McIntosh Laboratory is an American manufacturer of handcrafted high-end audio equipment based in

Binghamton Binghamton () is a City (New York), city in the United States, U.S. state of New York (state), New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County, New York, Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier reg ...

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. The company was founded in 1949 by Frank McIntosh. The company designs and produces audio amplifiers, stereo tuners and other consumer electronics products.

Company history

In 1946 Frank McIntosh, a design consultant for broadcast and TV stations, hired Gordon Gow to help him design a high power, low distortion amplifier for his clients. This amplifier would become the 50W-1. It included McIntosh’s first patented circuit, the Unity Coupled Circuit, still used by current products. In 1956, the company moved to its current location of 2 Chambers Street, Binghamton, New York. Dave O'Brien joined McIntosh in 1962. He led the McIntosh Amplifier Clinics for the next 30 years. McIntosh created a Loudspeaker division in 1967. Mcintosh MC275 european version

McIntosh amplifiers were used at the Woodstock Music Festival in 1969. The Grateful Dead's "Wall of Sound" reputedly used forty-eight 300-watt per channel McIntosh model MC2300 solid state

amplifiers An amplifier, electronic amplifier or (informally) amp is an electronic device that can increase the magnitude of a signal (a time-varying voltage or current). It may increase the power significantly, or its main effect may be to boost th ...

for a total of 28,800 watts of continuous power. Frank McIntosh retired in 1977 and Gordon Gow became President of McIntosh.

More notable products

Early 1970s: MC 2300 Power Amplifier, 300 WPC. Early 1980s: MC 2500 Power Amplifier, 500 WPC Power Guard and similar chassis to MC 2300. Around 1990: MC 2600 Power Amplifier, 600 WPC Power Guard final version on MC 2300 Chassis. Around 1990: MC 7300, 300 WPC and much smaller than MC 2300. Around 2010: MT10 Precision Turntable. Around 2017: MC1.25KW, 1200 WPC Quad balanced Amp. Around 2020: MA12000, 350 WPC Hybrid Tube/SS Integrated Amp

Japanese years

The company was purchased by Japanese car audio maker Clarion in 1990. McIntosh components, particularly the early tube models, are highly regarded in Japan. In a speech shortly after the purchase, Clarion president Yutaka Oyamada told McIntosh employees that "we like McIntosh as it is, and we have no intention of changing what has made it so successful." Since the Clarion purchase, McIntosh has expanded into car audio and home theater. In May 2003, Clarion sold McIntosh Laboratory to

D&M Holdings D+M Group, formerly known as DMGlobal and D&M Holdings, was a Japanese corporation that owned several audio and video brands. It was formed in 2002 from the merger of Denon and Marantz. It had acquired several other companies since that time. Pri ...

, also of Japan. The company continues to operate independent engineering, design, and divisions.

Italian years

On October 8, 2012, Fine Sounds SpA of Milan, Italy, announced it had purchased McIntosh.

Return to the United States

In May 2014, the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of Fine Sounds Group along with the President of McIntosh Labs led a management buyout of the Fine Sounds Group from its Italian investment firm owner, Quadrivio Investment Group. Since then Fine Sounds group has renamed itself McIntosh Group and relocated from Milan to New York.

Competition

In the all-tube receiver-amplifier 1970s, competition in audio products for McIntosh came from Fisher, H H Scott, Marantz, and Harman Kardon. For the present day historical audio collector, McIntosh is the most valued when measured by marketplace prices.

Car audio

While car audio is no longer included in their current catalog, models once available include a

CD changer A CD player is an electronic device that plays audio compact discs, which are a digital optical disc data storage format. CD players were first sold to consumers in 1982. CDs typically contain recordings of audio material such as music or audi ...

, CD changer/ AM/ FM controller, and an external DAC. Unique features such as the ''Fast Responding Wattmeter'' and the patented ''Power Guard'' circuitry set their amplifiers apart from others' products; various models were available offering from 75 to 2,000 watts, divided amongst one to six channels. High quality power supplies, powerful circuit topologies, and balanced inputs completed each amplifier. At the end of the chain used to lie their hand-built drivers, which came in standard -inch and -inch nominal sizes. All applicable car products were finished with McIntosh's signature glass plate displays. A few vehicles were available from the factory with McIntosh sound systems, including

Subaru Legacy The is a mid-size car built by Japanese automobile manufacturer Subaru since 1989. The maker's flagship car, it is unique in its class for offering all-wheel drive as a standard feature, and Subaru's traditional boxer engine. The Legacy was sol ...

and

Outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a ...

models (starting from the BH & BE Legacy chassis) and the 2005–2006

Ford GT The Ford GT is a mid-engine two-seater sports car manufactured and marketed by American automobile manufacturer Ford for the 2005 model year in conjunction with the company's 2003 centenary. The second generation Ford GT became available for ...

. On September 3, 2020 McIntosh’s first ever automotive Reference system was recently announced by Jeep with its return to American luxury SUVs with the Grand Wagoneer concept.

References

External links

Official website

McIntosh Resource
@ ''The High Fidelity Museum''
Publications by High End Audio Magazine

German language product announcements
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mcintosh Laboratory Audio amplifier manufacturers Binghamton, New York Compact Disc player manufacturers Audio equipment manufacturers of the United States Loudspeaker manufacturers Manufacturing companies based in New York (state) Companies based in Binghamton, New York