mcntosh 60

ejvic

New Member
Hi all...i bought 2 mcintosh 60 and i tested them today and they sound good on my scala..but because the amps are old i would like to changes some capacitors and some resistors..is there a kit that i can buy? i want to make sure the units are functioning safe and properly without taking them to the shop...i know how to solder and i have a little background in electonics..these are my first tube amps...i am located in dallas tx..thanks
 
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ejvic.......Welcome to AK, and the McIntosh Forum.

To the best of my knowledge, there are no "kits" for any of the older McIntosh amplifiers. You might start by contacting McIntosh, and ordering the schematic for the MC60 power amplifiers, and go from there. 1-800-538-6576
 
There have been extensive discussions of restoring Mac tube gear here. Many of the discussions, though not specifically about the MC-60s, apply to them. I'd suggest you start with the Hints and Kinks sticky here then do a search for tube amp restoration.

Many of the discussions will assume you know and understand what a bias circuit is, what a power supply is, what a coupling capacitor does, what a filter capacitor does and the various sizes and values of components they have.

You'll also see references to various brands and types of capacitors plus discussions and opinions on their sonic merits. It can seem overwhelming at first.

As for kits, there are no full restoration kits for the Mac amps that would contain step-by-step instructions for each model. The demand just isn't great enough. This means that you'll need some understanding of how to read and apply schematic diagrams in order to work through the process of replacing the right components with the right new ones. There are people here who can help you if you take lots of pictures of what you're doing and are patient with those 'arm chair' bench techs with lots of ideas on what to do next.

Lastly, if you do want to do the work yourself, that's just excellent and many have found it to be a satisfying experience. I would highly recommend you get the proper test gear to do so, though. You should also be comfortable working with high voltages and have the proper test leads to handle it. I don't mean to scare you off but these voltages can be lethal. I've been working on tube gear since the 60s and I still get bit occasionally, so its part of the experience.

Hope that helps.

Cheers,

David
 
Do a search on Ebay for a MC60 capacitor kit. You should find one with instructions that may be helpful to a beginner. And listen to what "dshoaf" said about the voltages, these are in access of 450v DC which means it wont let go. Do plenty of reading before you finally decide to go the DIY route.
Welcome to the forum!
 
Thanks everyone...i have to read and read some more...i am looking at the schematic and looking all the value of the components.....can i power up the amp without any tubes and input? so i can check the reading on the pinouts? please advice..
 
You can power it up but I'd be using either a variac or the light-bulb technique, which is a standard light bulb inserted into one leg of the AC line. This is standard practice on old tube amps and I'd consider it a safety issue.

You will also need to learn about what effects old electrolytic caps have and why they can be a problem.

If you do bring it up without tubes - a good way to start, some of the voltages will read higher than called for since the power supply isn't loaded down with filament current or with the tubes drawing current.

My recommendation is to:

- Rebuild the power supply
- Rebuild the bias circuit
- Bring the amp up slowly with all but the output tubes and test those stages
- Bring the amp up with the output tubes added and monitor bias voltages on their grids.
- Adjust the bias circuit per the Hints and Kinks technique Terry D calls for.

Hope that helps.

Cheers,

David
 
Quick note, MC60 with output plate voltage of 435V should have bias of -45V on the grids of the outputs, this should give you about a 1.3A draw on the AC line.
 
Thanks everybody...after thinking it over i decided to let TERRY Dewick to work on the units to make sure that they will be done right...i will ship the amps to him saturday or sunday....for now i am just going to keep reading about tube amps and get all the information about the mcintosh 60....i would like to thanks everyone...for all the good advice...and i will keep in touch...nice forum!!!
 
Oh yeah!!!

I just want to thank you TERRY for making my mcintosh 60 sounds Great!! i just finished listening to them for 5 hours and sounds really great!!thanks and i am happy to the performance of the the amp..sound clean and static free and the sound stage is big..
 
Another pair lives on for another 40 years! Contratulations, ejvic - and Terry, of course.

Cheers,

David
 
half day off..

Guys..i actually took a half day off just to listen to mcintosh 60 for 2 hours..at my work is really slow right now...but..do i get addicted to the sounds of mcintosh 60? Jheena Lodwick is like in the front of me when i am listening to her cd..wow..
 
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