McIntosh Vintage Amplifiers and Tube Amps
Vintage electronics are a hot commodity, and McIntosh amps are highly sought after by collectors of high-end audio pieces. Regardless of your reasons for wanting a McIntosh amp, youll find that there are plenty on the market. The originals date back to pre-transistor days, but some models were still being produced in the late 1990s.
What are the distinguishing qualities of a vintage MC275?This tube amplifier, which was originally produced in 1961, can pump an impressive 75Wpc out of its chassis. It has a couple of output transformers that use the McIntosh unity-coupled circuit. When this circuit was invented by the company in 1947, it allowed the amps to achieve a quick local feedback that cut back tremendously on distortion. The MC275 uses the following tubes.
- KT88 Output Tubes (4)
- 12AX7A Input Tubes (3)
- Phase-Inverters
- 12AT7 Voltage-Amplifier and Driver Tubes (4)
The McIntosh MC2100 comes with a dual-position switch thats labeled "stereo" and "mono." If you select mono and then set up the output for mono loudspeaker operation, you can use the tube amplifier as a monophonic 210-watt amp. Stereo loudspeakers can also be connected for output while the dual-position switch is set to stereo; a preamplifier is also required for this setting. With a crossover network, you can use this piece of audio equipment as twin 105-watt amps. You can even use the MC2100 as two distinct amplifiers with differing impedances.
Can you buy parts for the amplifiers separately?Most of the McIntosh tube amps are sold as one piece, but you can often find the individual parts for sale in case you want to build your own amp or need a replacement part. Vacuum tubes are usually easy to find as are the empty chassis. The original chassis was made of steel with chrome plating. You may run across accessories like cabinets that the company designed specifically for the large amps. If you need to replace the lacquered copper wire in an original model, you may wish to get a wire thats better insulated.
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