Since when has McIntosh been considered Hi-End?

[Dogberry]

Forty years ago, seriously? You’re commenting on how McIntosh is considered in a place you’ve not been for 40 years … that’s like the guys who bash Linn because they heard one in 1984 and they didn’t like it. Forty years ago there was hardly any high end market anywhere.

Defensive, eh? And forty years ago there was definitely a high end. Remember, if you can, that was the era when cheap Japanese music centres were going out of fashion, to be replaced by faux-separates. If you wanted cheap and good, it was NAD in Europe, but if you wanted high end, it was Linn, Naim, Grundig, Revox, B&W and Quad. I'm pretty sure McIntosh had few if any dealers in the UK back then.

 

[Audiohertz2]

Mcintosh was considered “the “ hi-end from the 60’s ..


Regards

 

[Audiohertz2]

Indeed they made some great stuff--in the last century!--I gave up on the brand after spending squillions on a MC2300--sounded as you described

perfectly!--shut down on every transient /etc--it was good as a Boat Anchor!

I've tried to like the demos of the latest stuff-- sorry not for this boyo!

BruceD

Vintage McIntosh will not disappoint like that , with the new stuff i would try the amps sans their pre-amps..

Mac today does seem to trade on gimmickry thou ..


Regards

 

[Another Johnson]

Mac today does seem to trade on gimmickry thou

One person’s gimmick is another person’s desired feature.

I abandoned McIntosh in disappointment when they entered their solid state only era.

I’ve journeyed through Conrad Johnson, ARC, Krell, Levinson, Marantz, … maybe some others … even Prima Luna …, and presently Burmester.

I’ve never lost my affection for my local salesmen friends and dealer, even as the franchise has progressed through three different companies. So I’ve auditioned a lot of McIntosh over the years.

What I’ve noticed is that their stuff covers a wide range. At the low end, it’s just lifestyle level. It perks up in the middle and is quite good on their high end.

As for gimmicks, take the MA9500 for an example. For $12k retail you get a 300 Wpc amp with nearly 3dB of headroom, a preamp with 17 inputs, an 8 band equalizer that can be removed from the audio path, an adjustable MM phono, an adjustable MC phono, a DAC module that can be replaced with upgrades when upgrades are developed. You can drive a second amp from the preamp. You can feed a different preamp into the amp. It has an excellent built in headphone amp. It has a full featured remote, and other control options six ways from Sunday.

Which of the above are gimmicks? Frankly, they are all useful to someone.

McIntosh, perhaps more than any other American high end audio company, listens to what we call in the Design Business, the Voice of the Customer. They have over 150 employees, and their worldwide sales figures dwarf their competitors’.

 

[Another Johnson]

Defensive, eh? And forty years ago there was definitely a high end. Remember, if you can, that was the era when cheap Japanese music centres were going out of fashion, to be replaced by faux-separates. If you wanted cheap and good, it was NAD in Europe, but if you wanted high end, it was Linn, Naim, Grundig, Revox, B&W and Quad. I'm pretty sure McIntosh had few if any dealers in the UK back then.

Defensive about what? Aside from a DAC and transport for SACDs, I don’t own any McIntosh.

I know what was going on in the UK at that time. I had been engaged in “the evolving high end” for many years. My personal Linn stockist is now Cymbiosis in Leicestershire. But I was directly connected to the US importer in Indianapolis in those days.

You sound like you're arguing that what was relevant 40 years ago is useful to describe what’s going on today. So you are equivalent to Linn bashers who know nothing about the current Linn product line, but consider themselves to be experts based on 40 year old experiences.

Where were the ARC, CJ, CH, Burmester, Clearaudio, Hegel, dCS, Brinkmann, TechDas, Sonus Faber, Wilson, Magico, deVoor, Krell, Levinson, AudioQuest, Transparent, Schnezinger, ad nauseam dealers in the UK in 1984? Obviously they weren’t really there … or in the US for that matter. I was a Clearaudio, VPI, Dynavector, Souther, Van den Hul, Straightwire, New York Audio Lab etc dealer in 1984. Small time. Not fully blossomed, even here.

No need to argue. I leave you to your own devices.

 

[Audiohertz2]

One person’s gimmick is another person’s desired feature.

I abandoned McIntosh in disappointment when they entered their solid state only era.

I’ve journeyed through Conrad Johnson, ARC, Krell, Levinson, Marantz, … maybe some others … even Prima Luna …, and presently Burmester.

I’ve never lost my affection for my local salesmen friends and dealer, even as the franchise has progressed through three different companies. So I’ve auditioned a lot of McIntosh over the years.

What I’ve noticed is that their stuff covers a wide range. At the low end, it’s just lifestyle level. It perks up in the middle and is quite good on their high end.

As for gimmicks, take the MA9500 for an example. For $12k retail you get a 300 Wpc amp with nearly 3dB of headroom, a preamp with 17 inputs, an 8 band equalizer that can be removed from the audio path, an adjustable MM phono, an adjustable MC phono, a DAC module that can be replaced with upgrades when upgrades are developed. You can drive a second amp from the preamp. You can feed a different preamp into the amp. It has an excellent built in headphone amp. It has a full featured remote, and other control options six ways from Sunday.

Which of the above are gimmicks? Frankly, they are all useful to someone.

McIntosh, perhaps more than any other American high end audio company, listens to what we call in the Design Business, the Voice of the Customer. They have over 150 employees, and their worldwide sales figures dwarf their competitors’.

C22> MC3500 Era for me ....! Still top tier today ..

Regards

 

[Another Johnson]

C22> MC3500 Era for me ....! Still top tier today ..

Regards

I had an original C22. It was a combination of the Holy Grail and a Swiss Army knife.

I did abandon it for my CJ PV5. By that time it was long in the tooth. The new ones are fun. They’ve even got a remote. I don’t think they’re competitive with my Burmester 088 or ARC Ref 6SE, but at full retail the new C22 is decent performance at an exceptional value.

Edit: I’ve actually considered buying a new C22 and a pair of the new MC275s. Not for a main system and not to achieve audio nirvana, but for a nostalgia driven system with my Dual 1009 and a pair of Bozaks.

To answer the OP’s question- since 1949.