I find this so strange

Jea...just saw your post. Still don't understand the high end profile with the new mass market name.
11-15-15: Lowrider57

Like I said in my previous post, new owners. And as I said I think Charlie Randall had a lot to do with the name of the new parent company. I personally like the fact the parent company is based in the US.

This is the nature of SO many companies in this business. It's my biggest complaint. I follow a company and their products only to see them bought out or the owner dies and the company goes down hill. So sad.
11-15-15: Jnovak

In this case with the new owners the companies will be better off, imo.

>>>>>>>>>>

Grange and Randall Lead Management Buyout of Fine Sounds Group in Partnership with LBO France and Yarpa
.

Sounds like a good move to me. The company seems to be in the hands of audio people, not investors. The McIntosh brand has the highest public profile in their stable, so why not try to leverage it. I hope they succeed.

@ Taters and Jea48...
I was making a joke, "World of McIntosh" sounds so cheap, so common. Kind of like "Gary's Auto World," a large car dealership.

To Jea48...
As you say, it makes sense that Charlie Randall was involved with the name change. IMO, a bad name and not a good marketing strategy for their other brands, falling to a second tier under their umbrella.
ARC is not a familiar name to the general public like McIntosh, but it is one of the world's elite manufacturers of HiFi gear.

OTOH, great news that they will be based here. I also like the opening of a B&M store in NYC. It has the SoHo address, but away from the fashionistas on a very cool street with cafes and bistros.

There are going to be a lot of shocked visitors when they see a $30K amplifier.
http://www.twice.com/news/audio/world-mcintosh-opens-first-experience-center/59357

I agree with one of the comments- McIntosh is most likely the one brand name within the stable that has the most recognition outside of the sphere of audiophiles. So they now have place in Soho. Call it World of McIntosh and you'll get traffic through the store, more so than call it Wadia World or Fine Sounds.

If is leveraging the most well known brand name and from a marketing point of view, a solid move.

What do the other companies under the umbrella think? If it moves product they should be delighted.

Lostbears, a question for you;
I agree with your observations on the new ARC models, (and notice that the "Audio Research" logo is hidden).

The ARC REF3 is the classic ARC design and the Reference 5SE still says pure ARC, but a more modern design. In your opinion, can the parent company influence ARC's chief designer to make such radical changes to the company's design? It would be changing their brand (or is that the goal?).

ARC isn't going to have their own identity with the logo removed from the faceplate.