Thank you for your review. By 1965 standards this machine really is super high fidelity. But nowadays only people who like the artistic touch of its unique distortion will buy it.
I appreciate your comment, but I would argue with you about the term "super high fidelity". What specs do you need to meet for that. A lot of audiophile folks would be thrilled to have this as their system preamp (and not just for its looks).
@@vintageaudioreview What I'm referring to is that in the process of going through Preamplifer, the PreAmp part itself just amplifies the signal without doing anything else as much as possible. Things like introducing noise, changing the dynamic range, altering the audio curve and etc. It's a good PreAmp, because it sound holds charm. Just like Fender '57 Custom Champ guitar speaker. But it doesn't do a great job of fidelity by today's technology standards.
@@victoriadelacroix8570 Thanks for clarifiying. I know that Fender makes guitars and amps, and some are very collectible, but that's about it- could not comment much about their sound. Nowadays you can basically go all digital until you get to the power amp, so you are limited by the D/A converter. The C22 from the video is coming over in a few days as the owner thinks he has a problem with one channel, so you do have that problem with some of the older gear, but than can be said for almost anything. My son's brand new Tesla would not run after only having it a few days due to a poor wiring harness connection. Charm is probably the biggest thing with some of the vintage gear. I would much rather have a '65 Corvette to drive than a much quicker and comfortable Tesla S3.
Quick question for you or your community of viewers. I have a store credit with an audio store that is a McIntosh dealer. I want to put it towards a new McIntosh analog tube preamplifier. It will be my first McIntosh preamplifier. Did anyone hear the McIntosh C8 and the C22 mkV. preamplifiers? I would like this to be my end game preamplifier. IYO, how did they compare? I have discerning ears and I do a lot of focused listening to Hi-Rez music files. Any info you can provide is surely appreciated. Thanks, Di- store credit with an audio store that is a McIntosh dealer. I want to put it towards a McIntosh analog tube preamplifier. It will be my first McIntosh preamplifier. Did anyone hear the McIntosh C8 and the C22 preamplifiers? I would like this to be my end game preamplifier. IYO, how did they compare? I have discerning ears and I do a lot of focused listening to Hi-Rez music files. Any info you can provide is surely appreciated. Thanks, Di-
I am not a big fan of tube preamps, even McIntosh. In my experience with immediate a/b testing there is not difference in sound quality between them and ss units. You need to wait a bit for them to warm up unless you keep them on all of the time, which means they would wear out sooner. My review on a Mcintosh C48 SS preamp with both a DAC and MM/MC phono built in, is upcoming, but that would be the one I would recommend if you can find one (they are out of production, but maybe the shop has one that was traded in).
@@vintageaudioreview I have an opposing opinion. Somebody looking at a c22 wants a retro look. The C22 has it, the C48 does not. What is the availibility of tat digital display 20 years from now if it cr@ps out? Also, I would not spend money on a device with an internal DAC. You pay top dollar for any Mac accessory branded Mac whether it's an internal module or a descrete device. Like Dolby, DBX, and others, the DAC technology is going to be replaced by something. Spend that money on an external DAC of similar quality for a fraction of the cost that you can retire when it is obsoleted. My vote goes to a vinatge C22 that has a vintage look, will likely be repairable with common components years down the road and as an added bonus has the added charm of tubes.
@@GFSwinger1693 I appreciate the intelligent comments you made and would not really disagree with you that much at all, except for the fact that McIntosh does an outstanding job of supporting their products so the display, such as the one on the C48 should be available for a while (one would think). No question about the romance of glowing tubes, particularly at night with the lights out or dimmed. The C22 is going to provide that vintage charm for sure. The fact that the C48 has a DAC and MC/MM phono stages is icing on the Cake. The only negative is that is does not have a tape monitor loop. Plus it looks McIntosh (though not really vintage 😲) I would not purchase a C48 for its DAC- you are correct in that you can get some really nice ones for $100-$200, and a lot of streamers DACs are quite good so you probably don't need one.
