I have seen some Interesting comments about Mcintosh lately

ejr1953 - McIntosh is still at Magnolia.  As I said,  some select Best Buys now have high end Magnolia stores in them..  Only these higher level Magnolias have McIntosh and Sonus Faber. Maybe your store was not chosen for the higher level for some reason. Check out their website

https://www.magnoliaav.com/products/audio/av-separates

https://www.magnoliaav.com/products/audio/speakers

I live in Boston. Try going to the McIntosh website and typing in the Boston area code - 02201. There is one real audio store (Natural Sound), a group of custom installers who specialize in home theater and "connect homes", and a bunch of Magnolias.

http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/us/Dealers/Pages/DealerLocator.aspx
 
I had a different experience in DC in the early '80s. I wanted to buy a turntable that Meyer Emco carried. I was in my late '20s and dressed like many academics of that time. i went to the store with my wife and we  spent a hour trying to get somebody to talk to us. It was busy, but nobody had the courtesy to even acknowledge me. When I asked if somebody could help me, they just brushed me off. So, I took the money I had in my pocket and left. I ordered the turntable from a company in Florida.

I hope  your last paragraph was not aimed at me.  I was just reporting the current corporate arrangements and my experience at one of the new Magnolias. My only "opinion" was that, at least in the store I was in, they were not really equipped to sell high end gear to knowledgeable buyers. I made absolutely no statement about the sound of McIntosh equipment.

I have Brooks MC -250, he liked it enough to collect it...

I still think that McIntosh produces a good product.  I would not have spent $6500 on the new MAC6700 receiver if I though it looked,  or sounded sub-par.  My reason for selling it was derived from the amp's "voicing",  a pretty obvious,  IMHO,  tube sounding piece.

So I sez to myself,  "self?  If you have something that sounds like a tube amp but isn't a tube amp,  why not get the tube amp?"

Made sense to me.

The MC275 is one good looking piece of gear, very retro, very modern at the same time.  I much preferred its sonics over the solid state receiver.  (I've owned other Mc solid state,  too.)

Honestly?  Being finally able to afford what I consider to be one of the benchmark brands was also one of my reasons.  I wanted that glow,  that look. I wanted ownership,   the experience.
Which I got.  Now that I've owned it,  enjoyed it,  I've sold it.  

Then again,  I've owned and sold/traded pretty much everything!

Right oblgny, pride of ownership is a big part of the McIntosh allure. I still have a warm spot in my heart for the C26 and 2100, and if I found them cheap might buy just to look at. They're so pretty! I have an MR78 (with the Modafferi update) and MPI4 as much to look at as to use.