with any brand. I have been doing it for 50+ years. In the end it is all about the music. and a basic understanding of some simple rules are also mandatory in this common passion of ours. Kudos to mister Jay for is hard labor and endurance... it is not an easy job.

[@reneelhadad603]

It is so odd. Suddenly McIntosh is good. It was bashed constantly

[@jaysaudiolab]

Stay tuned for my review

[@tehseenamir6666]

if you can't make a video simply make a diagram of connections of these components.

[@johns9349]

Nothing against jay, personally. he seems like a nice guy. but this “ultra” high-end is mostly nonsense. It’s priced much higher than its actual value. If people want to buy it, I have no problem with it. But sadly, most customers in hifi these days are unaware that they can achieve better sound for far less money. Jay is just a guy swapping out gear and recording it for youtube. he’s not an expert. All that money could have been spent on a better room, which has a far greater effect on sound than cables or even amps. $75k I can put a system together that 90% of listeners would choose over his - any day of the week. people need to stop lusting after gear and just use their ears. jay’s systems are not worth even half of their msrp. he’s under the misconception that spending more equals better sound. It simply does not. If that were the case, audio shows would not have so many excuses as to why their million dollar systems sound so bad or so average, when we go to listen. no amount of money can overcome a bad room.

[@vidocq1961]

Well.........!!! First of all my friend let me tell all of you who are (Lets say) experienced in high-end audio that only 1% of people have the ability to be able to hear all the octaves as well as the whole frequency spectrum ( Thats said by doctors, NOT me)...!! Therefore, the purchase of very expensive audio equipments that cost millions is only and only a display of wealth and OVERPRICED as hell...!!! So leave the philosophies about it all of you (reviewers) who judge thousands of dollar audio equipment, like the ones in this video which is 50-70% made of Chinese materials ( McIntosh ) and say the truth to the people about VALUE and NOT about PRICE...!!! Forgive me if i am wrong and YOU belong to the 1% of these with the bionic ears...!!! OR You belong to them with aload of money to spend... BUT the 99% of the rest are liars and irrelevant in audio and they ONLY can hear SONY the same as BORRENSEN..!! SO FOR ME...........My Mola Mola Kula , my ROCKNA Wavelight DAC/Pre , my Tellurium Q Ultra silver cables and Audio Solutions Virtuoso s speakers the total PRICE is 35.000 $ and the VALUE in my opinion of course , is 2.000.000 Million $... YES Sir..

[@CarlVanDoren61]

Make a short video 📹

[@vidocq1961]

What do U mean " Make a short video" my friend....!!?? U want a video with my ears audiogram mesurements ??? Sorry but i am with the 99% of people that can not hear all the frequencies and octaves unfortunately for me... So it is not useful to U my audiogram mesurements at all.! But if you care about my health i must say to U that I suffer of tinnitus ...