McIntosh -- good for show, not for sound, says dealer

I purchased a McIntosh MA 6100 in 1978. I’m still using it in a third system in my record storage room. It sounds great.  I also bought a previously owned MA 6900 in 2007 from Audio Classics in Vestal NY.  It is a full featured integrated that keeps me smiling. A month ago the 6900 went into protection mode and stayed there.  Ryan at Audio Classics made a diagnosis over the phone saying that McIntosh would replace the capacitor in question free of charge.  It took a few days for them to get the part from McIntosh. I made an appointment  and they repaired the unit that day.  They also replaced all the light bulbs for a small fee.  I believe that is exceptional customer service from Audio Classics and McIntosh. I tried to arrange a visit to McIntosh but apparently they are not conducting tours during the pandemic.  What’s not to like.  Wish I also had a vintage McIntosh tube amp.

Mac looks beautiful, but the house sound, especially for their SS gear, is not accurate to my ears. I have never understood the devotion frankly. I remember the first time I heard the 2105 amplifier in the mid 70’s while shopping for an amp. I thought the bass was bloated and ill defined, the highs edgy, and the overall sound thin with a flat sense of space. Remains to this day the worst sounding high end amp I ever heard. That sound has continuously continued- bloated bass, thin presentation, poor sense of depth- ever sense. It’s the autoformers I guess. 

But his next move is to start herding people into the camp of looks (effectively calling them non-audiophiles) by dint of brand association. It becomes an "us" vs. "them" strategy that names names. That kind of tribalism -- he calls his fans/customers a "tribe" -- is reminiscent of the worst instincts we have. It turns us against one another in politics, religion, orientation, and more. Don’t we have enough of that?

@hilde45, I apologize for using the "C" word! That's where my mind went after reading your comment. 

Regarding desperation, that's a state of mind that I wouldn't wish on anyone. I've been there many times in life before. My way to combat those feelings is to try to and be grateful and embrace humility. 

I think the real problem here is that Mikey is losing income every month because he's a Jeff Roland dealer and Not a McIntosh dealer. The beautiful and lush MAC 352 @$6500 US is a sweet spot in the MAC line.....Much more attractive and better overall sounding with it's tube pre and SS amp. And it's a beautiful piece of equipment. To each his own but bashing another brand when you represent a direct competitor is not a smart thing to do. Most on this thread see thru the "veil".

Blanket statements pro and con miss more relevant points, such as "not all Mc is created equal". Their legacy tube designs are beautifully made, and typically warm (someone said "wet blanket") :-)  Its rarely state of the art, but it is solid, backed by a solid company, etc.

Some of their newer designs, including the SS ones and hybrids, are, IMO, quite inferior. for DACs, well, its not their thing (again IMO, YMMV).

All products are trade-offs.