Quote:
Originally Posted by mrvette
Bob Carver, not heard that name in a while.....but you newbie kids really didn't know the perfection attainable with sound REproduction in a typical living room/homeowner type.....
the ONE company that greatly excelled in accurate sound REproduction was McIntosh.....
even my old picky BIL was a PHD musicologist from Univ of Indiana decades ago....and so was head of recorded sound division of Library of Conngress in Wash DC.....across the street from the Cap bldg......and so he was responsible for storage/reproduction of all recorded sound sold in this country......and it was the prime effort to preserve antique recordings from deterioration as the magnetic and plastic mediums....tape or disc failed long term wise.....
and so as his position, he knew all the BIG names in classical music at that time......early 60's to mid 80's on his passing, cigs/cancer mid 50's.....
well anyway, I got my first set of speakers of REAL value....McIntosh ML2c and so on my first divorce, loaned them to him/sis and upon picking them/electronics up after the BS.....he hated to see them go, as he enjoyed the total perfection of the sound REproduction......accuracy.....shit he went to all the fancy concerts with all the famous orchestras.....dealt with the Beatles and other rock bands......he knew what it was supposed to sound like.....
and he said in all serious tone of voice, not blowing smoke up my ass....that the McIntosh were the best speakers he ever heard.....
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Bob is an unusual character but very good to deal with and stands behind his products 100%.
A few years back I bought a custom pair of his mono-blocks he built for the Pres of Emotiva. (pic below)
They had really great sound for a tube amp but didn't pair well with the DSP I was using at the time.
I've long held a high opinion of Mc gear but their speakers always sounded a bit thin to me. It certainly isn't a quality issue but rather the way they are voiced due to their customer base being largely into classical music where they shine.
Their pre-amps and amps used to be built to last for decades but QC has gone down hill over the years since the original buy out. Clarion IIRC. Now they are owned by another party. Went to Fine Sounds Group over to McIntosh Group.
Their newest tube pre-amp sounds absolutely amazing but the build quality is not great. Toggle switches on the front of the units are cheap plastic that wiggle in their socket. And these are $6k + units.
Scott
