Seeking Honest Opinions: Your Experience with McIntosh Audio Gear

what Dean_Palmer said.  I bought a new BIG unit, and it needed a bias adjustment right out of the box.  McIntosh folks were easy to talk with directly, embarrassed and extremely helpful, handing me off to the unit's primary designer.  It shipped to their suggested repair facility 850 miles distant.  Turn-around was 2 weeks. Zero cost to me, along with a loaner offer than I declined.  It has worked flawlessly since and runs amazingly cool for the massive power.  I have another Mac piece that has fabulous performance and flawless performance for many years.  Both units work amazingly well with a wide variety of speaker designs and efficiencies.  Like many, I had never owned a Mac piece but was always intrigued and drooled over them as a "yoot."  Once I got my first piece, lightly used, I was hooked.  The second giant piece, was a bucket list thing, and sure, for the money, I might have done better elsewhere.  However, this piece will never leave my possession and will be handed down to some lucky family member.  I've no doubt it will be working perfectly 30 years from now.  If something should ever happen, it will be meticulously taken care of by McIntosh themselves if one desires.  Even though they've changed hands, and may change hands again, what other company can fulfill on that level?

I had a SACD player up until a few weeks ago when I sold it

@glennewdick  , I know this is the amp/preamp forum, and I also know there is a digital forum, but I have been really curious about the Mac SACD player for a while now.  What did you think of it?  (I opted on the Maranzt SA10 instead, although I idn't want or need streaming capability.)

I own the MA8900 integrated amp which I love.  As far as directly answering your questions:

1. Sound Quality: I would describe my system likely on the slightly warm side of neutral but with plenty of detail.  It has a wide, tall and deep soundstage, excellent imaging, transients, decay.  The midrange is excellent as well and probably slightly more forward.  I do not find the bass to be “fat” or bloated, there is plenty of it and it’s full but still a bit punchy (I have a couple of REL subs I run as well).  The treble is a bit rolled off but there’s still plenty of airiness and detail.  It suits me given that I am susceptible to fatigue from too much treble.
2. Build Quality and Design: My integrated is built like a tank and weighs about as much at ~75 pounds.  I love the blue meters and the green logo and font.  It has a bit of a retro look which I enjoy.  I’ve heard several complaints about the knobs being plastic and the pots not having a “click” or resistance to them.  The knobs are milled aluminum and it did take a little getting used to spinning them but I really like them now.  McIntosh has a reputation for outstanding build quality which is my experience in the short time I’ve owned it.
3. Value for Money: Price of entry is not cheap but there is plenty of value with respect to quality of build, quality of sound and resale value.  I don’t think any other brand has the same resale value.
4. Customer Service and Support: I have no experience with service as my integrated is only a few years old and has needed no service.  I will say that the company still supports every model they made and would expect stellar service if I needed it.  I did email customer service when I first bought the unit, which I bought used, and they promptly replied to my question.
5. Overall Experience: I would absolutely recommend McIntosh for all of the reasons stated above. I love my integrated, it does everything I want and more.  It has a quality phono section which I haven’t even gotten into yet as I exclusively stream at the moment.  It has an excellent head phone section as well which I think can be turned off. I don’t use it often but enough to speak well of it.  It is not to everyone’s liking/taste but I would strongly encourage anyone looking to build a system to go audition components on the McIntosh lineup.

Other members have already provided details on each bullet point, and there is nothing that I can really add that hasn’t already been said. I will add to the discussion, however, that I would not trade, sell, or give up my MC-225 built in 1963 for anything (unless someone offered me $1,000,000 -- then I could buy a couple more 😂).

I believe your question really needs to be divided into two sections: Thoughts on McIntosh tube gear vs McIntosh Solid State gear. And even with that division, you could further break it down into VINTAGE tube gear vs RECENT tube gear. At least to my ears, McIntosh tube gear from the 1960 -- 1990 sounds better than their newer gear. Maybe it is confirmation bias. Me wanting the gear of my youth to sound better. I don’t know. But it just does to me.

I would absolutely recommend McIntosh gear.  In the history of Hi Fi equipment, you would be hard pressed to find a brand that has held its resale value like McIntosh.  For pete's sake, vintage amps are now selling for thousands of dollars more than they sold for new decades ago.

I sold my C28 preamp. I am keeping my ARC SP6!