Made my head hurt.
Mcintosh If I'm reading you right. They have tone control they are a full blown preamp. They have a way to bypass the tone control. Some have onboard DACs, HT or a processor loop or bypass. MM and MC phono stage. Balanced or single ended. Digital in and out? Maybe.. Plenty of ins and outs for sure..
I don't use half the crap, but I sure got it..
Regards