Is Mcintosh a Rip Off? The Answer May Surprise You...

Best bang for the buck is usually speakers.

Also, usually the most noticeable change is a speaker change.

I love McIntosh and have 4 pairs of their iso planer speakers the XL 10’s. Replaced the passive radiators, re-coned the drivers, and replaced all the parts in the crossovers. I our Opinion they better than the two pair of Elac’s we have. We also have a pair source point 10’s which are unbelievable. But my son and I agree that the Mac’s sound good enough. Equally the Yamaha that I’ve used since the 70s up until the current AS701 and the AS 2200 are good enough. The McIntoshes are not worth $7000 and $4000 more respectively. Good enough is good enough.

A great video..Thanks. I learned a lot.

It’s the only audio gear that holds it’s value for 20 years

The Mac 7200 receiver vs the Yamaha N2000 is my delimna. I cant see spending $8K when a $4K receiver will perform as good if not better.

You can get lots of great sound equip. Very cheap,, the millianials, and the x,,y., z,, kide dont know anything about music or art, and live 100% disposable lives. IKEA, sad and sorry to see our culture and nation in the crapper, ... So. There is tons of great sterio,s, amps ,, anything just laying around I just got a mac 1700, reciever ,, and a. Ar p428ps speakers. Very rare!! Mac, a,d speakers 1,250.00,, at a plave called the turntable in pen. A awesome place

I like the style of these videos ……….👍🏼👍🏼

In 1978 I bought a Mac 2100 & C26, Pioneer PL-41 and a pair of Magnaplanars. 45 years later, I listen to them every day. Still enjoy the pure perfection.
Buy once and never look back. Well sometimes I do think about the Bozak Symphonies that were my second choice in speakers.

I have always felt that quality is remembered long after price is forgotten.

Ps audio is overrated too sorry Paul

Handmade in the USA.💪

McIntosh was the first hifi brand to position themselves as a status symbol. They’ve remained that more than all else.

There’s a number of brands that have a better sound and of course that’s subjective. Regardless, they’re undeniably beautiful.

Plus wife friendly for those who have one that has to be answered to

…as she buys yet another pair of shoes and matching handbag? We all have our hobbies marry someone that respects, supports or even share yours 🤷🏽‍♂️

I had a car amp 20 years ago & it was so clean & distortion free that you could not tell how loud it was until you realize you can't even hear yourself speak. No distortion.

Every once in awhile McIntosh comes out with a product that is worth the big price tag but it's few and far between. After 25 years of purchasing equipment I have 2 McIntosh pieces and would never sell them.

2nd point - I have just bought a pair of Monitor Audio Platinum 500II's - enormous great hulling speakers - I can't use them at the moment - they are in storage - but soon I will - and they are rare and it was a good deal and also for me - endgame speakers - also pairing them with 1st point - Mcintosh Monos.......

I BOUGHT MY MA6100 AMP BACK IN 1976 FOR 649.00. THAT AMP IS STILL IN DAILY SERVICE TO THIS DAY, AND HAS NEVER BEEN SERVICED. AS THE OLD SAYING GOES, YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. AND KEEP IN KIND, I COULD GET MORE THAN TRIPLE FOR IT IF I EVER WANTED TO SELL.

I think if you compare McIntosh to actual high-end audio brands, it's a bargain.

I like Bulova

The speakers are. The electronics are almost a bargain.

Now....there's a great list of products....i can also make a give away....You can have My soul for any of the prizes....kind of no need it...just need music

other og brands are Accuphase, and Luxman. the jspanese Mcintosh.

you can by other things than McIntosh but lets talk when you go to sell that none mcintosh item

You totally need the McIntosh $1500 light box so you can hide your cables 🤗

If you got a McIntosh than you da man imo

I love my old McIntosh. I think our brains can do auto correction on lesser gear. I can play music in my head, I think that has something to do with it.

Hope K Horn man got them. I have them in a not so good location and they sound great anyway. Ran them with two amp camp amps in bridged mode w balanced input at 15 watts and they were great. Now I'm running them with a pair of VTA M-125 and am all smiles.

The thing about brand equity is that you're either someone who acknowledges it as a valid factor or someone who doesn't. And if you don't, you're probably never going to pay for it, despite being able to.

I work at McIntosh and also own RS150 speaker and its not a rip off...everything is built with quality from quality wokers.

I think the best advice you've given, and Im paraphrasing. Seize the moment and do what's going to make you happy. You're only alive once, so spend that 5 k for a good clean amp and enjoy life while you have it. Trust me the way music sounds when you're in your 20's is totally different than how it's going to sound in your 60's. If you have to wait until you're 60 to buy one of these amps, you've probably missed your window of opportunity to fully appreciate the sound quality. That of course depends on if you've spent the money on buying a high quality set of speakers or preferably built your own speakers. The speakers are the weakest link in a sound system as well are your ears. I say Get the Macintosh 7200 new, or second hand. Your ears will thank you.

I see you mentioned about buying used. Is buying a used Mac gear worth it? For example, being that you have no warranty and what would be the estimated repair costs should you even need to being they are supposedly built to last.

How long do those vacuum tubes last?

What I've been doing is buy stuff on 0 percent interest using Affirm. You get gear you want right away and pay over the next couple months and don't pay any intetest.

I am a McFan but I will tell you that 5500$ Class D amp of theirs is over priced. Maybe not compared to very popular brands----it just has the McIntosh brand recognition markup over those. But a better quality Class D amp can be had from a French company for less than 1500$ delivered.

This is a great video, a while back I finally got my own place and started buying hifi and home theater stuff (my first TV, speakers, subs etc) I started out buying used: cbm-170 and cmt-340 LRC from ascend acoustics, Rotel rsp-1066 processor, Rotel-1075 amp, with a cheapo Yamaha vintage sub. All for - $700 used. Then I found someone selling a used 5 channel cbm-170se(I had the originals) + matching cmt-340se center for $500(cables included). Shortly after I bought a mirage Omni s8 subwoofer for $50 (my stepdad has 2 s10s and they sound amazing) I then stumbled across svs ultra bookshelves for $500. And picked them up because I originally wanted them. Then I found a guy selling 2 Cbm-170se's + cmt340se center plus speaker stands for $300. My goal for home theater is Dolby Atmos which is $$$. I didn't buy the svs ultras for my home theater. I got them for music. I found ascend acoustic sierra ones for sale at $420 and really wanted them but had just bought the ultras. I know My end game speaker is the ascend acoustics Sierra 2 ex V2 so I figured I might as well keep the svs around and move into the sierra sound when I have the time. I don't have room for Dolby Atmos and some will think I'm crazy for having heavy ass booksheves mounted to the ceiling eventually but that's what imma do haha. I love buying used gear especially if it means saving money on shipping costs down the line.

I can’t fit klipschorns in my current room either… would love them. I did find a pair of ev aristocrats which I love. Still a corner loaded horn but much more manageable size. They were designed by Paul klipsch as well

I once had a friend who had a pair of Klipsch horns in his 10' x 10' apartment bedroom. Talk about an immersive sound experience! But those were his dream speakers that eventually found their way into a large listening room when he bought a house.

The answer is yes, so it doesnt suprise me at all

I love the breitling super avenger I believe. I feel like it. I can't afford it. Yike back to yike book shelf R 100 winner the th th.u

When you have the money to throw away, it's never a rip off. It does sound good. "Rip off" is a relative term.

Audio is something a whole family can enjoy and have for decades. Not much in this world is like that. Worth spending on something that holds value.

all roads lead to McIntosh.

Like anythng else rip off is a loaded term. Can you argue you can get comparable sound out of a lot cheaper gear? Of course. Given the reality that unless you have trained hearing like my son, most ppl won't know the difference ( if you need a spectrum analyzer to see the difference, ya likely won't hear it. Sometimes the overtone series can make a difference in sound,but most ppl again won't hear it). Heck these days ppl prefer the sound of mp3 encoded music!

Macintosh amps and pre amps are not a ripoff taken in context. Sure the price reflects brand cachet, Apple calling their computer the Macintosh wasnt just the fruit reference.

They are incredubly well made, they have a great look and they do have great sound. If you can afford it, you are getting a great unit. Does that mean you should run up your debt to buy one? No, bc you can get great sound without breaking the bank.

But there is a lot of joy in owning something for the irrational reason that, for example, you saw it as 'the best', wanted it..and there us nothing wrong with that. Heck ppl buy 60s muscle cars, drool over them, when for less money a modern muscle car puts the 60s cars to shame in every category. But the new car doesn't have that feeling those old cars bring.

Other hi fi brands like Luxman are great units too, but speaking only as myself, the name didn't penetrate my space until much, much later. I wasnt an audiophile growing up,still not really, but even to me, I would see them in a magazine or at an audio show, and it just looked cool.

The nice part with Mac equipment is as others say, if you ever decide to sell it, you will be pleasantly surprised. It isn't an investment , but you prob can sell it for what you paid for it ,( still losing money in real dollar terms likely, but still). And yeah, you can get them repaired. I do wonder about more modern units is they are using any kind of IC technology, but from what I can tell they can be fixed, which a lot of high end stuff may not be.

Again, on a rational basis you can argue that you can get comparable sound with a much smaller price tag...but there also is the 'it' factor ( not talking snob appeal) that can make it a real bargain. I bought my Primaluna bc I wanted a tube amp ( pretty much for the heck if it,) and I loved the way it is hand made, they don't overdrive the tubes, it has auto biasing , and it just plain looks cute when it is running, neat Italian style enclosure , looking at the tube glow while listening with room lights dim is awesome.

What? Buying speakers that you can't even fit in your room on the premise that one day you might have a big enough house one day? That's a terrible decision lol. That's like buying another house because you might win the lottery.

Of course they're a rip-off. But if you got the money and enjoy being ripped-off, why not?

I've always thought Krell, Mark Levinson, Audio Research and Conrad Johnson are in that same group as Mac. I've always aspired to own Audio Research myself.

I love my Macs.

I used to be into gear acquisition. But alas, I ran out of differentials.

I’ve had Klipsch La Scalas for 45 years (with some reasonable updates). Recently retired and downsized but could not bring myself to sell the Klipsches so I threw them into the corners of a 10x10 room. Who knew they make sensational near field speakers, if a touch large.

Accuphase and Luxman too.