Owner Experiences? Carver M-1.0t M1.0t Power Amplifier Amp

t2188na

Member
Hello,

-Looking for opinions from current and former owners.

-How might it compare to the sound of my Marantz 2270?
-Mate ok with my Sansui Tuner?
-Mate ok with my Starter Paradigm Speaker?
-Suited more to rock or acoustical?

I encountered an offer to sell for $300 via a friend. If I decide what would be a good offer? No chance to try out.

I mainly play music from my computer over to my 2270 located in my man cave.

Thanks
 
no expert here, but will give an opinion anyway.
Depends on how much or what you like about the marantz on how you will like the carver.
If I just do a quick A/B of them, I always seemed to prefer the other (I had a M1.0T and a Kenwood KR-7600). Actually, when I first compared them, was not quite getting the love many had for the Carver.
But then I went ahead and hooked up the Carver for a longer term check out.
More I listened, more i liked it. Reason I did not care for it as much on the A/B test was the Carver was alot more neutral sounding where the kenwood (as the marantz also does) was coloring the music quite a bit more.
I was actually getting much more detail out of the carver and after a few days of listening to it, came to enjoy it more.
The carver will sound much more sterile at first when switching over from the Marantz, but try not to judge it too quickly and give it a good listen for a few days to let your ears acclimate.
Seems most of them do have a slight hum, disappears when music is playing.

I unfortunately sold mine and now wish i hadn't. But as i did miss it, I have picked up a couple of the TFM amps and a Carver preamp (amps need some work) and plan on building my 2nd primary system with them.
May want to check out The Carver Site as you can get some good info and the documentation there. RichP is quick to help and knows a ton about them.
 
Curious, if he is a friend, why he won't let you try it out before buying? It's going to sound different than your Marantz, even with the "t" function.
Either you like Carver sound, or don't. I have heard this amp many time, and also had a rebuilt by Carver M400t. They were ok, but I moved on to amps with real power supplys. I love Bob and have alot respect for him, just don't prefer the sound of his amps.
Also be prepared to the fact it might need work, as they start humming after awhile. Usually around $300+ for proper repair.
 
I owned the M1.5t in 1987 and ran it with a pair of Paradigm 11SE. I liked it at the time but I was in a different headspace back then. Played it loud. A lot. As noted, check for buzzing, noise, etc. Mine had this too. And it would throw a wicked spark everytime it was turned on. BUT..Don't trust anyone elses opinion. If you have the chance to try it at home, do so. You may notice things the seller was not even aware of. And you may also love it.
 
I owned the M1.5t in 1987 and ran it with a pair of Paradigm 11SE. I liked it at the time but I was in a different headspace back then. Played it loud. A lot. As noted, check for buzzing, noise, etc. Mine had this too. And it would throw a wicked spark everytime it was turned on. BUT..Don't trust anyone elses opinion. If you have the chance to try it at home, do so. You may notice things the seller was not even aware of. And you may also love it.

I am Interested in picking up a Carver here locally , and would be paring it with my own Paradigm 11 SE's . would you be so kind as to tell me about the sound that you might remember from this combination and the quality of the performance.
Thank you
Maxtcc
 
I never owned the Carver 1.0t but I have repaired several. Well, that's not quite true, I bought a 1.0t broken with the intent of fixing it and selling it. My amp went out on me right after I repaired the Carver and I did use it a couple days until I fixed my amp. So, on the bench, they are well made, well designed and usually have only minor problems when they do break. Sound wise the m1.0t is very neutral. I do like the top end on them, they are never harsh, very musical sounding. I prefer the sound of the m1.0t or an of that series to the 2270.
As to your other questions:
1. It's a power amp so you need a preamp with a volume control between your tuner and the amp. It will sound great with any source.
2. It will work well with your speakers.
3. It does well with any kind of music.
 
I am Interested in picking up a Carver here locally , and would be paring it with my own Paradigm 11 SE's . would you be so kind as to tell me about the sound that you might remember from this combination and the quality of the performance.
Thank you
Maxtcc

If memory serves, they were a great match. The sound was lively and the amp really gave the speakers a lot of lively dynamics that I didn't get with the generic pioneer monster receiver I used after.
 
Carver sounds

very tubey,warm and robust. The high frequencies are round off a tad as with most early tube amps. I have a Carver pre and amp and run it with a pair of RsB lll Infinity speakers. Good match since the tweeters in the infinity's are a bit metalic in sound.
 
Previous m1.0t owner here, s/n 00098.

Great unit - gobs of power and headroom. A good match in my setup. I even had Rich P do his mod and it sounded even better.

I did end up selling it because I went in a different direction for my rig.

Some people poo-poo the m1.0t, but imo, it is a good value and has as much power to grab and control any speaker you hook it to.
 
I have an m-1.0t with the usual thud!. What worries me is the DC offset on one channel. Left channel 9mv which is ok. But the right channel i get 400mv which is very high. Any idea where shoul i start troubleshooting?
 
I had an M1.0 that had been upgraded by a former Carver tech. I think it was an M1.0 mkII opt2 9or something along those lines. Very musical amp, drove 4Ω Dynaudio speakers easily.
 
If you can get and trust a guarantee go ahead and purchase it. Offer $250 and see what happens.

Then if you don't like it sell it and move on.

I've tried one out and thought it did loud very well, low level not so much sounded dull or flat.

But I was using a NAD 1020 Pre and Large Advent speakers.


Barney
 
If you can get and trust a guarantee go ahead and purchase it. Offer $250 and see what happens.

Then if you don't like it sell it and move on.

I've tried one out and thought it did loud very well, low level not so much sounded dull or flat.

But I was using a NAD 1020 Pre and Large Advent speakers.


Barney

Ditto-
I had a pair of 1.5t's and liked them- neutral, powerful, decently detailed albeit a bit rounded off at the high end- part of the famous "t" modification. Good value & better sounding than most of the monster receivers & integrated amps put out at the time and even challenged some respected separate amps. They did perform better at higher outputs so a good choice for less efficient speakers. Sold them because I went over to tubes and high efficiency speakers.:music:
 
Had mine since new bought it from the PX while stationed in AZ. Matter of fact bought 2 ran them mono for some years then one went dead. Still have one to this day. Moveing on though to tubes. MY Klipsch sound better and fuller with tubes. P1010521.JPG
 
As for the OP question. If you want to avoid damaging tweeters due to clipping its hard to beat the value of the Carver amps. Like many have said though. Try to get one cheap because they've probably been driven hard and are past due for a rebuild. DO NOT try to save a few bucks and have an eBay tech talk you into a rebuild. Real MK 2 upgrades are not cheap, have a LONG waiting list and are done by only a few highly trained professionals. Carver certified techs such as Hi Tech Audio are still around and can make them sonically as good as new or better and more reliable. I just had my 1.0 done and I couldn't imagine needing more power ( clipping was at 560 wpc I think). As for sound quality, Carver amps are quite neutral so your preamp will be the determining factor in the color and flavor of your music appetite (sorry, I like food). The Marantz as a pre would probably sound awesome by the way.
 
As for the OP question. If you want to avoid damaging tweeters due to clipping its hard to beat the value of the Carver amps. Like many have said though. Try to get one cheap because they've probably been driven hard and are past due for a rebuild. DO NOT try to save a few bucks and have an eBay tech talk you into a rebuild. Real MK 2 upgrades are not cheap, have a LONG waiting list and are done by only a few highly trained professionals. Carver certified techs such as Hi Tech Audio are still around and can make them sonically as good as new or better and more reliable. I just had my 1.0 done and I couldn't imagine needing more power ( clipping was at 560 wpc I think). As for sound quality, Carver amps are quite neutral so your preamp will be the determining factor in the color and flavor of your music appetite (sorry, I like food). The Marantz as a pre would probably sound awesome by the way.

You do realize that you`re responding to a thread from nine years ago, yes ? :)
 
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