FM Acoustics 255 MkIIR
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steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Steve, there is a single price worldwide for each of their offerings, and it's specified in CFH; from there you have to do the conversion
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I hate to say it, but I’m going to say it. If FM Acoustics isn’t the most overpriced high-end brand out there in never-never land, I don’t know what is. Every piece I have seen the inside of clearly shows the cheap quality of the parts used. The construction quality of their chassis is nothing special either. So they match their cheap parts very tightly and that takes a long time because no worker in the factory is ever rushed because that might hurt their feelings and cause their morale to plunge. It’s all a bit much really. This is why you can’t set a production schedule and control your labor costs which is essential for any company in the manufacturing business. This may be one reason they charge ridiculous prices because they never know how much labor they will have in any one piece of gear so they charge astronomic prices to ensure a tidy profit on top of the labor costs they can’t control.
I also don’t like the way they rate the power of their amplifiers either. They start off with peak power ratings that no one really uses anymore because they are basically worthless. RMS power tells the tale and we quickly see their peak power numbers drop by half when expressed in RMS. $16,358.25 for a pair of 70 watt amps? $38,783 for a pair of 115 watt amps? Those extra 45 watts cost $22,424.75 over the cost of the 70 watt amps? It’s just mind blowing.
I also don’t like the way they rate the power of their amplifiers either. They start off with peak power ratings that no one really uses anymore because they are basically worthless. RMS power tells the tale and we quickly see their peak power numbers drop by half when expressed in RMS. $16,358.25 for a pair of 70 watt amps? $38,783 for a pair of 115 watt amps? Those extra 45 watts cost $22,424.75 over the cost of the 70 watt amps? It’s just mind blowing.
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I have never heard FM...only read about them. I agree regarding value...i am extremely skeptical. However, i have read nothing but superlatives from those who have heard (not necessarily own) FM Acoustics. Superlatives. Primarily on their (even more expensive) 266 preamp and their FM811 amp. I would love to hear and judge for myself just how good these really are.
Wow, that is alot of money for a linestage without a seperate power supply that looks like it was made in the 80's. No matter what the price of the parts inside that seems excessively priced. The specs look good though.
I have only heard one system at a show with FM acoustics. The speakers were YG Acoustics Anat I think. The system was very detailed but on the cool side. Not very involving. Used with the right speakers they could be very good.
I have only heard one system at a show with FM acoustics. The speakers were YG Acoustics Anat I think. The system was very detailed but on the cool side. Not very involving. Used with the right speakers they could be very good.
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Both. How much do Alps pots cost? Not much in the grand scheme of a $38,000 preamp. Those resistors and caps you can see are all common garden variety. The quality of the chassis construction and sheet metal work are just pedestrian. But, I have said it before and I will say it again, I will take a great circuit built with mediocre parts any day over a mediocre circuit built with great parts. If FM gear truly sounds as great as people who have heard them or own them say they do, the genius is in the design of the circuit. But even if I had the money, I would never pay $38,000 for a preamp built with less than $500 worth of parts in order to subsidize the touchy-feely manufacturing method that FM uses. Their ’business’ model of not being able to control production schedules or budgets might be great for employee morale, but it’s abysmal for running a manufacturing business. I guess the cost of the products and the wait time for them after they are ordered adds to the mystique of FM.
Hi Wizard
Have you ever heard a FM acoustic preamplifier with tube amplifier, especially one SET topology? I asked this question to the site of the FM acoustics but received no response. This preamplifier has something that I could not live without, the remote control. I listen only one time before to FM acoustic in RMAF 2010, I think with venture speaker, in that moment I considered just sound good but nothing exceptional.
Thanks
Have you ever heard a FM acoustic preamplifier with tube amplifier, especially one SET topology? I asked this question to the site of the FM acoustics but received no response. This preamplifier has something that I could not live without, the remote control. I listen only one time before to FM acoustic in RMAF 2010, I think with venture speaker, in that moment I considered just sound good but nothing exceptional.
Thanks
About Tidal using the same parts: Naming another obscure brand to make a point isn't exactly convincing 
About never failing: I had a $150 Marantz receiver for 15 years that never failed. My Spectral amp has been in service a few times...still...prefer the Spectral above the Marantz.
That said: I do NOT comment on the sound issues of FMA since I have not heard any myself. So don't take this as criticism on the brand as a whole
About never failing: I had a $150 Marantz receiver for 15 years that never failed. My Spectral amp has been in service a few times...still...prefer the Spectral above the Marantz.
That said: I do NOT comment on the sound issues of FMA since I have not heard any myself. So don't take this as criticism on the brand as a whole
LoL - My Audio Consulting MIPA is strongly adviced not to turn it upside down, or indeed shake it, as it is all loosely setup with no virtually no screws - this is hand wired to the limit! If you'd try to ship it, you would have a problem..
Sounds great..
Commenting my own comment with a pic of my special order hand made MIPA 30 amp..
Comments welcome, but keep in mind, that even though you should not shake this gear, it easily outperforms real solid things like an Accuphase E550, Sugden Masterclass Integrated, and is even probably better or equal to my beloved Berning ZH230 (I do not like to prefer one from another, it is my luxury to change sometime)
Looking at your pictures above and specifically the picture on the left, the bottom right wiring looks very neat. The bottom left wiring looks like someone else did it or if it was the same person, he got drunk at lunchtime and wired the left side.
Nice photos...thanks for posting. It interesting to see in a room so beautifully done/treated, the equipment is a wide mix of ages...some quite new and some quite old. The TT I believe is quite new...the FMA I cannot say...the Krell amps much older. Some of yesterday's SOTA equipment still resides in such great systems as this one.
BTW, I read your comment about your designing the WDT Audio 'The Processor', with a release next year...$150,000...can you tell us more?
BTW, I read your comment about your designing the WDT Audio 'The Processor', with a release next year...$150,000...can you tell us more?
Can you be more specific? Most intrigued! Most interesting that you have been there to hear it for yourself! Always interested to read direct observations!
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