Two defective pieces in a row - unreasonable to demand refund?

I'm with @millercarbon. Get out from under the Mac and get something reliable that performs better for less $$$. Lots of options in the marketplace, new and used. 

Google ANY major company and you will get a litany of lawsuits and complaints filed against them. Including all audio brands.

This knee jerk reaction to jump all over McIntosh over something that has happened to EVERY BRAND on the planet says more about the nay-sayers than anything else.

And I'm with the person who said get the third unit. Cosmetic flaws are not manufacturing QC issue, but a transit issue. The DOA unit is legit, so let.them replace it.

If  Mac sounds good to YOUR ears, go with it. Any brand you pick can have issues. That's what warranties are for.

My two cents.

Get a 3rd unit. This is totally unlike McIntosh. I've had an MA6100 I bought in 1976.  It will still outperform anything that Japan can put out today in its class. It's been in constant use since the day I took it home. Do this day, IT'S NEVER BEEN SERVICED. I also have a Mac 7082 tuner, and mcd 7000 cd player.  They have also never been serviced. I've been on the Binghamton company tour. It's unbelievable. STICK WITH MAC. I've been offered double what I paid for my 6100.but ill never sell it. 

Really, it is not the dealers fault and probably not McIntosh's fault. I ship items all the time.  Had my packing materials made by the company that does the Peloton exercise bikes.  Once the shipping companies get a hold of them who knows what they do with them  I have had transformers come off the center bolt and knock around inside causing all types of damage.

It would different if you told me that each unit broke after a week or so with the same issue.

Happy Listening

 

Regardless  of what the Mac haters are trying to shove down your throat, McIntosh is still a reputable company.  McIntosh wouldn't still be recognized as one of the foremost purveyors of high end audio eqiupment if they had suddenly and mysteriously decided to sell their reputation to some fly by night company. Considering the fact that McIntosh QC checks every single finished unit they manufacture for both blemishes and proper operation before shipping, and since you didn't bother to name the vendor, the odds are most likely that you chose to buy your Mac from some shady dealer who offered a bargain basement price. and you fell for it. You learned the hard way that if the price is too good to be true, it most definitely is a scam.