The 1st time I was truly disappointed by McIntosh

techguy0192

Listen to the whistle of the evenin' train
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I think most everyone that frequents this section of AK is aware I'm not a fan of the new MC2152.

This made me reflect on how I was extremely disappointed by McIntosh a couple or so years ago. Somehow, I managed to shrug it off and move one. Continued to own Mac without a break in tenure purchasing other Mac components (new and vintage) including a C47 and an MC152.

The MC2152, rekindled those past thoughts with its design changes. I'm sure you are asking, what did they do?

They started building products in China with the release of the RS100. More recently, the MHA50 was released. Also made built in China.

Please don't mistake this as a made in China bashing thread. My frustration is centered on a company that has proudly manufactured products in NY, now allowing things to slip over to China. I'm sure some will argue, that's just the "lifestyle" products. I don't see that as a relevant argument; anything with the McIntosh logo should be coming out of the factory in NY. It's a damn shame to go to the Mac website and see anything....anything...with made in china stamped on it.

We have seen significant design changes with the MC2152. Will that continue? More of a concern, is will we see more products over time stamped assembled in China? I question influence from other stakeholders within the other companies that comprise McIntosh Group. To me this is sort of Mac's dirty little secret they are trying to keep minimized....it's there...just no one talks about it. Charlie Randall vowed that McIntosh would always be made in NY. :(

Hopefully, this will not continue. I would hate to see the brand further diluted/tarnished. Let's make a comparison with another luxury product sector, wristwatches. If a company like Patek Philippe made even one single watch in China, it would likely ruin the company. Not to mention that the value of past products could very likely plummet.


MHA50.JPG

RS100.JPG
 
Don’t be too hard on them, McIntosh needs to survive. These smaller nitche product doesn’t really concern me, it would be more disheartening to see the amps and preamps moved to off shore. McIntosh may need these lower nitche products to keep the flagship alive. Take Porsche, if it wasn’t for the massive sales of the SUVs version, the iconic 911s would not survived and all the R&D would not be paid for.

Let’s hope that the heart ( Amps and Preamps ) of McIntosh stays in NY.
 
Don’t be too hard on them, McIntosh needs to survive. These smaller nitche product doesn’t really concern me, it would be more disheartening to see the amps and preamps moved to off shore. McIntosh may need these lower nitche products to keep the flagship alive. Take Porsche, if it wasn’t for the massive sales of the SUVs version, the iconic 911s would not survived and all the R&D would not be paid for.

Let’s hope that the heart ( Amps and Preamps ) of McIntosh stays in NY.

Following up on your Porsche analogy. They're at least not making them in China. My argument is not against adding additional products.
 
One has to look at McIntosh as a whole, not just a few decisions we don't agree with.

Made In China - simple. Just don't buy it if your principals won't allow it. You have to remember, we can't just dump chromium dioxide in ponds anymore here in the US (and for good reason). There are some things that Chinese manufacturers excel at - otherwise your cell phone wouldn't be made there.

Styling changes - it wasn't that long ago that folks were up in arms about the small buttons on the MC152 and 301 - awful many said. I can't recall the last time I heard that complaint. The MA252 was met with similar reviews as is the new MC2152. Personally, I try and reserve judgment for after I've seen such products in person. Often then, one gets a better appreciation and can often find a departure from the norm refreshing. Imagine what MC275 owners must have thought about the MC2505 and MC2105. In time, it's all normalized and many departure products become heavily sought after. The MC3500 and MC7200 are just two of many examples.
 
Right, 911 is still made in Stugartt, while the others are off to the eastern block, for cheaper labor.

Yes , QC will be crucial. Having worked with Asian supplier, it’s a hit and miss. You have to find the right relationship and understand the core competencies.

My point is to keep the high end going, you need to supplement with low end high profit margin product. McIntosh isn’t in the same ecosphere with Apple fandom. You have no lines forming when a new version of a product with small incremental changes are released.

I’m sure McIntosh at this time isn’t steering their own ship, not 100%. The investment company, that owns them,is pressuring them to make money.
 
Some components have to be made in China because US manufacturers think you can't find it anywhere else and there pompous is ass is so wrong and you lose. Very good quality from China if you control it, so sorry to say. True red white and blue through and through, gotta do what you gotta do.
 
As an Engineer I've chased Chinese / LCC suppliers to try and get consistent high quality (through our Buyers who always felt we were going to save money). The savings is usually not what you expect, many quality problems, many parts on a boat before the next quality problem emerges, many quality spills.

For some things I'm sure that they're fine. For highly engineered assemblies, critical machining and casting, precision molded parts, not so much as they don't seem to really understand what it takes and the impact of each new failure mode. Contamination isn't fully understood, it just hasn't been a good way to make consistent good parts.

If I were in the "widget" industry where quality can be easily understood, controlled, measured, and contained I'm sure it would be different.
 
You can talk trash on Chinese manufacturing all you want, but I think they're quickly outstripping the rest of the world in small assembly manufacturing prowess. If Apple were to being iPhone production to the US, we'd see a huge cost spike not just because the labor is more expensive but because they'd have to pay for all of the training that doesn't exist here for that type of work and for all of the duds coming off the factory floor for the first few months or years.

Tim Cook said it himself in an interview a few months back. China has incredible manufacturing competence when it comes to knocking out huge quantities of very complex parts and assemblies.

We need more folks going to trade schools and learning how to actually build stuff, but that requires a. Trade schools that are more than profit generating schemes and b. a manufacturing economy that's competitive on price with the rest of the world.

The first would be easy with the right set of political circumstances. The latter is much more difficult.
 
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