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Mcintosh c29 pre..buy or pass?

Ealyb11

Ealyb11

Well-Known Member
Its a C29 with original paperwork and box with the Mac speaker selector in claimed "Great condition" asking 775. Two questions:
1. is this a good price for a good unit? I will of course offer less, just because that's how I deal. I know the C29 is well regarded. It includes the SCR2 speaker relay and pan-lock brackets.
2. Would it be acceptable to pilot a Adcom GFA-555II for the time until I get the funds for a Mac amp as well? I don't see many folks matching Mac pres to other brand power amps...?

I forgot to add that it does not have a wooden cabinet. It is just the metal case pre.
 
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You can get them cheaper on ebay, so I would say it's little high. Show him ebay sold prices and try to work him down to $600 or so. The 555II is a great amp, and will work beautifully with the C29.
 
I think the more sensible option would be to get non Mac gear and get more for my money, but I REALLY want it. Yall k ow how that is right? Haha


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The C 29 is a great pre-amp. If it's clean and working well it's worth $6-700. I have a mint C-28 which I value at the same price due to it's condition.
 
Once you start down this path, it will be hard to turn away. Mind you, the C29 is a very well respected vintage preamp. I have a C24 restored and a very nice C26, and I love them. I also had a C32, and I preferred the way the C26 sounded through the same amp. I ABed them for a while, and I just liked the way the C26 sounded, and it helped that I could sell off the C32 to end up paying for both the C24 and the C26.

Good luck, whatever you decide.
 
Really nice C29s are harder and harder to find. This is an excellent preamp - I've owned several. A bit of negotiating on your end and you may be able to buy it at a price youre comfortable with.
 
It sold before I could snag it. Was posted for less than 24 hours.


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Problem is you drew attention to this preamp by posting it openly on here. Not the ad, but it doesn't take much effort to do a search on your local area.

When I find something I am interested in, I keep quiet about it. I might contact someone quite remote directly for their opinion, but never openly on a forum. Personally, I thought the price was quite reasonable.
 
I appreciate the input, however my budget is allowing for a 7-800 piece max, so a 1500 amp is out of the question.


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BilboBaggins said:
Problem is you drew attention to this preamp by posting it openly on here. Not the ad, but it doesn't take much effort to do a search on your local area.

When I find something I am interested in, I keep quiet about it. I might contact someone quite remote directly for their opinion, but never openly on a forum. Personally, I thought the price was quite reasonable.
Click to expand...

You broke the number one rule of Fight Club - I mean AK. If you really want it, keep quiet about it until you've got it in your hot little hands! Don't feel to bad, that wasn't really a score IMO.
 
Ealyb11 said:
I appreciate the input, however my budget is allowing for a 7-800 piece max, so a 1500 amp is out of the question.


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Click to expand...

Assuming that it went for asking price, don't feel bad. I probably would not have pulled the trigger either. With just a bit of patience, you can find a good working unit on ebay for that price (especially w/o cabinet).

I remember first time buying my Mc pre. It was same model C29, and I thought, "wow, what the heck!!!?" Made an amazing first impression. In a long run though, one may find it being too far from "neutral sound" if you're into uncolored sound.
 
Would Mac gear generally be classified as warm or dark, or cold and bright sounding? Or neutral ?


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Ealyb11 said:
Would Mac gear generally be classified as warm or dark, or cold and bright sounding? Or neutral ?


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Click to expand...

imho, like I said, it's not neutral. I would describe it as SMOOTH and DYNAMIC. Both with capital letters for a reason. :D

I've owned many McIntosh pieces, and this has been my experience especially with their preamps.
 
Ealyb11 said:
Its a C29 with original paperwork and box with the Mac speaker selector in claimed "Great condition" asking 775. Two questions:
1. is this a good price for a good unit? I will of course offer less, just because that's how I deal. I know the C29 is well regarded. It includes the SCR2 speaker relay and pan-lock brackets.
2. Would it be acceptable to pilot a Adcom GFA-555II for the time until I get the funds for a Mac amp as well? I don't see many folks matching Mac pres to other brand power amps...?

I forgot to add that it does not have a wooden cabinet. It is just the metal case pre.
Click to expand...

Hi:
I've owned a C-26, C-28, and a C-33 and could not warm up to them at all. I read some reviews on the C-29 and thought I'd give the Mac's one last try. I'm glad I did. I can say the C-29 was the best, by a mile, for my ears at least. I found the C-26 and 28's very dry and raspy sounding. The C-33 was better, but required a lot of tweaking with the EQ settings for almost any song I played, and was very heavy on the midrange regardless of the settings. The C-29 was cleaner and smoother sounding from the get go, and was downright magical once I went through it and re-capped it. See pic attached. I used Nichicon KZ and FG's, Elna Silmic's, and the last two (10UF) caps in the signal path I switched out from electrolytic to poly type and it really sweetened and soften it up even more. I was impressed enough with this preamp when it was done to get a second one for my basement systems, and re-capped that one the same way. These are now my primary preamps for my tube amps.
I might have experienced a similar improvement in sound quality had I re-capped the C-26 or 28, but having the enclosed stepped volume pot on the C-29 was another feature that sets it apart from those other two as well. You don't see the C-29's come up for sale very often and I think it is because they are so sweet sounding.
These are just my impressions of the C-29. Others may certainly have different opinions. It is always up to the listener as to what kind of sound you are looking for. But since I saw this post, I thought I'd share my opinion. Hope it helps. Best of luck in whatever you decide!
As for the price, $775 is a little high if it is without the wooden case. $600-$650 would be more appropriate if it is in excellent shape with no issues.
 

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  • McIntosh - C-29 after restoration.jpg
    McIntosh - C-29 after restoration.jpg
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Oh wow, I posted this almost exactly a year ago. I ended up with a Yamaha C-70, had it recapped and just this month swapped to a Parasound P3 Halo to gain remote control ability.

I appreciate the info though, I always keep my eye out for good Mac gear.
 
Just happened to see your post the other day and thought I'd add my 2 cents. I figured you'd already bought something, but thought it might be helpful for anyone else who might be thinking about this preamp.
 
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