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Pre amp for Mcintosh 2105

I always found the C24 and C26 to be the ugly ducklings of the McIntosh family. I've owned each when I was buying/selling/trading in the 90s and found them to be quite easy to listen to. To some extent, I also feel that way about the C41, and MA6450 - just odd looking pieces.

However, I have yet to run across a bad performing Mc preamp ...
 
Everyone makes a pretty good case for the mc24, but I don't really love it's appearance. I think I'd rather wait for something a little higher up the food chain. The tubes for hifi vta12 on bartertown definitely interests me. I've read good things about the company but I don't know if it would be an improvement over my current pre or more of a side step.
 
Sorry to hijack this thread a little bit, but......

I am in the process of purchasing a MC2105, but I am buying it from someone who wants to sell me a c24 too. Both recapped and serviced.

After reading about I am not sure the c24 is exactly what I want. I’m on the newbie end of the spectrum and I don’t think I can go wrong with it, but I’m not sure I want to pay the $1,500 he wants for it either.

This brings me to my question - are there any newer, lower priced amps which might “get me by” until I can save up enough money for what I really want to pair with it, which seems like a newer Mc pre. I see a Gustard for $500 or a Schitt Freya for $450 on Audio mart today.

I will need inputs for a CD player, DAC and a phono pre.
 
Rabbithole said:
Sorry to hijack this thread a little bit, but......

I am in the process of purchasing a MC2105, but I am buying it from someone who wants to sell me a c24 too. Both recapped and serviced.

After reading about I am not sure the c24 is exactly what I want. I’m on the newbie end of the spectrum and I don’t think I can go wrong with it, but I’m not sure I want to pay the $1,500 he wants for it either.

This brings me to my question - are there any newer, lower priced amps which might “get me by” until I can save up enough money for what I really want to pair with it, which seems like a newer Mc pre. I see a Gustard for $500 or a Schitt Freya for $450 on Audio mart today.

I will need inputs for a CD player, DAC and a phono pre.
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Is he selling the c24 separately for 1,500 or is it a bundle deal for both? If it's both that's a great deal, otherwise I wouldn't pay that much for the c24. I'm pairing my 2105 with a d sachs model 3 pre amp and love the combo but it's more of an end game pre amp than a stop over.
 
Will2225 said:
Is he selling the c24 separately for 1,500 or is it a bundle deal for both? If it's both that's a great deal, otherwise I wouldn't pay that much for the c24. I'm pairing my 2105 with a d sachs model 3 pre amp and love the combo but it's more of an end game pre amp than a stop over.
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Just the preamp. He says it’s been completely recapped/refurbished and I don’t have any reason not to believe him. Known him for a couple of years.
 
Rabbithole said:
Just the preamp. He says it’s been completely recapped/refurbished and I don’t have any reason not to believe him. Known him for a couple of years.
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That's fair and I'm sure it's in great shape. I just think for just a few hundred dollars more you could get something higher up in the food chain. I bought a c32 that had been repaired and serviced by audio classics for 1700. While not a complete recap, I still thinks it a better a value. I would try to negotiate on the price for the c24 or look for something higher up.

I have mixed feelings about schitt products although I've only tried a few. I think their dacs are pretty good but I tried a schitt saga and wasn't very impressed. A freya for 450 does seem like a good price though.
 
the amp is good, you should get it, I'm sure the c 24 isn't bad, but try to get the newest pre amp you can get at a price you are willing to pay, I mentioned the c 28 because I had the combo and it was nice. I did however also own a c 33 which is better but they tend to be rare and not up fpr sale as often as other pre amps. if you can get a serviced c 32 it will be much better than the C2x series, I would almost not get a c24 because of age.
 
I paid about half that for a C24 that was also completely serviced and refurbished by a well-known vintage McIntosh seller. I agree with what the others are recommending as far as looking for a newer pre-amp for that price. I am a fan of the C24 though. It is very simple and that was my desire for a pre-amp to pair with my 2105.
 
Thanks a lot for the responses. What you are saying mirrors my thoughts, it’s nice to have other opinions back them up.
 
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Nice! I saw these listed and they do look good. How are things in Boone? Used to come up there frequently when I was younger, but haven't been there in years!
 
ajward549 said:
Nice! I saw these listed and they do look good. How are things in Boone? Used to come up there frequently when I was younger, but haven't been there in years!
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Thanks! Turns out I was mistaken and he only wants $800 for the c24. I think I’m going to do it, but I might test it out for another couple of days first.

Boone’s great......Pretty as ever, been growing like crazy. The college keeps getting bigger, half the town are students. I’m really excited spring is right around the corner, gets a bit dull during the winter.
 
A re-capped and refurbished C24 for $800 sounds about right, especially if the cosmetics are good. I was going to say you could find a decent MX-113 for half the $1500 as a stop gap while you climb up the McIntosh ladder. But in all honesty these early McIntosh SS preamps and pre/tuners sound nice. If it has the inputs you need, you can hang at the C24 level for quite some time while you plot your upgrade.

Enjoy!
 
Funny, but I've a tube preamp and was fantastizing about a 2105 as a match to drive Forte IIIs instead of the current Chinese tube amp. The tube hiss is annoying.

I've a new Luxman CL-38uC. I'm a sucker for wood cabinets and tone controls.
Luxman model number.jpg

Edit: Did they sell a version in 220-240 VAC?
 
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FauxHall said:
Funny, but I've a tube preamp and was fantastizing about a 2105 as a match to drive Forte IIIs instead of the current Chinese tube amp. The tube hiss is annoying.

I've a new Luxman CL-38uC. I'm a sucker for wood cabinets and tone controls.
View attachment 2172461

Edit: Did they sell a version in 220-240 VAC?
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How do you like the forte III's? I would love to listen to those or the IV's. I have a tube pre amp as well and use it with my 2105 it's a great combo. A d sachs model 3 6sn7 tube pre.
 
markd51 said:
Well, going with some Mac Pre-Amp might give you features that the existing pre-amp you use doesn't have.
Like Tone Controls for one. And a host of other nifty features inherit in many Mac PreAmps.

I'll guess from past experience, and say that the "time era correct" PreAmps for the MC-2105 would be the C-26, or C28. Like the MC-2105, yeah, these are old units. But they are the perfect physical and cosmetic matches.

Move into the future, and with PreAmps beginning with the number "4, or 5", like say C-42, C-50, etc, yes, much more modern, better specs, and as well much more pricey too. How much might you be willing to spend?

One of the best bangs for the dollar with more modern Mac gear could be a A/V Pre, and Pre-Tuner, such as the C-39, or the MX-130. Sad on one hand that these units didn't hold their value well due to obsolete decoder technology, but for someone looking for a nice used unit at present day, they are commonly much less expensive that their Stereo Siblings.

And they work just fine as a Stereo only Pre only. With like say the MX-130, you gain a FM Tuner, Bass-Treble Controls, a Subwoofer Out, Variable Loudness Compensation Dial, Remote Control of functions and FM Tuning in your arm chair. No capability of the use of a On Trigger power up though,the MX-130/C-39 has them, but the MC-2105 does not have the capability.
(Unless somehow you rig a separate unit to do such, as such might exist?)

About the only one minor downside and gripe is cosmetic, that the Knobs on the MX-130/C-39 are the more modern Knobs, but I do understand the MC-2105 can be retrofitted with the newer Knobs to better match if one chose to.

The MX-130 and C-39 can often be found around the $1000 price today. There were 3 versions of the MX-130, one had only something like 11 FM Station presets (first model I believe) The second had the capability of having 50 FM Station Presets, and the third I believe provided both RCA, and XLR Outs to Mains.

Both are large, quite impressive units. I think the MX-130 weighs 29 lbs. There was a Walnut Case available for them, but they look very nice without as well.

I have the second version bought new MX-130 ($4800) and have paired it originally for a good number of years with 2 of my MC-2105 Amps (Y-cabled from the front Stereo Outputs) A great pairing sonically.
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Trying to figure out how to post properly new user,
I own a MC 2300 and was able to purchase a MC 4100 along with a pair of Klipsch Cornwalls seems to work well together soun ds great but defintly seems like overkill for my speakers as I only have mc2300 at 50%.

Also wondering if I should split them up and use individually as their own power sources seperate systems Seems like the 4100 might work good woth just the cornwalls and look for a good preamp for my 2300 and different speakers ,any thoughts would be appreciated thx
 
Whiteroot said:
Trying to figure out how to post properly new user,
I own a MC 2300 and was able to purchase a MC 4100 along with a pair of Klipsch Cornwalls seems to work well together soun ds great but defintly seems like overkill for my speakers as I only have mc2300 at 50%.

Also wondering if I should split them up and use individually as their own power sources seperate systems Seems like the 4100 might work good woth just the cornwalls and look for a good preamp for my 2300 and different speakers ,any thoughts would be appreciated thx
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You'll never need more then a few watts from any amp to get the Cornwalls to fill a room with sound so whether it's 30 or 300 watts really is irrelevant. The 2300 offers high quality watts, and you probably don't need to ever go more then halfway with it on any speakers. You typically want your preamp to be able to get to between 12-2 without sounding louder then you can stand.Having the kind of headroom that the 2300 offers is never a bad thing, IMO.

That said, if you decide to use a separate preamp pretty much any would work well with the 2300. Some folks like tube, some like solid state. I've used both with mine with good results. Presently I'm using a restored McIntosh C24, their first solid state preamp, and thought of by many as the bottom of the barrel in their line. But I like it a lot and have no plans to look any further. One advantage is because of it's lesser rep, you can find them in restored shape for less then $1000. But I've noticed recently they've been going up in price like most vintage McIntosh.

I'm sure others will chime in with their favorites.
 
Agreed, max power being considerably more than you need is not a concern, if the speakers don’t need it they don’t get it unless you turn the gains up too high.

The 4100 is a fine amp, as is the 2300, both are more than adequate for your (current) speakers.

Which one sounds better to you? 4100 or 4100 as a preamp and 2300 amp? This is all that matters.
 
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