McIntosh

I never questioned the material, just the feel. and that was just the very few I've had the chance to fondle. I wish my local dealer had a wall full of gear for me to play with, but sadly he just has a single small setup and no real showroom. I think I am just more used to the heavier feel of the ARC (and Rogue) knobs as their dealer does have a room full of gear set up and I fondle it every chance I get!!!

 

I see McIntosh has sometimes filled the role as a "premium" brand for the well-to-do who don't know what to spend their money on, or those that aspire to status or wealth, along with such brands as Ferrari or Rolex. This isn't to say that it's ALWAYS the case, or that there is anything particularly wrong with McIntosh from a quality perspective, but I have have heard a lot of it over the years, and the house sound isn't really for me.

 

Nothing wrong with that. If you are not at all into audio hardware, you can always walk into a Mac dealer and put together a great system. It's really a very safe play. It's easy for those of us that love the hobby to lose sight that some just want to write a check and be happy. They are not caught up in esoteric brands and endless upgrades. Can't they do it elsewhere, sure, but Mac is the household name in high end and that's enough for them. It's no accident that the first thing you will see at a Magnolia in the back of the local BB is a rack full of Mac gear with a 275 sitting on top.

 

No. They are B&W group dealer so they sell Classe Audio. Also VPI dealer and I wanted to the Simaudio which I am interested in as well. They had B&W speakers everywhere, which I like, owned 2 pair in the past, and ONE piece of Classe Audio in the back. I had to walk past walls of Mc equipment just to see anything else.

 

I for one wouldn't mind having myself some quality tube McIntosh gear.

 

You must not be a "well to do, who doesn't know what to spend your money on".

 

And it makes you feel like such a winner to bring it up in one current thread and dredge up two dead threads and cross post the same rhetoric in both of them?

I'm not sure what's worse, (1) the fact that you actually think the current gear listed in your profile is somehow way better than McIntosh (hint, it's not) ... or (2) that you have named dropped Ducati and BMW within the same sentence to make yourself feel as if you're somehow "not" a insecure hipster poser yourself.

 

My Mc30s sound great with my Cornwalls! But I never see them in stores...

 

Ron P is hatin' on McIntosh on two threads, he's already got one troll warning from a gort. Hopefully he'll run out of steam soon!

 

Maybe trolling, but at least it generated some fun banter. Shame some get so defensive about any of this stuff!

I love the hardware threads! So much more fun than all the "what is your favorite (name your fave )" stuff in the music threads!

 

Yep....sure was educational...and...fun?

 

That's actually 3 threads.

1. McIntosh (this current thread)
2. Why isn't McIntosh more prevalent in Sterophile's "Recommended" list?
3. Post photos of your systems/rooms here! (Part 14)

He's been busy

LOL ... I know, usually I blow it off as I understand not everybody likes the looks or sound of McIntosh and I'm OK with that. I wouldn't have remarked at all had it not been 3 different threads he was trolling through in the first place, but I was having a little fun at his ridiculous remarks and brand name dropping of Ducati and BMW trying to convince us that he is not some hipster poser himself.

 

Not to mention he still has yet to identify the McIntosh units he professes to have owned - especially the ones with the plastic knobs....

 

@ Ron P.

While you are at it, why not head over to the Chevrolet forum and announce your dislike for Chevys. Let us know how that works out.

 

I dislike Chevys! We had a bunch of Mopar guys crash the Camaro5 CamaroFest event the first year. Had a ball! They'll never admit that the very first two cars to roll down the track at the inaugural CamaroFest were Challengers!!!

but that's a topic for another fight!!!

 

McIntosh Labs looking to expand. Seems they have experienced a double in revenue over the last 10 years and need to expand their factory in Binghamton which will create 6-7 office jobs and 15-20 manufacturing jobs for American workers. Pretty cool!

 

In my opinion McIntosh makes solid well built kit. I have owned and enjoyed several different types of their equipment-both tubed and solid state. There seems to be some snobbery associated with their gear which runs both ways-"look what I own" to "oh that's just a Mac and not a ". Stereophile magazine seems to look down its editorial nose at Mac-maybe it is not exotic or expensive enough for those guys who listen to $40000 amps on extended "loans" etc. Mac also holds its value better than other consumer audio equipment because of its excellent build quality and reputation in the real audio world.

 

I saw a new Charger recently, and then realized it had a bowtie on it, and then realized it was a new Camaro. Funny how that works, huh?

 

Update...This week I bought 2nd hand a McIntosh c32 Pre Amp for an amazing price. It sounds & looks amazing. The quest is DONE!

 

My McIntosh tube amps came out of one of the aerospace manufacturers in So Cal where they had been used on test benches. Apparently they were robust and linear enough to be relied on by the engineering department. Since mine are early models, they look like Bell Labs products, a look I am fond of. (will be the next look Restoration Hardware latches onto)

As I was told by the gentleman who restored them, "McIntosh is money in the bank".

 

Look at these innards of an mc2300. Those caps are the size of coke cans. This is an 128lb beast, not your run of the mill consumer cr@p!

 

Pics please

 

Yes!

 

I have a couple that came from Sandia Laboratories.
Not pretty to look at, but good enough measurements for a laboratory environment.

 

You pick this up from Echo? Saw one listed on their site a few weeks back...I was tempted by it too!