Why do no audio enthusiasts use McIntosh?

What's all this discussion about McIntosh?

The latest models are capable of running both OS X and Windows XP, so what's not to like?

Why are you guys talking about driving speakers with a McIntosh? Even my "workhorse" tower Mac (forget the laptop) could not possibly drive big speakers.

(Return to reality here :^).

By the way, I walked into the McIntosh booth at CES and after listening to their system, the representative ask what I thought. I replied (with a smile on my face), "You guys have great sound and I really admire your computers too."

The guy got really pissed, nearly threw me out of the room! Any company so full of themselves and showing such a shallow sense of humor does not deserve my respect.

The funny thing is, I was the sales manager of a high end store that was the highest volume McIntosh dealer in a five state area. Odd that he gets so haughty, I was peddling Mc gear (probably) before was even out of high school.

No wonder high end audio is in trouble.

The guy got really pissed, nearly threw me out of the room!

That's pretty funny, Albert.

We went to hear a McIntosh demo at a dealer in CA. When I asked about the little red speaker cable running to the back of the $80,000 XRT2Ks, the salesman responded, "A dollar fifty a foot, don't waste your money on anything more expensive". I'm guessing you would have tossed HIM out of the room. :-)

We went to hear a McIntosh demo at a dealer in CA. When I asked about the little red speaker cable running to the back of the $80,000 XRT2Ks, the salesman responded, "A dollar fifty a foot, don't waste your money on anything more expensive".
Boa2 (Threads | Answers)

In the words of William Goldman, "Nobody knows anything". This comment was made about Hollywood executives, producers, directors and writers, and essentially means none of these people knows for certain what will make a successful film.

It certainly seems true in this hobby, too.

Boa2,

"A dollar fifty a foot, don't waste your money on anything more expensive." I'm guessing you would have tossed HIM out of the room. :-)

HEY MAN, that's what I use on my Mac computer and my audio buds throw me out of the room !

I get really good sound out of that "buck fifty a foot" stuff so long as my MP3's are not burned at high sample rate :^).

Earlier this year, I attended a weekend AudioFest which was hosted by another audio organization in the Detroit area. There were close to two dozen “listening rooms” where dealers showcased their wares. McIntosh had two of them.

In the online afterglow of the event, someone asked what was their favorite listening experience of the Fest. After a pregnant pause of several hours where there was a reluctance to take the plunge, I posted that McIntosh, which included their 7-foot speaker array panels in the experience got my vote. This opened a floodgate of postings where McIntosh was at, or near the top, in many of them.

It would be divisive to name other competitors here. Suffice to say, that a lot of the high-end audio dealers weren’t represented and that this audio group, though worldwide now, has its roots in the rustbelt Midwest with a “pull-up-the-bootstrap” ethic that sees many recapping old Scott tube receivers and trumpeting thrift store finds of Rectilinear “Lowboys”. Nevertheless, this unscientific poll, may speak to McIntosh’s power to still enthrall even those who could never afford one – to put down that soldering iron for a moment and “have a chew”, as Boa2 put it.