Auditioning Reflex C and Accession MC

     In order to fairly judge these 5 contenders I found it is only fair to create 3 tiers.  Tier 1 (less than $500) – Moon 110, Tier 2 (less than $1000) – Reflex C, Tier 3 (less than $2000) – Accession, Moon 310, MP 100.  There are considerable differences in these tiers and the best way I can describe them is that even my mom was able to differentiate between the tiers.  Obviously, the real shoot out then happens at the tier 3 level.  Largely I think this comes down to preferences and listening habits rather than one being better or worse, and of course your needs.  Also let me say that if I wasn’t able to do direct A/B testing I would be able to live with any of the Tier 3 options. 

     From a value perspective, the Accession MC is the easy winner in Tier 3.  Easily more detailed and precise than the other Tier 1 & 2, but very minor nuances to the remainder of Tier 3.  The Accession is much smaller than the others, and easily competes above its price point.

     The Moon 310lp is the winner in terms of flexibility, can pretty much handle any need you may have.  Although, you need to open up the box to manually change the jumper pins (a feature I am not a huge fan of).  This is really only a pain in the initial set up, after that you likely won’t need to make adjustments.

      For my personal preference, I really preferred the wider soundstage of the McIntosh MP100 as well as the looks of that unit.  For much of my testing is was difficult to distinguish between the 3, but the MP100 carried a wider soundstage in each case in my listening room.

Thanks to the entire Graham Slee Co and all those that make is work.  Special Call out to BAK.

HAPPY LISTENING!