MT2 Question

So I have seen videos of this so it appears to be a real product but no mention of it of McIntosh's website. Anyone know anything about it?



Looks like it has a Blue Point 2 cartridge on it. Will this be a US product. The videos seems to be from Italy.

Thanks
 
Very nice looking TT, if news is true.
It looks like top of the paint is glass, similar to MC equipment faceplates which is very clever.
I presume this would be entry level TT for McIntosh.
 
The Blue Point has served them well on the MT-5 turntable (although I thought it sounded awful) and it's cheap ($450), so I assume that it'll be used on the MT-2 as well.

In this video, the tonearm on the MT-2 is IDENTICAL to that which is currently on the MT-5.

I hope that they include a dust cover. The MT-5 includes one, but the MT-10 stupidly and inexplicably doesn't!
 
I have been waiting for/wanting this turntable for months. When Michael Fremer reported that it was going to be offered at $2500, I started bugging McIntosh almost monthly. Last month, I finally got some info, but was disappointed to find out that it is being rolled out at $4k, not 2.5k. I was able to get the attached pics from a German website. apparently a few of these have already been delivered.

While short on details, I was told that:

It will come with the dustcover (I was hoping for a hinged clear cover, not the one pictured)
It will come standard with the Sumiko Blue Point #2 HO MC Cart.
It will not use the magnetic bearing
 
I have been waiting for/wanting this turntable for months. When Michael Fremer reported that it was going to be offered at $2500, I started bugging McIntosh almost monthly. Last month, I finally got some info, but was disappointed to find out that it is being rolled out at $4k, not 2.5k. I was able to get the attached pics from a German website. apparently a few of these have already been delivered.

While short on details, I was told that:

It will come with the dustcover (I was hoping for a hinged clear cover, not the one pictured)
It will come standard with the Sumiko Blue Point #2 HO MC Cart.
It will not use the magnetic bearing

Thanks for the further details. Pardon my ignorance but....

What advantage/disadvantage is the lack of the magnetic bearing?
Is "not using" a magnetic bearing a cost-saving decision?
Do the MT-5 and/or MT-10 have a magnetic bearing?
 
I'm was looking forward to the $2500 price tag . For that price I might as well get a Mt5 or look elsewhere.
 
Thanks for all the replies. At the price point cited and a potential reduction in features an MT5 might be the way to go over the long run. Also considering a new LP12 as an option as well.
 
Thanks for all the replies. At the price point cited and a potential reduction in features an MT5 might be the way to go over the long run. Also considering a new LP12 as an option as well.
I'd wait until the MT-2 comes out and prices are officially announced before buying anything else. Various videos of prototypes are floating around the web, one with the acrylic platter, others with the black platter. Also, lots of prices are floating around. With the preponderance of "Fake News", it's best to wait for "the facts". Perhaps an official McIntosh dealer could be consulted to get the real specs of the MT-2.

I own an MT-5 retrofitted with a McIntosh-branded MT-10 Mk 2 cartridge (really a ClearAudio Talismann 2 Gold with "McIntosh" stamped on it) and it performs beautifully running through the new vacuum tube MP-1100 phono preamp->MX121->MC 275 Mk VI->LS340.

I did not like the Sumiko Blu-Point that the MT-5 had installed on it with (maybe I didn't give it enough "break-in" time but it was shrill and didn't give a very good "separation of instruments" in orchestral recordings).

Whatever you do, before you leave the store, make sure that the MT-5 or MT-10 or whatever has the little 3 dimensional "dot" on the tonearm's pivot point. I have always (especially on the LP-12 with the Ekos arm) had a very hard time adjusting the geometry of my cartridge due to the fact that I never could find the exact pivot point (I'm pretty bad with estimates of measurements). This "dot" give the precise pivot point and thus allows the Feikart cartridge adjuster (which I have) to be very precise. However, it's been reported that some "runs" of the MT-10 do not have the "dot" stamped on the tonearm' pivot point. For your own sanity, make sure that the one you buy has it.
 
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I'd wait until the MT-2 comes out and prices are officially announced before buying anything else. Various videos of prototypes are floating around the web, one with the acrylic platter, others with the black platter. Also, lots of prices are floating around. With the preponderance of "Fake News", it's best to wait for "the facts". Perhaps an official McIntosh dealer could be consulted to get the real specs of the MT-2.
 
This is the information I was able to get from my dealer when he called his factory rep approximately 3 weeks ago:

The price will be $4,000.00. (My dealer was willing to take a pre-order based on this).
It will come with a dustcover.
It will come standard with the Sumiko Blue Point #2 HO MC Cart.
It will not use the magnetic bearing.

He was not able to give specifics on the US roll-out date, the tonearm, or VTA adjustability, and I did not ask about the platter. I assumed it would be acrylic as in the video with Charlie Randall, however the newest videos, with what appear to be production type shipping boxes in the background, show the unit having a black platter.

As you suggest, I think it will be best to wait until the official US release before making a final decision.
 
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Thanks for the latest pictures SDMBDAD71!!!

Hmmmm.... I saw an earlier picture of a prototype MT-2 that used the same tonearm that is on the MT-5. Looks like they changed that idea and are now using a tonearm that looks very similar to the one used on the Marantz TT-15S1. Too bad that there's no 78 RPM capability.

Glad they're including a dust cover....

I agree with "62Caddy" that the lack of the illuminated platter makes this turntable much less desirable.

I have an MT-5 and it is both a wonderful sounding turntable (when retrofitted with the MT-10's cartridge) and a beautiful work of art when it's playing. Has 78 RPM as well!
 
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