Behind the blue: The making of McIntosh's iconic amplifiers 

One of the loveliest pieces of electronics ever!

talking about Well made and great quality. i'm glad there's something STILL MADE in the U.S.A

I have always admired the company. They made a mono-channel tube amplifier that weighs 120lbs. Their amps are highly sought after in Japan. I knew one man who made a living by exporting used Mac equipment to Japan, he also did JBL products also.

I've never heard a Macintosh amp but, i love their style & design. A nice, old school design!

Worth every penny all day long!

Amazing!! I like so much McIntosh tube amplifiers and his output transformers. Great electronic designs and quality tubes and components. Thanks for this video.

Fell in love with McIntosh in the mid 80’s as a youngster. Now as an adult, I use their vintage amp (MC 2105) and Preamplifier ( C28). Pushing my Bose 901’s. Clean warm sound.

When you see those big blue meters on the front of the amp staring you in the face you know you are in the presence of greatness. There is a reason that McIntosh is so widely revered and you see it in this video.

I remember back in the early 60's my father had a friend who had a stereo repair shop in Toms River, New Jersey, his name was Dwayne R. He had a collection of McIntosh amplifiers, vacuum tubes chrome chassis. What a sight! I'd like to know what ever became of that collection.

Years ago I was a McIntosh repairman. The quality is one of the best in the industry. Never got many in to fix. The glass face-panels will never age because the labeling is internal. They are lifetime quality buys?

What an amazing company, everything so lovingly and professionally crafted and made. Much love and respect.

This is only half what we know about making a McIntosh amplifier. The layout designer, the engineering, and the R&D that cost so much, thats we shoud also appreciate to the product like this 👍

Fantastic work. Controlling each aspect of the manufacturing process is a rare thing these days!!

Absolutely amazing thanks I truly enjoyed that

One of the best videos I’ve seen and what a great American company and such high quality

My father has the ma9000 with b&w 803 d3 speakers and it sounds amazing!!! 😍

​I can not say it any better than this: "When you see those big blue meters on the front of the amp staring you in the face you know you are in the presence of greatness. There is a reason that McIntosh is so widely revered and you see it in this video." Jack Lope ​

My retirement gift to myself...some day....

I bought a Yamaha M-80 amp back in 1984 and it has been fantastic. Never a problem with it, but, someday, I want to get a McIntosh. Beautiful amps.

I wish I had never sold the McIntosh equipment I had in the 70s. Quality never goes out of style!

phenomenal

Amazing.

Beautiful

Great video! Can I use a short segment in my video about the MC443 car audio amplifier and link to your video?

Great product.

great job ,thanks

Love McIntosh Amps

I recently purchased an MA-252 amp & XR50 speakers together. Wonderful sound. Beautiful to look at as well.

Great video...maybe one day I can get one of those nice amps..

I just love my Mac. Took me years to pull the trigger, wish I had done it sooner. Smile every time I power her up. Life is too short. 😎

Impressive!

did I just hear at about 1:30 that the sheet metal "represents about 1/3 of the cost of the product" and then is "a very expensive material but also a very highly cosmetic material" ??

Wow what a dedication too music Imagine being able to have this equipment playing analog music It's also beautiful & shines with quality

wow! cool video!

Another great video. Would love to be able to afford a McIntosh some day.

Nice job!

I've a chord Hugo 2 and shure KSE1500 system. Now I want a hifi and Mc integrated amp looks good and awaiting to listen to it before buying.

I love my MC 302!!!!!!!

I am a Canadian I reside in Ontario , in Ajax . I purchased my , MAC. 4100 receiver in 1986 from Bay Bloor radio, at Bay And Yonge I have it to this day, the enjoyment I have had is worth a million dollars 💵, I made a wise choice back in the day! I want to thank the manufacturer of this fantastic product, long live MAC. Nobody Will Touch MAC.🎼🎹🥁🎷🎺🎻🎸💿📀💽🎵🎶🔈🔉🔊📢

Love my 2009 mini system solid as a rock.

I just want one of them!! Just one!!! Please!!!

great great amplifier i could never have this for my lifetime.

Fine quality amplifiers.

Great to see thanks 👍😀

i would have realy liked to see an old day mac factory to see how they made em its very interesting .

love love love mcintosh

Great amplifier, McIntosh is "creme of creme" in the world... 👍

Thank you from the bottom of my heart ..I can't afford your stuff..but iam glad someone is building esoteric magic...

I wish I could afford one of their amps. Amazing!

Knowing that this would be the finished product I can understand the price, One day I'm so hoping to own McIntosh!!👍👍👍

Back in the 90's I helped built a show car for their mobile line. Some of the most beautiful equipment I've ever touched. It was pushing Polk audio speakers and heart subs. Sounded so smooth. Hated to see it leave our shop.

Qué bella fabricacion, es una joya,precioso es lo mejor

Been drooling over tosh since the early 70's. by late 70's and early 80's every club worth it's salt had a tosh in fat city Louisiana and new Orleans clubs and clubs in new york. minimum wage being under two dollars, i had to settle for a small radio shack amp.

With the sale of Marantz (again!) and the subsequent departure of Ken Ishwara, McIntosh is the last of the old school, USA based, high fidelity makers. Fisher, Pilot, Grommes, Altec and the others have vanished or make pro audio only. I have my late father's 3 channel Fisher/Pilot set up from the late 50's with CD and more lp friendly TT added and If I had to replace it, McIntosh would be my only choice. Used McIntosh, properly serviced, is a helluva deal.

using an solid state topology, no tubes and especially Surface Mount Device.. Sounds great ofc

very happy to see people over 50 working there....

This type of manufacture method should leave no questions about the cost of their products. I have been using the same McIntosh MC2125 stereo amplifier for 55 years continuously with zero sevice. I can’t think of any other electronic equipment I can say that for.

Tell us about their iconic illuminated sign to put on or in your rack

I want that in my life .

Great, ICONIC American audio company! Expensive yes, but well worth it! I've had my 'Mac' equipment for decades, with no issues whatsoever! And those dancing blue meters......!!!

I Seriously wish I had the £££££ to Buy a full range of Mcintosh Components.Awesome Products 👏👏👏👏👍

McIntosh has to be one of the most recognize amplifiers out there today. First let me point out they are out of my budget but one of the first ones I seen believe or not was their car amplifiers. I remember the iconic blue lit up meters from that moment I was hooked. Over the years I have followed there various models of home units and to this day I would love to have them as part of my home theater.

The sheetmetal accounts for 1/3 of the cost.. I believe that, but that statement really says alot about their markup and how cheap these products are to manufacture.

I started my audio quest in the mid 1960s and have heard Mac amps over and over again with all sorts of other so-called high end equipment. I was also a musician in my early years, so my ears are very well tuned to good live sound of all kinds. Is live sound a warm sound like Mac amps produce, certainly not, but if that's what you prefer, good for you! I use to take my amp to Mac clinics once in awhile to be tested, and they would short it out so the fuse would blow. The best Mac had at the time was a their 275 tube amp., just about as heavy as a Buick motor and got hot enough to heat a room in the winter. Telling you exactly what my jewel in the dust is, would be useless here. I have 4 of these rare classic amps now that still will shut down anything to date. Once in a great while one will be found in grandads house when he passes away and the kids will put it on Ebay, where I have snatched 3 of mine up. You have to be an old timer like me to figure it out!

Even Mr. Charlie Randall’s voice sounds like it came out from McIntosh factory.

the mac 4100 receiver is one of my favs its old and dated but he s still boss lol mac a number 1 #

Uma joia magnifica

I cry.....when i look,i cry..

McIntosh is absolutely for real music lovers. Best performance . Masterpiece. From lower price products to higher and most important thing : made in USA ! Not China :) I have the MA 5200 / MCD 350 and MR 87 on its way. Can’t wait to get this treasure..God bless the USA

Certainly an impressive video and no doubt its quality in every way.....I am looking to upgrade in the next 2 years to the latest and greatest.....of course MCintosh is high price, just like a Range Rover, but when you drive one you feel lthere is nothing else out there that is more joyful......same goes with this company........now of course there is more than just sound, its also room acoustics that requires an investment to improve sound.

McIntosh is a dream.

They actually strive for "flat" frequency response across the whole audio spectrum! No "kicking up the bass", "punching up the mids", "brightening the highs" or any of that other "audiophile" stuff ... they simply engineer for "fidelity" of the sort which means "accurate and faithful reproduction of the original".

Great sounds, great company, but need to update the interface!

I wish I had a room worthy of putting one of these amps in

Now that transformer is what I would call a Black Box!

Good times.

do they make the 275 without the leds under the driver tubes?

1:10 even the machine shop knocking is in tempo with background music. This is one in tuned company. Thumbs up.

its impressive that a good amount of discrete components and parts appear to be made in house. impressive.

is as a car factory,all in series, and robotics and high pressure water dor drilling. Good,good. The price, other thing. I watch the 275 valve amplifier and sounded good. PD: Good for the transformers coil machine.

I wonder if they also make their bare boards- anybody know? He mentioned vertically integrated but started with PCBs going into solder paste application. That process is really fascinating. It seems that would have been covered. The environmental concerns and their risk abatement can be cost prohibitive, but if you can afford to make your own sheet metal it seems you could do that as well, right?

Один , из самых качественных и надежных усилителей !!!!! Моя мечта.....которая не осуществится........жаль....

The 'toaster', the McIntosh 752, is working perfectly 35years after I got it.

It was my dream to work for McIntosh to create a more digital amplifier.

He doesn't say it, but that last shot is the amplifiers in a burn-in room. The amplifiers are operated with loads for many hours at higher temperatures to test for any weak components or assembly errors.

From what I've read their pre amps can be used alone as an integrated amp.And I think they make the best looking amps.

I do love my MAC!!!!

What happened to car audio? Miss it!

Wonderful product and maybe one day I will own a Macintosh. But for me being a tool and die making and having worked and many manufacturing facilities it is very frustrating and just out right pisses me of when I see a person dragging a file backwards on material. But as for the rest of this video Macintosh hands down is a phenomenal product

Started in Maryland.

I have a MA7900 in a stereo setup and a MC205 for home theatre in another room. They are second to none and are literally bulletproof. However, do not buy their prepros. Once little gremlins get in there, they are impossible to get out. I know; I’ve been thru 3 of them and wound up getting an Anthem to go with the 205. They don’t look good together so it’s lucky I have them in a cabinet. Too bad because the prepros were so sweet, but prone to failing. Repairing them is like beating a dead horse to death.

May have one sir please.

Having been in both electronics and hardware manufacturing, still trying to figure out how this is special? This is standard work and process flow.

I would love to hit lotto so I can get a home system all MAC for 2021…hope I hit soon.

I never could afford a Mac so I opted for the early Onkyo Integra Japan amps.

are the capacitors and transistors made in the US or China?

QUE VIVA Mcintosh's

What was that speaker in the chamber?

Did anybody else notice the hole punching machine being almost the same bpm as the background music, and syncopated to the rhythm to boot? Kind of like your windshield wipers to the music type of thing only this machine is a bit saucier.

McIntosh equipment may be expensive, but they sell classic components that will retain their value better than any other brand I can think of.