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MC240 & C26 Set Up

Lingonberry

Lingonberry

Member
Hello to all:

New McIntosh owner, and have been scouring the board for info, but didn’t come across this question:

Is there a problem with plugging the power cord of the MC240 into the C26 pre-amp? The MC240 does not have a power switch, so by plugging the power into the pre-amp, they can simultaneously be turned off and on. If this is not advisable, is it recommended to keep the MC240 powered on all the time, or to just manually unplug the power cord when I am done listening?

Also, is it better to connect the speakers directly to the MC240, or to run them through the C26. I know the main advantage to connecting the speakers through the pre-amp is to be able to use headphones, but I don’t really anticipate using headphones, and if that affects the speaker’s sound, I am happy to connect them directly to the amp.

Just looking for any owners with a similar set up, and what’s their advice/experience.

Thanks in advance!
 
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Lingonberry said:
Hello to all:

New McIntosh owner, and have been scouring the board for info, but didn’t come across this question:

Is there a problem with plugging the power cord of the MC240 into the C26 pre-amp? The MC240 does not have a power switch, so by plugging the power into the pre-amp, they can simultaneously be turned off and on. If this is not advisable, is it recommended to keep the MC240 powered on all the time, or to just manually unplug the power cord when I am done listening?

Also, is it better to connect the speakers directly to the MC240, or to run them through the C26. I know the main advantage to connecting the speakers through the pre-amp is to be able to use headphones, but I don’t really anticipate using headphones, and if that affects the speaker’s sound, I am happy to connect them directly to the amp.

Just looking for any owners with a similar set up, and what’s their advice/experience.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

I have a MC2100 with no power switch also.
I use a heavy duty 3 ft appliance extension cord. And use a on/off switch off of that.
To plug my amp into.
It's recommended to power on pre amp
first then power amp. And the opposite
on power down.
 
The plug input on the c26 is made for an amplifier, so that it turns on and off with the preamp. I have my MC30s plugged into my MX110z and on my other stereo a MC240 plugged into my C28. I also have a C26 that I have used the same way. That’s how they were made.
 
There should be no problem taking advantage of one of the C26's convenience outlets. However I would advise the use of switched power strip for powering the equipment on/off which will reduce wear on the C26's off/on/volume control.

If headphone use is desired, it will be necessary to make amplifier connections between the MC240 & C26. Also note that the C26 has circuity that will maintain a load on the outputs which will protect the amplifier from oscillating if the speaker switch is shut off while playing.
 
@62caddy beat me to the punch.

Yes connect speakers directly, ... unless you want to have Speaker B capability and/or headphone capability. This is how I have always run mine (less connections is preferred).
If you like the idea of running through the C26 there is no wrong answer and you do gain the dummy-load protection caddy mentioned.

Although you can connect power to the switched outlet on the C26, that is how the C26 was designed to run, I also suggest running both units to a switched power conditioner (and again this is how I have always run mine). McIntosh likely never expected these units to still be in regular use over a half-century later and the wear on the C26 on/off switch (actually the volume potentiometer section is what fails at least as often as the actual switch portion) is not available anymore (at least not a quality / correct one, you have to go to hacks on ebay to find poorly-built ones for way more than they're worth).

Welcome to the forum.
 
Could also use one of the C26 unswitched outlets if a power strip is used to power the equipment off/on. It probably won't matter anyway if a switched outlet is used if the C26 is left in the on position permanently (more or less).
 
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