Classic McIntosh tube amp or new other brand

It's a done deal, I bought new. I ordered a set of mid-monos.I should receive them in the coming weeks!

I am too busy these days to be fussing with used gear. I just want to listen and enjoy.

Thanks for all the input, it was very helpful.

Here is your chance to snag the Luxman MQ-88 that I previously suggested, and at a bargain price!

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstube&1257869963&/Luxman-MQ88-demo-with-warranty

why not get a modern McIntosh tube amp? The MC275 is an excellent tube amp and can often be found here on the 'gon used all day long. I have one I purchased from audio classics and cant be any happier. You get the mac tube sound coupled with modern internal components, high quality RCA's or balanced connectors, and modern speaker binding posts (on the MKV version). Vintage MCtube amps come with their set of issues, so unless you want to invest a lot of money to bring it up to spec and possibly retube the thing, you may want to look for something newer.

McIntosh and Luxman are the way to go. Often compared to Leica cameras and vintage cars. I like the 275; my father had one for three decades. Probably the last amp you will need.

Try a Cary pre with cary. I use the cheapest one ever a AE-3 originaly $550 but $300 used> Ae is a sub brand made by Cary that they DC'ed due to canabalizing the parent brand I suspect. It uses only two tubes there are a few around still. The remote and the upgrade will cost a lot more but under $1K loaded new (Upscale had some). Ckeck out Audio advisor demos . That can drive it an 88 .
The Quicksilvers are remarkable bargains I can't argue with that So if you like em.
BTW The Cary of choice is the big V12 with either 100 per side AB or 50 triode user selects.

IMHO there is probably good value to be had at almost any price point. When I started looking for an amp for my primary system, Luxman was one of my preferences; I really like their SS class A amps but they don't work budget-wise. So I listened to their relatively new MQ-88, a class A 40-watt stereo tube amp and that did it for me - completely. Beautiful amp, built like a tank, and a sonic marvel - everything I love in a tube amp, but it somehow also presents the best attributes of a high end SS amp. The only thing I auditioned and liked a little more were some great Shindo monoblocks, but they were quite costly and I felt that the real sonic value was to be had with the MQ-88. It continues to astound me!

Thanks for the responses

I auditioned the Mid-Monos yesterday and I was pleasently surprised. Esthetically I find the units not so attractive, but sonically they sound awesome. Great detail and a nice low end. I now understand where all the positive feedback comes from for the quickies.

I also auditioned a Cary Rocket 88. We used the pre-amp that was used to audition the quickies and it did not have enough gain to drive the rocket 88. Even in ultralinear mode the rocket 88 was not capable producing enough volume. At 40W it should be more than enough to drive the RS6s, but it wasn't. It was explained to me that Cary power amps require high gain pre-amps. I do not have a high gain pre-amp.

Besides the brands already suggested, are there any other good value brands the you could suggest?

Can't go wrong with Quicksilver or MAC. jallen

quicksilver

Quicksilver Mid-Monos are hard to beat for sound and price.

Vintege Macs will hold up it's value over time. From time to time you can find Mc-240 or Mc-30 amps from EBax that already been gone over by techs, a good sign of it is some new caps in the power supply side.
I currently own 2 Mc-240 driving some old EV 12trxb's in the Aristocrat cabinets and it sounds great.

Another Brand. I like the quickies I have heard but especially like Cary tube gear. The Mac 240 will cost you a pretty penny. Then refurbing it to grand hieghts may (will) cost a lot mote. The return on that is not a net profit. I lose money on every deal .
I just don't look to this hobby for investment.
I got a pair of HH Scott, S1-SH11, "impedance control" speakers for free froM a guy at a second hand shop. I buy half broken TTs there.
I expected a blurry, dull, uninspiring sound for use in training for "the dumpster speaker put", a new olympic sport. I chose an album that I love. I mean it- damn if they didn't sound good . I don't know..... for sure they weren't masterpieces.... but they made me quite happy that's good enough. Makes me wonder about the money we all have poored into this chase for perfection

Classic tube gear in theory should give you better resale value, but usually comes with issues. For instance, unless it has been played regularly, your classic MC30 or MC240 will probably require new power supply capacitors. And then you get into a thorny issue about whether to stay "pure" and replace only with original parts (to retain its value) or to use superior modern alternatives. No guarantee either that the expensive NOS caps you buy to replace the originals will even be still good after all these years, so you might have to do it all over again.

And then there are the notorious "bumblebee" coupling capacitors. Notorious because they tend to leak DC, which screws up your output tube bias. If you keep NOS tubes, there's nothing like looking up to see the output plates glowing cherry red b/c a coupling cap is leaking. BTDT.

Now Mac gear is damn reliable, and will continue to sound OK for a long time, even when everything isn't working as well as it could. But materials science has come a long way, and things like RCA jacks, and speaker terminations are far better on today's amps than they were back in the day.

I spend a lot of my free time fussing around with classic tube gear, but I am not a purist, and I don't make an effort to maintain resale value. If resale is important to you, I think you may find modern gear easier to live with. I happen to think Quicksilver gear is fantastic (had a set of V4's I still regret selling). Unless you're a wiz with a soldering iron, I'd recommend you stick with today's gear.

If you are willing to mod classic gear, you can end up with nice sounding stuff. Putting motor run oil caps in the power supply, adding modern coupling caps, and tube rolling to get a great sound... lots of fun. But it screws your resale value. There are always exceptions. For instance, the HK Citation-II amps have fantastic iron in them, and Jim McShane sells well-regarded mod kits that actually enhance resale value. But Mac and Marantz buyers, especially those in the far east who have kept the prices up, really value authenticity. So you're better off not fussing with them.

Just my $.02

There are a pair of Quicksilver Silver Sixties for sale on Audiogon at a great price. I have a pair that I use to drive Gallo 3.1's and they sound wonderful. If you are interested the Mid-Monos I would urge you to consider the Silver Sixties. IMHO they are the better amps. They are well built and should last a long time. They are also very nice looking amps that have all of their connections on the rear (as it should be) instead of on the sides.