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McIntosh Audio A Tradition of Excellence |
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Thread Tools | Display Modes |
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#1
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Looking for experienced MX151 owners
As we continue our slow expansion from Mac stereo to our first surround area, I've done a lot of surround-related reading and corresponding to get a basic grip on what's been going on in the post-stereo entertainment world.
During that research, I ran into a guy who really likes quad recordings and, considering that we now have (4) channels of Mac amplification and (5) B&W speakers, which includes a new center, we should have the foundation for a quad listening experiment. This being the case, we found and purchased some physical quad media and went to work setting up the equipment we presently have for a quad listening session. Although all of this gear appears in our signature block, I'll list the source equipment in the quad setup I'm referring to herein: Oppo 105D >>> MX151 >>> MC452 >>> 2 x N802 >>> MC300 >>> 2 x N805 Unfortunately, the MC300 isn't getting a signal from the MX151, so I began checking the interconnects. We've got the appropriate RCA surround outputs form the Oppo 105D running to the commensurate multichannel inputs on the back of the MX151. We also have the MX151's L & R RCA outputs connected to the MC452 and the MX151's LS & RS RCA outputs connected to the MC300. Although our MX151 looked nearly brand new when we received it, we are, nevertheless, the second owners. We're also new to surround, so we're learning as we go....but I digress. If you take a close look at the photo, below, you can see that the MX151 initializes with a Multichannel input setting...but the part that has me scratching my head are the other front panel indicators. As you can see, both the Input Format and the Output Format indicators [seem] to indicate a 7.1 surround setup. The "ANALOG SIGNAL" indicator also lit...but its the lit "ROOMPERFECT" indicator that really has me thinking. Assuming that I'm reading the front panel correctly, the MX151 is defaulting to accept a 7.1 analog input signal, which is being processed for output via the Room Perfect treatment feature. Although I'm fairly sure that we could hook the MX151 to our TV, via an HDMI connection, and [somehow] change the default input configuration, I'm beginning to wonder if we should go through the process of returning the MX151 to its factory default settings and start from scratch? Although it's rather difficult to garner much that's suitable for beginners from the Owner's Manual, I did read -- in the Surround Mode section on pages 39 and 40 -- that "...Up to 16 Custom Surround Mode choices can be added, and the default settings for both 2-channel and Multichannel signal types can be changed." So if anyone on the Mac board has experience with resetting the MX151 to its factory defaults and/or setting up "Custom Surround Mode" options, we would really appreciate your advice. Thank you very much for your time...
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Bill in the Hills OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections |
#2
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Bill... did you view the user/installer menu to see how the previous owner had this unit set up? You will need a video display connected to the MX151 once you select that feature to view it.
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Ivan FLORIDA MX136, MC1.2KW(10) MC2KW(2), MCD1100, MS750(2) MVP881, C1000C/P/T, MPC1500, HT-2 SUBS(2) HT3F(2) WS350(2) XRT2K, XCS2K, XR27(2) XCS350(2) JL GOTHAM v2 SUBS(2) SILENZIO MUSIC SERVER, LUMAGEN RADIANCE SCALER, SONY VPH-G90U 4K PROJECTOR, STEWART 120" MOTORIZED SCREEN, CINEMA-TECH SEATING, WW PLATINUM CABLES Reference System: ACCUPHASE A300 AMPS, C3900 PRE-AMP, DP1000 CD/SACD TRANSPORT, DC1000 DIGITAL PROCESSOR, DG-68 DIGITAL EQUALIZER, T1200 FM STEREO TUNER, PS1230 POWER SUPPLY, HRS-SXR CUSTOM RACK w/ M3X SHELVES, TAD REFERENCE ONE MK2 LOUDSPEAKERS, WW PLATINUM CABLES CAPE COD MX150, MC501(2) MC1.2KW(10) MC2301(2) MR88, MVP881, MCD1100, MDA1000, C1000C/P/T, MPC1500, ESOTERIC K-01X 30th ANNIVERSARY (BLACK) SACD/CD PLAYER, G02-X CLOCK, HT3F(2) XRT2K, XCS2K, XR27(2) JL GOTHAM v2 SUBS(2) JL FATHOM F113v2 SUBS(4) SOUND ANCHOR STANDS(2) KALEIDESCAPE STRATO & TERRA SERVERS 80-TB, LUMAGEN RADIANCE SCALER, SONY VPH-G90U 4K PROJECTOR, STEWART 120" SCREEN, SONUS FABER STRADIVARI, SILENZIO MUSIC SERVER, FORTRESS SEATING, WW PLATINUM CABLES Analog Rig: CLEARAUDIO INNOVATION WOOD, UNIVERSAL ARM w/ Da VINCI' CART, 2nd UNIVERSAL ARM w/ GOLDFINGER STATEMENT CART, HRS-MXR REFERENCE RACK-GLOSS BLACK w/ M3X SHELVES, AESTHETIX RHEA SIG PHONO-PRE, BRYSTON BHA-1 HEADPHONE AMP, WW PLATINUM CABLES Reference System: BURMESTER 911MK3 AMP(3), 088 PRE-AMP, 089 CD PLAYER, 100 PHONO PRE-AMP, 948 POWER CONDITIONER, ACCUPHASE DG-68 VOICING EQUALIZER, AVID ACUTUS REFERENCE SP TT, GRAHAM PHANTOM II SUPREME ARM, BENZ MICRO LP-S CART, GRANDIOSO P1X/D1X STACK, G1X RUBIDIUM MASTER CLOCK, N05 NETWORK PLAYER, SILENZIO MUSIC SERVER, HRS-SXR CUSTOM RACK w/ M3X SHELVES, SONUS FABER AIDA SPEAKERS, JL FATHOM F113v2 SUBS(2) SOUND ANCHOR STANDS(2) WW PLATINUM CABLES Library System: GRANDIOSO M1 MONOBLOCK AMPS, C1 LINESTAGE PRE-AMP, K1X CD/SACD PLAYER, G1 MASTER RUBIDIUM CLOCK, E02 PHONO-PRE, SILENZIO MUSIC SERVER, AERIAL ACOUSTICS 20T V2, AERIAL SW12 SUBS(2), CANTON REF K1’s, VPI HRX TT w/ SDS POWER SUPPLY, ORTOFON CADENZA BLACK CART, KLAUDIO RCM, SHUNYATA DENALI 6000/S v2, SHUNYATA OMEGA QR’s, WW PLATINUM CABLES Esoteric/Bryston System: ESOTERIC C02-X PRE-AMP, P-02X TRANSPORT, D02-X DAC, G02-X CLOCK, BRYSTON 28B3 CUBED MONOBLOCK AMPS(4), BRYSTON BHA-1 HEADPHONE AMP, SHUNYATA DENALI 6000/S v2(2) EVEREST 8000 POWER CONDITIONER(2) ALTAIRA CG & SG HUBS, AMR-DP777-SE DAC, SILENZIO MUSIC SERVER, TAD REFERENCE ONE MK2 LOUDSPEAKERS, QUADRASPIRE RACK, WW PLATINUM CABLES Accuphase/Canton System: ACCUPHASE E800 INTEGRATED, DP570 CD/SACD PLAYER, T1200 FM STEREO TUNER, DG-68 VOICING EQUALIZER, PS530 POWER SUPPLY, CANTON REF K3’s, CANTON REF K5’s, SILENZIO MUSIC SERVER, HRS MXR REFERENCE MAHOGHANY RACK w/ M3X2 SHELVES, WW GOLD CABLES |
#3
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HDMI Menus
Yes, I've tried the various setup menus that one can access via the MX151's HDMI port. This really has me wondering if setting up Room Perfect is mandatory to realize surround sound?
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Bill in the Hills OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections |
#4
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Have you tried connecting the Oppo via HDMI?
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#5
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Oppo HDMI Menus
Yessir, I did. I just finished a rather lengthy reply to a PM about this very issue, so I'll add a post to this thread that summarizes the latest in this regard.
Thank you very much for replying
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Bill in the Hills OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections |
#6
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Looking for experienced MX151 owners
Short answer - yes, you should re-initialize the MX 151 to its factory default settings.
It is the most complicated piece of gear you will ever encounter and has to be set up exactly per the manual or you will have a continuous series of head-scratching issues. Most of the gear I have I can just kind of wing it for setup. Not the MX 151. The manual describes a series of steps you must take, in exact order, to properly setup your MX 151. You will need to connect a TV to the HDMI output to see all the menus. You cannot easily set the unit using the front panel displays and remote. The setup instructions begin on page 17 with how to enter the installer setup menu and continue on page 22 with detailed setup instructions. The procedure for re-setting to factory defaults is on page 45. Once you have reset your unit to factory defaults you MUST follow the manual setup directions, in order. Do not skip any steps. Good luck!
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Main System: Amati Futura Mains Amati Homage VOX Center, Proac Response 1sc Rears, Three MC2301's for L,C,R MC 602 for the rears C 1100, MX 151, MCD 1100, MR 80 Nottingham Dais with Wave Mechanic Sumiko Palo Santos Presentation SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC MX 151, OppO BDP-95, JVC RS-500 DILA projector, 106" diagonal Stewart Luxus Screenwall Deluxe with Studiotek 130 G3 material. Lake House: Ohm F, MC 275V, C2300, MR 77, Rega P3 OnDeck: McIntosh MAC 4300v Last edited by W9TR; 05-03-2021 at 09:53 AM. |
#7
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Consider the source
Quote:
Although I did reset the Mac MX151 to its factory defaults -- as per Pg 45 of the MX151 Owner's Manual -- I still couldn't say whether or not going through its internal step menus (several times), via an HDMI connection to our TV, did any good. To the contrary, I believe that hooking up our source, the Oppo 105D, to the TV (also via HDMI) made all the difference. We don't own one, but I managed to find the User Manual for the Oppo 105D on the Oppo website. If you study pages 69-70 of said manual, you will come across a major heading called Audio Processing Setup. Under this heading are the subsections "Speaker Configuration" and "Down Mix Mode," which, once configured properly, will have an effect on the source's surround output(s). The music we're presently experimenting with was mixed for quad listening, so certain considerations have to be made. Nevertheless, I set the Oppo 105D up for 5.1 channels and went through adjusting each speaker -- Left Front, Right Front, Left Surround & Right Surround -- separately to "bring them out" for a quad listening session. Once I moved the 105D back to our music listening area, I finally managed to get some life out of our MC300, which we're presently using to power our B&W N805 surround speakers...and, once that was accomplished, the quad mix I've been dying to hear sounded very sweet indeed. I plan on hooking the Oppo 105D back up to our TV to do some fine tweaking to each speaker in the setup, but the important thing right now is that, by considering the source (the 105D), we managed to realize some surround sound.
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Bill in the Hills OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections |
#8
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Awesome. Congrats!
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Main System: Amati Futura Mains Amati Homage VOX Center, Proac Response 1sc Rears, Three MC2301's for L,C,R MC 602 for the rears C 1100, MX 151, MCD 1100, MR 80 Nottingham Dais with Wave Mechanic Sumiko Palo Santos Presentation SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC MX 151, OppO BDP-95, JVC RS-500 DILA projector, 106" diagonal Stewart Luxus Screenwall Deluxe with Studiotek 130 G3 material. Lake House: Ohm F, MC 275V, C2300, MR 77, Rega P3 OnDeck: McIntosh MAC 4300v |
#9
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Thanks for the encouragement...now let me tell you about our MX121.
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Bill in the Hills OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections |
#10
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Glad ya got it figured out my Berkshire Buddy.
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Michael 4K QLED|Aerial Acoustics|McIntosh D100 - MC501 - MX151|Bluesound|Schiit|Wyrd4Sound
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