Why No McIntosh Recommendations?

If you attended the McIntosh 70th Anniversary celebration at Overture A/V in Wilmington Delaware at the beginning of June, you would now understand that while they have their naysayers and detractors, McIntosh is a company that quietly keeps producing very high quality and durable audio products.  Now that Sonus Faber is involved in building Mac speakers, there is a world of difference.  They demo'd a pair of XR 100's with an MA8900 integrated and their MEN220 Room correction system and I was blown away with what I heard.  The Mac rep was using a Bryston digital player connected to the DAC in the MA8900.  I was not expecting anything close to what was coming from those speakers.  

In another room they showed off the 70th anniversary combo 150 watt tube amp and pre-amp driving a pair of Sonus Faber Il Cremonse speakers.  Source was a Mac turntable playing some Reference Recording classical pressings.  Again, talk about "being there".  

In wine, everyone tastes something different from the same bottle.  Audio is, IMHO, a very personal thing and everyone will hear slightly different sound coming from the same system.  If it sounds good to you, then it sounds good.  

I recently upgraded to an MA8900, B&W 804D3, VPI Prime Scout with Soundsmith Carmen II, Aurender N100C and I am very pleased with the results.  

Most of those who criticize this fabled, storied, and respected brand lack first hand experience with these products there is no question that McIntosh produces some of the finest Music Reproduction System components and many of those who don't think so can not afford the product so they insult it as a way to feel superior about themselves this is so obvious!

No one is saying McIntosh is bad. Each time I have owned a Mac, it has been a reasonably pleasant experience (except for their digital gear or with the materially underperforming USB implementations they keep repeating). The 2275 tube integrated was an underperformer, the 6900 was as well. The preamplifiers and amplifiers, for the money, when compared retail against retail aren't bad. The 275 is eye candy and when compared with other tube amps of similar price isn't a terrible value, especially when you consider resale.

HOWEVER, set down $20k of Mac gear next to $20k of Dartzeel or Nagra or Pass Labs on the solid state side of things or next to Audio Research or Shindo or Leben tube gear (pick your flavor) and you may have a different opinion...or not. That's what's cool about this hobby, we each get to pick. 

Lots of happy B&W and Wilson and Maggie owners with Mac gear. Congrats. Much like classic cars, classic Mac was amazing when compared to many other offerings back in the day when they were developing their brand. There is so much great equipment being made today and contrary to the obits, high performance audio is doing pretty well. There is enough room for all manufacturers and consumers to find happiness.

I really don’t think Mac equipment is actually expensive for what you get. It’s good value for money IMHO (even if bought brand new).

stevecutler,
Thank you for your wise and even-handed comments. When the lights are out, and the music is playing, each amp will have its own sound, and given modern distortion figures are reasonable, they will all be acceptable although different, just like flavors of ice cream. However, over the years, a lot of nose-in-the-air audiophiles and pseudo engineers have enjoyed making McIntosh a target of their derision. 

They love to point to the "outdated " autoformers, the supposed pedestrian quality of their internal components etc., and then call them overpriced even though they cost a fraction of what the most elite high end brands cost. Then they try to shame owners by saying that they are only attracted by the blue meters and glitzy looks, which are in fact far less attractive (to me anyway) than many other more and less costly brands. There are certainly reasonable listeners who have given Mac a fair listen and found that their gear is simply not their taste sonically, but there are many others who bash them as a pastime and really aren't familiar with any of their gear.
Comparing them to Harley Davidson motorcycles and saying that they are outdated status symbols for doctors and lawyers are just stale and meaningless labels. 
You are apparently an electronics technician who spends your time repairing amplifiers, and you may not be familiar with the boutique snobbery surrounding certain brands of capacitors and resistors. In the audiophile world, if you're not using these parts, you can't be a member of the club. You look at it more rationally, as a tech who knows when something is built to do its job and does that job reliably.
Good for you Steve. You have my respect.
John