McIntosh

There are dealers who have high end JBLs for audition. The problem is, there's not a lot of them. And like Klipsch, many of them are these home theater guys who work out of little offices in industrial parks.

Here's an example of a high end JBL dealer who has nearly every model for audition. I wish I had bought from him, but hindsight's 20/20.

http://www.homeaudiosound.com/

 

I just laugh when I hear people slate McIntosh . It's like saying to me Bruce Lee wasn't any good at Kung Fu or Connery was a rubbish Bond . I can't believe since purchasing my C32 that it has totally transformed the system. I have to force myself to sleep these days . I know I have bored you silly with a few posts but to be fair this is more applicable to the UK members of the forum.

In the UK McIntosh isn't that well known. I urge anyone to check out their gear & judge for yourself.

Forget all that UK " It's got to have no tone controls & suffer " mantra. The sound is just mega enjoyable . Also forget that negative talk about "Doctors & Lawyers" That's just a lazy cliche . Im no rich guy but I'm shrewd & can source an Audiophile bargain!

Playing Terror Twilight by Pavement . That used to a difficult album to replay on previous systems due to very low bass. Now it's breeze. Clean, controlled , powerful , dynamic , immediate ....& it lights up in dark oooohhhh!!!

 

A music professor back at my alma mater told me about the time the music department got a call from an older woman whose husband had just passed away. This was in the late 1980s. Apparently the husband was a graduate of the engineering department and had insisted that his stereo be donated to the college. The professor was on one of the lower rungs on the tenure ladder so he got stuck going over to see about this donation. He got ushered into the living room and there was one of those old console systems, straight out of a 60s living room. He was trying to find a way of politely excusing himself when she put on some classical music. He said it was the sweetest sound he'd ever heard. The prof went over to the console and lifted the lid. The old man had gutted the console, put in a decent turntable, rigged up a ventilation system of some sort, replaced the speakers, and nestled next to the turntable he saw the glowing blue and green of McIntosh pre-amp and power amp. "Ma'am, the university will be happy to accept this donation."

 

Hey dudes....I have a lowly McIntosh MA6600. I see a lot of love for the glass, any love for the newer SS stuff? This one does not make me miss the tubes, an amp ya' can play all day without fatigue. It seems to change character depending on what I feed it. I bought it based on rep and what I heard back in the day, and auditioned over the course of two years. Although there are not a lot of choices outside of Marantz/Denon/Onkyo/Sony/NAD in my area. As far as impressing anyone with it, no one has yet to comment on it, most folks I know think that McIntosh is a computer maker.
Anyhoo....keep rockin' with whatever ya' got!

 

There is nothing lowly about the MA6600. It is a great amp! It will be a classic one day. Enjoy!

 

Ok, I'm surprised you guys didn't post about these yet ...

New MC75:

The MC75 mono vacuum tube power amplifier delivers modern performance standards in a classic design. It has all the features to meet the needs of today’s music enthusiast. As with all McIntosh mono amplifiers, the MC75 will provide ultimate stereo separation and imaging as the two stereo channels are completely separate. 75 Watts of power is output into a 2, 4 or 8 Ohm speaker with less than 0.5% distortion.

McIntosh’s patented Unity Coupled Circuit design provides low distortion, extended frequency response and long tube life. The MC75’s large, oversize power transformer provides unusually high power and dynamic response from a single pair of KT88 output tubes, once again setting the performance benchmark for tube amplification.

Balanced and unbalanced inputs combined with power control allow matching with all contemporary McIntosh preamps and processors. Sentry Monitor tube protection circuit will ensure the MC75 will have a long and trouble free operating life.

New C22:

Featuring a cool, 1960s retro design, the C22 has been updated to modern standards to deliver a performance on par with any other McIntosh preamp. Electromagnetic input switching provides reliable, noiseless and distortion free operation. Low distortion levels of all types are less than 0.08%, allowing music to be presented with total transparency and accuracy.

A total of 10 inputs include 2 balanced and 6 unbalanced along with Moving Coil and Moving Magnet phono input sections with selectable resistance and capacitive loading so every phono cartridge and turntable can be perfectly matched to produce the best sound. Outputs are comprised of 1 set of balanced and 3 sets of unbalanced connections. Bass and Treble tone controls with bypass feature allow you to listen to your favorite songs at your preferred tonal balance. Power control outputs will turn a complete McIntosh system on or off using the front panel or remote control.

While featuring a retro look, timeless McIntosh design cues such as a partial black glass front panel, knobs and brushed aluminum end caps allows the C22 to seamlessly blend in with other McIntosh components to create one cohesive system.

 

^^^^^^^^McIntosh seems to have let us 16 ohm speaker people out of the loop.

 

Happy MA6600 owner here as well. A superb integrated.

 

Gorgeous looking pieces. I wonder if McIntosh will ever put the MC30s back in production.

 

I was struck by the line output jack on the MC75.

It is a feature that I have always wanted to see on power amplifiers but never did, before now.

Nice equipment to be sure, but new McIntosh is out of my league unfortunately.

 

Mine too, but even if it weren't I'd still buy it used. Which is fine for me, because aesthetically My preference is the circa-1998 gear, I think it has the cleanest appearance. If only all of that stuff had LED light kits....

 

Good point, (not having 16 ohm speakers myself) I did not notice that.

 

That would be something or MC225's would be pretty darn cool too.

 

Speaking of LEDs ... it doesn't appear that the new MC75 have them like the MC275's do.

 

The specs on the c22 unit are excellent and on par with the C2500 and approaching c500 territory!

I don't know what the price is for the C22 preamp but I am assuming it will be lower than the C2500 due to the same specs but the C22 omitting the DAC portion of the C2500. I believe Ivan said the MC75 were $3750 each. While not cheap I do believe that these are competively priced compared to a lot of amplifiers out there including companies like Audio Note, Cary, ARC and Conrad-Johnson, to name a few.

 

Someone over at AudioAficianado said the list price of the C22 will be $6,000. If I had not just gotten the C2300 last year, I'd definitely be going after this new unit.

 

$6,000 according to the boys on AA. A lot of cabbage for the likes of me.

Besides, the "hunt" for vintage gold is just too much fun for me to resist. lol.

EDIT: Oops, Barnabas posted as I was replying.

 

Forgot to comment on this ... that output is very cool for someone who wanted to use more than one for biamp, etc.

Also the MC75's regulated power supply and large capacitors are more potent than either channel's power supply section on the MC275 amplifier. IMO this is going to put the MC75 over the edge of the already great sounding MC275.

 

As I say, this should have been a standard power amplifier feature for years - or at least on the higher priced ones.

Incidentally, it will be interesting to the what effect the new C22 will have on the market of the C22 Anniversary Edition. Those had also been selling for around $6,000 too.

Until now, the AE was your only choice for a classically styled McIntosh preamplifier with remote.

 

IMO, it would have also been nice to see them come out with a C220 MK II that would be a great price match to the new MC152 amp. OR the D150 having a analog input that someone with a TT could use.

The C22 at $6K is just too much for me as well ... but one can dream LOL!

 

Yes, a lot of coin for a preamplifier - at least in my book - and worse still, depreciation that is unkindest to the man who breaks the seal on the box.

For around the same amount, I have a near mint MC240 with the original McIntosh branded GE 6L6s and an MX110 that had just been completely "Audio Classic-ed" (which cost ~$1K, but well worth the price) and both will be good to go for a good many years, while still being able to recoup most of the total investment, should it come to that.