McIntosh in the Blood

michaelw4248

New Member
A pleasure - I've been browsing around here for sometime, always hovering and never engaging. I figured I'd change that today! I'm posting in the McIntosh forum because that certainly seemed most appropriate. I was baptized into McIntosh-ism through my late father (six years gone). My father worked at MIT in his early twenties (1960s) specializing in analog engineering. Apparently, him and his colleague used to go down to some government warehouse full of electronic equipment in Taunton, MA. Somehow my old man and his colleague had access to these warehouses through their affiliation with MIT faculty. This warehouse is apparently where my father stumbled upon a McIntosh 275 (early 60s). He 'acquired' it (refunding their budget for electronic equipment afterwards) and brought it home. Eventually, he went on to acquire a C20 Pre-Amp, a Marantz 10B tuner, and a Thorens TD 124 turntable. My father maintained all the equipment personally (given his analog background). However, to my father, the system represented an ode of sorts to the pinnacle of sound engineering in the late 50s - 60s and not some epic tribute to his love for music. The system, for as much as I witnessed, remained largely unused. It sat pristine and safe in the living room for both my childhood and adolescence.

When my father died before I was about to start college, I inherited the equipment. I have had all of it refurbished at this point. My signal chain for digitally sourced music is MacMini Server -->MHA 100 (DAC)-->C20 PreAmp-->Mc275-->definitive technology BP 7004 towers. Otherwise I have the tuner and the turntable hooked up to the C20 directly. I'm using IsoAcoustics' ISO-Pucks for feet on the Thorens - it's a spring based table so it really picks up resonance from footfalls on my hardwood floor. I was skeptical but the pucks really did completely solve the issue. I'm using acoustic panels that were cut to silhouette the speakers and I have everything controlled via Spotify or iTunes, depending on what I'm using. CD Player is a MVP 851 and the switch box is a Beresford. I'm actually running a dual system, using a switch box to separate two amps from the same pair of speakers, so in some of the pics you'll see that. Just thought I'd share, excited to chat.


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Michael, That a beautiful system, story and lineage. Now you'v added your twist to the system in turn your children's lineage spanning decades. Love your space also, very nice welcome to AK and stay awhile, lots of good people here.
 
Beautiful system, Michael. I hope you enjoy it for years and years to come.
 
Your father had excellent taste! Some folks would say that even today, the tuner, amplifier, and turntable that you have were never bettered by any significant margin. Original units in the condition that yours are handed down by your father are priceless!

Welcome to AK!
 
Great story and really nice system. Lots of memories there. Both past and future.
 
Magnificent system with a great story behind it. I'm sure your father would be pleased.

Thanks for posting and welcome to AK! :beerchug:
 
I really enjoyed reading the story, just brilliant.....and what a classic combination, I'll bet it sounds nice and creamy!!
 
Absolutely fantastic. Your vintage Mac gear is in truly stunning condition, like it just left the factory yesterday. I hope it continues to remain in your family for many many years. McIntosh is one of the few makers of true heirloom quality audio equipment, and this thread serves as excellent proof.
 
As other have said - great story, and a nice mix of modern and wonderful vintage components in a beautiful room.
 
I hope you are fortunate to still be enjoying the system when it reaches 100 years old. 45 years to go. Good luck. I wish I could be there when you celebrate.
 
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