New vs Vintage McIntosh equipment
- Thread starter strat10
- Start date
Always wanted a pair.
I have heard MC275s at the store where I used to "drool on the carpet." This store did not handle any electrostatics. Their "top" speakers at the time were Altec A7s. I do not remember if they had the crossover to the horn tweeter at 800hz or 500hz (if I remember correctly the early A7s had the crossover at 800hz - the A7 500s were a later "improvement").
Anyway, for me the Altec A7s playing through the MC275s were the "standard" against which I measured everything I heard.
I was also exposed to Klipschorn during the early 1960s, but they were NOT paired with Mac amps. The Klips had great sound as well.
This brings me to another observation. I remember audiophiles "raving" about the woofers in Altec, Klips, and other high end systems. But I do not know if they realized how much musical content was covered in the 500hz and higher range. To me the high-frequency horns added more to the great sound in these vintage speaker systems than the woofers ever did (after all, a lot of how we differentiate different instruments is not the "basic" sound - the differentiation comes from the high frequency harmonics (or "overtones") generated with the "basic" sound). But nobody would talk about the engineering that went into the horn speakers that generated them.
I never owned tube Mac gear. When everything was tube equipment, I could not afford anything more than kits that I put together myself. By the time I could afford Mac gear, there were only used tube units available, and they were much pricier than the used solid state units. So, I bought what I could afford.
Anyway, for me the Altec A7s playing through the MC275s were the "standard" against which I measured everything I heard.
I was also exposed to Klipschorn during the early 1960s, but they were NOT paired with Mac amps. The Klips had great sound as well.
This brings me to another observation. I remember audiophiles "raving" about the woofers in Altec, Klips, and other high end systems. But I do not know if they realized how much musical content was covered in the 500hz and higher range. To me the high-frequency horns added more to the great sound in these vintage speaker systems than the woofers ever did (after all, a lot of how we differentiate different instruments is not the "basic" sound - the differentiation comes from the high frequency harmonics (or "overtones") generated with the "basic" sound). But nobody would talk about the engineering that went into the horn speakers that generated them.
I never owned tube Mac gear. When everything was tube equipment, I could not afford anything more than kits that I put together myself. By the time I could afford Mac gear, there were only used tube units available, and they were much pricier than the used solid state units. So, I bought what I could afford.
I have added VOTT Horns, to my (don't laugh) Cerwin Vega XLS-215's. My hearing has degraded to 80Hz, to 9000Hz. (I'll be 70, this year) The crossover point, is 500Hz., and this combination sounds fantastic, to me. I control the volume of the horns, with the 809-8A crossovers, that I rebuilt with air core inductors, and poly caps. I can feel the Bass that I cannot hear with the 4 15" speakers on the bottom, and I give just enough high end response to the horns, to make the sound sparkle. It is very much an unorthodox setup, but it works for me!
mozcho
Well-Known Member
Some photos would be very nice!
damacman
Resident Psycho
Sounds like someone is having too much fun. In my 20s, I vividly recall having a pair of 2300s banging the meters at the stops during the many house parties. One ran a pair of 18" Cerwin Vegas in BIG vented enclosures, the other my big Altecs. Later in life, I moved to backyard parties on the 4th of July (think 115 degF +) where a 2300 ran Altec 14s up top and a Crown MT2400 ran the subs . . . Those amps were like . . . yawn . . . what else ya' got? Good times.
The CV's actually, sound very good. The cabinet construction, is really, really cheesy, though. (1/2" MDF) I have the VOTT horns hooked up to a pair of JBL 2445's for the upstairs pair. (Mc452) The downstairs pair have a pair of JBL 2451J Neodymium Drivers coupled to the 1" throat VOTT horns, with adapters made of an 8" square of 1" Plexi. (Mc500) I do miss that low end punch, of the Mc2300. My current amps are very capable in that Dept., but there was something 'different' about the '2300.
Here is a quick comment am I the only one who really does enjoy having a bass and treble control are there any newer Mac gear that still has bass and treble controls it may sound a little juvenile, but I like to be able to bring up my base in my trouble with a knob My MC 32 my MC 26 I really did like the sound of those. Can someone say to me that the newer ones compare well or are better than the sound that those produced
They can say it. They can back it up with specs. But its your ears and your mind that are listening and that is a personal reality. The newer gear has 'better' specs, no doubt, (noise floor, THD, time shift) but that does not always equal more enjoyment.
Me, I like the old stuff.
jayvis
Addicted Member
Yes, the McIntosh C22, C53, and C55 preamplifiers have knobs for tone control. So do the MA8950, MA352, MA9500, and MA12000 integrated amps. All of those are current production items. And to me, the newer stuff sounds better than the older stuff.