I had the opportunity to compare Mac to Bricasti, Absolare, and Jeff Rowland amps. To my ears the Mac is colored and doesn't have the midrange refinement of the others.
In the good old days tube Macs albeit dark, colored, and somewhat muddy sounding created great atmosphere and mood for the music that's why they were so loved by Jazz lovers in the Far East. Stick an EMT, Garrard 301/401 or Thorens TD124 with SME 3012 & a vintage SPU at the front with pair of Klipsch corner horns or iconic JBL and you'll have more magic & emotion than majority of the high end systems of today. Unfortunately today's Macs have inherited nothing besides the name and industrial design from the great old ones, the new ones are made by the same people who manufacture the current Marantz, Denon, etc. for the mass market, it's just a name...
I had the opportunity to compare Mac to Bricasti, Absolare, and Jeff Rowland amps. To my ears the Mac is colored and doesn't have the midrange refinement of the others.
In the good old days tube Macs albeit dark, colored, and somewhat muddy sounding created great atmosphere and mood for the music that's why they were so loved by Jazz lovers in the Far East. Stick an EMT, Garrard 301/401 or Thorens TD124 with SME 3012 & a vintage SPU at the front with pair of Klipsch corner horns or iconic JBL and you'll have more magic & emotion than majority of the high end systems of today. Unfortunately today's Macs have inherited nothing besides the name and industrial design from the great old ones, the new ones are made by the same people who manufacture the current Marantz, Denon, etc. for the mass market, it's just a name...
..wow...wrong...the MC601s with thermal tracking output transistors are truly state of the art. I wouldn't trade mine for any monos in their price range...
McIntosh makes some truly wonderful gear. Like anything else, balance the system of amp, preamp, speakers and source to your ears - and just enjoy. Sometimes you don't know what you had until it's gone.
Never been too impressed with their stuff. Just medium quality sound in all aspects to my ears. I respect the company however. They have their own niche you might say, and as far as business models they're good for everyone involved. The gear does have a nice look to it.
I agree with you. I have owned several McIntosh (C2200, MC2102, MC275 that I remember) and they sounded quite good - high-end status, surely. A good friend got them and has a very enjoyable sound with Wilson Watt/Puppy's.
And yes, I appreciated the great looking blue displays and meters!
However it seems to me the current products do not have the built quality of twenty years ago.
Never been too impressed with their stuff. Just medium quality sound in all aspects to my ears. I respect the company however. They have their own niche you might say, and as far as business models they're good for everyone involved. The gear does have a nice look to it.
a case of YMMV and perhaps a bit of snobbery too i daresay...
As in most any company they make from time to time "ho-hum" products and stellar ones.. The MC 601 and MC 275 to just name those 2, are world-class products ...
Mac often elicit envy: They are the brand that non-audiophiles most easily recognize as High End Audio .. Once the non-audiophile gets past the mention of Bose, next comes Mac Intosh ... Worldwide
Hi Twitch. My only gripe with the various McIntosh systems I have heard comes when I'm listening, which is vaguely important to me. They do sound good and clean, no issues there. Where my issue is with their gear that I have heard is that while I do enjoy the music, I don't find myself tapping my toes whilst listening. I'm not as "involved" as I am with other gear. In no way am I knocking their sound signature, I'm just saying that it's not really for me. I prefer to realistically be immersed into the music and have the system relay a sense that the band I'm listening too is performing in front of me, not just clean music being broadcast. I hope this makes sense to you, that's the best way I can explain it.
a case of YMMV and perhaps a bit of snobbery too i daresay...
As in most any company they make from time to time "ho-hum" products and stellar ones.. The MC 601 and MC 275 to just name those 2, are world-class products ...
Mac often elicit envy: They are the brand that non-audiophiles most easily recognize as High End Audio .. Once the non-audiophile gets past the mention of Bose, next comes Mac Intosh ... Worldwide
a case of YMMV and perhaps a bit of snobbery too i daresay...
As in most any company they make from time to time "ho-hum" products and stellar ones.. The MC 601 and MC 275 to just name those 2, are world-class products ...
Mac often elicit envy: They are the brand that non-audiophiles most easily recognize as High End Audio .. Once the non-audiophile gets past the mention of Bose, next comes Mac Intosh ... Worldwide
Well consider that I was selling some DIY PCB boards for fun, for an amplifier that in every respect sounded way better than any McIntosh gear I've personally heard... I don't know how snobby that is exactly.
I have to agree that I never toe-tap with their gear. But I think they're pretty ideal for a music-lover non-audiophile setup.
First off, thanks for the replies gents, it gives me a sense of the overall forum ...........
to that and what I've quoted from Folsom above is what makes me laugh.............'music-lover non-audiophile', if there was ever such a ridiculous contradiction !!! I suspect what you meant was 'audio fool' ??
..wow...wrong...the MC601s with thermal tracking output transistors are truly state of the art. I wouldn't trade mine for any monos in their price range...
When I was young,all the high end stores sold Mac gear. Then Audio Research came out and the high end became something else. I also remember hearing a SP3 preamp and that was very colored. I could have purchased a Mac preamp and amp but I decided on a Accuphase C200 and P300 instead...preference.
First off, thanks for the replies gents, it gives me a sense of the overall forum ...........
to that and what I've quoted from Folsom above is what makes me laugh.............'music-lover non-audiophile', if there was ever such a ridiculous contradiction !!! I suspect what you meant was 'audio fool' ??
This is pretty insulting. Do you even know which direction electrons flow?
Maybe it's confusing to most that audiophile has taken on the meaning of people with tastes to achieve the best sound, but it has... it's not so literal anymore.