Best Tubes For McIntosh C-2200 Pre-Amp

McIntosh mono MC2301, 8 KT88's with two 12AT7 driver tubes, weighs in at 145 pounds, kicks out 300 + watts. $11K each. McIntosh has started shipping these last month (March '08).

McIntosh Laboratory, Inc. 2 Chambers St. Binghamton, NY 13903-2699 www.mcintoshlabs.com Handcrafted with pride in the United States by dedicated, highly trained craftspeople.
MC2301
Monoblock Tube Amplifier
Introducing the MC2301 Monoblock Tube Amplifier
The new McIntosh MC2301 monoblock tube amplifier hails the fusion of our Unity Coupled and Quad-
Differential circuit topologies. From the inception of McIntosh Labs, Unity Coupling stands as one of the
premiere tube topologies ever conceived, making possible revolutionary power bandwidth and low distortion.
Quad-Differential circuitry, a recent McIntosh innovation, cancels nearly all induced noise and circuit-borne
nonlinearities resulting in the lowest noise levels ever achieved in a tube amplifier. With 300 Watts available
at 8, 4 or 2 ohms, the MC2301 provides power enough to drive even the most demanding loudspeakers.
From the demands of massed chorale to full-on rock and roll the, MC2301 delivers the most extraordinarily
lifelike and dynamic performance ever heard from a McIntosh tube amplifier.
The MC2301 design is fully balanced from input to speaker output and the first ever McIntosh tube amplifier
to include Quad-Differential circuitry. A blend of tube and solid state devices comprise a super-linear input
stage and the output stage, based upon eight KT88 power tubes, terminates in a custom multi-filar wound
output transformer providing very low distortion and wide power bandwidth. The result? A staggering 117
dB signal to noise ratio combined with vanishingly low distortion to provide remarkable low-level linearity
and unmatched liquidity.
The MC2301 features Sentry Monitor short circuit protection, marking the first time this feature has been
included in a tube amplifier. Sentry Monitor responds to short circuits more reliably than a common fuse to
protect your amplifier and loudspeakers from damage, and does so without sonic consequence.
The appearance of the MC2301 bespeaks pure McIntosh power. A fast-responding wattmeter with L.E.D.
illumination glows blue behind a premium ½” glass frontpanel. A pair of hand-machined, anodized handles
and polished stainless steel chassis completes the package.
Initial shipments are scheduled to begin this month and orders are being accepted now. The MSRP of the
new McIntosh MC2301 is $11,000 (U.S. & Canada).
Best regards,
Jim Ludoviconi
Senior Dealer Support Manager
McIntosh Laboratory, Inc.

http://www.vacuumtubes.net/How_Vacuum_Tubes_Work.htm
I found this to be very helpful. Thank you, Don

I rank Telefunken or Mullard 12AX7's and 12AT7's as the best overall, but they are costly. However, should not be a major consideration for a Mac owner :>)

After buying all of these tubes & trying them in my C-2200
Here are my results.

Telefunken 12AX7 & 12AT7
Phillips JAN 12AX7 & 12AT7WC
RCA NOS 12AX7 & 12AT7

Not tested but received good comments about
Amperex
Sylvenia Chrome Domes

In my MA2275's preamp section I replaced the 12AT7 Drivers with NOS Mullard CV4024's, Re-issue Mullard 12AX7's for the tone control preamp tubes(the tone controls are defeated and thus out of the circuit most of the time) and Sovetek 12AX7LPS in the Phono Preamp section. Great tone and low noise also you are are spending about 1/5 of the cost of Telefunkens and Amperex and most likely have a quieter Phono section.