Vintage McIntosh MA6100 - Integrated Amplifier Amp overview and history
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- čas přidán 12. 01. 2024
- Take a look at this awesome integrated amp from McIntosh that was made from 1972 - 1979. This is from my personal collection.
McIntosh, Krell, VPI, Sansui, Marantz, JBL and many others are brands I have sought out over the years.
Video:
Email: stereoniche@gmail.com
The "hallmark" of a McIntosh is their autoformers. The MA6100 has no output transformers, only a gigantic stereo power transformer, which is just fine. This integrated amplifier is perfect for today's use because you can get virtually any AM/FM radio station in the entire world from your computer and send anything you've downloaded from CZcams to your amplifier and with 70 watts, the only problem you face is if your speakers aren't fail safe with proper fuses. This amplifier will cost megabucks, so that's a thing. Never buy one without that PANLOC case.
This is a magnificent piece.
it is a piece of art 😍
had a 6100, used it continuously for many years. still have a C-28/2105 with jbl S1 components (you could get jbl speakers without a cabinet back then) that i got together (used) back in the early 70's. after being mothballed for 20 years it has been my daily driver for the last decade. another cool thing about mac, they used to have McIntosh clinics at your retailer (anually?). you would bring your mac gear and mac technicians would bench test it and give you a graph on the performance of the piece(s). unbelievable company.
I have some tube amps that still have the Mac clinic stickers on them and, I think, I even have the "report card" they would provide to the owner upon completion of their clinic.
I have several H H Scott amplifiers that have the phase reversal switch on them. I think the feeling was in the early days of stereo, that it was easier to flip a switch than to get a screwdriver and reverse the speaker connection.
I have the MA-6200! She’s a beauty. I love how they look & sound
Great review. I have a 6100 myself. I've had it over twenty years. I use it occasionally. A few things I would I like to add is phase reversal is pretty common in modern day preamps and integrateds. Also something you didn't point out that is rather outdated is the tape head amplifier that was meant for RTR recorders. From the owner's manual: "TAPE HD: Connects the output of any tape head (a tape deck without it's own electronics) to the low level input stages. The response has been shaped to compensate for the characteristics of the response to the tape head."
The stereo reverse and LL, RR was probably there because most receivers and integrateds at the time had it. Look at some of the early Pioneers and so forth. Again great review and thanks for uploadind it.
Simple, elegant and beautiful. McIntosh knew how to do it right. A formula they stuck with. Thanks for bringing us another great piece of audio history!
I've owned a 6100 for years, and never understood the purpose of the stereo reverse mode. I always assumed there was some esoteric reason for being able to swap the channel outputs, but never found it useful myself. Now I know. You learn something new every day. Thanks.
Electrical code. Green is your GROUNDED conductor, White is your GROUNDING or NUEUTRAL conductor. It carries overage back to the Grounded lug in an alternating current system. Black is your PRIMARY HOT, Red is your SECONDARY HOT. In those days, home wiring used to daisy chain the neutral from one outlet to the next to the next, but the color code was the same. I suppose they wanted to stay within the regulations of the NEC, and were perhaps required to do so as a U.S. manufacturer. Also, the Authority Having Jurisdiction in that area of N.Y. may have just told them they had to do it that way. Since the power is transformed from AC to DC, the White is just a standard grounded conductor. My reasoning is speculative, but the code is not. Great review. Thank you.
Thanks for the input. Sounds quite logical to me as well.
thing that comes to mind about the left to both and right to both selector switch is if you have a mono source and want to connect it to both channels. Old mono tape could be wired this way. This may be what they were thinking...
I assume so as well, but I just don't understand why it was relevant by the 70's. McIntosh seemed to be stuck in limbo on adding new functionality from the 60's into the 70's for some reason.
The old vintage equipment often took the human factor into consideration, which I really like. People are human and they make mistakes, like inadvertantly connecting the positive wire to the negative speaker terminal and vice versa. The bass is supposed to be worse over it. Back then when people were using lampcord for speaker wire, without any color coding, I'm sure that happened often. Nice to be able to correct that with the simple & easy flip of a switch. Reverse stereo was a good feature too. People would inadvertantly get that backwards also with their cables. A flick of the switch solution was nice. Another thing about it was that most people didn't listen to classical music, where they would immediately notice the channels were reversed by knowing the string section shouldn't be coming from the right side channel. String sections are routinely in the left channel. But with rock & jazz, there is no standard like that. You could be listening to non classical music from the wrong channels for years before realizing it.
What's more, is out of habit, you can be used to listening to a certain piece of music in that way, with the guitars on the left or keyboards on the right. If you ever want to hear it the way it was intended to be heard; just flip the switch. Chances are though, that from years of hearing it one way; you are used to it that way, and might not want to change anything. The left ear is wired to the right side of our brain which is the emotion side of our brain. The right ear crosses over to the left part of the brain, which is the analytical part of the brain. Those dreamy keyboard solos of the group The Doors were originally recorded in the right channel, which crosses over to the analytical part of our brain. Someone must have realized that the music hits the emotions better with the keyboards coming from the left, and on later albums, the keyboards were placed on the left to register with the emotional side of our grey matter. Listen to their first album in reverse stereo; you will like the music more. That's just one example that comes to mind. There are plenty of other albums which sound better in stereo reverse. A really nice feature to have.
What's with the sexy album cover behind the McIntosh? Or is that supposed to be subliminal? One of the more humorous vinyl video guys, did a CZcams video a while back where he was covered with shaving cream like the lady on that cover. It was shaving cream not whipped cream used on that cover; despite the albums title.
So to answer your question about the mode knob in regard to the "L to L + R" and "R to L+ R" positions. Back in the day when Mono recordings were still prevalent and if you remember the audio signal of a mono recording is the same in left and right side of a records groove. Due to normal record wear, a worn stylus, stylus and/or tonearm not aligned properly, etc. one side of the groove would be worn more than the other. In this case the mode selection mentioned above gives you the option to select and direct the best sounding and quietest side of the groove to both speakers while playing a Mono record. I too have a MA-6100, it was a my first Mac and I have played many mono recordings thru it .... I can say from experience that the mode switch as descubed works wonders on older worn mono recordings!
Excellent! Makes perfect sense. I just have never owned or listened to an mono records personally, so it was just not clicking for me. Thanks for the explanation.
Another great video, this information is great for today, but years from now it’s going to be priceless. You are doing some great work.
I appreciate that!
I have an early 60s C-11 Preamp which has the same mode selector. It says in the manual that if you want to listen to mono recordings you should switch the selector to either L to L+R or R to L+R. Apparently when you switch to mono on the selector, it just evens out the right and left channel, but isn't an actual reproduction of monaural sound. The manual for the C22 which is basically a redesign of the C11 cosmetically, but the same electrically states that if you want to listen to mono recording, then you should select mono on the input. So it is a bit confusing. I find it helpful at times to use that L to L+R (Or viceversa) if I want to check the sonic balance of my speakers.
Interesting. Thanks for the input. I think, in essence, they were probably trying to give as much flexibility as possible for the various recording quality that was coming out. From what I have read, quite an issue in the early 60's, but I seriously doubt it was as problematic in the 70's, but Mac still left those features in place. I guess we will just say it is a Mac thing.
Thats the amp I want more than anything. Just never going to be able to afford it. Beautiful.
Never say never. I've lucked across some great deals over the years, it could happen.
My neighbor put ma 6100 and Mr 74 on curve. I getting my dogs out of car and spotted them. Now there mine. 😊
Bought it 1978 needs restored
Regarding your question about duplicating a channel on the other side …I believe the purpose was that on some equipment, one audio channel carried time code while the other channel was the Mono signal, so you would need to eliminate the second channel and duplicate the one audio channel on the other.
Certainly seems to be for mono recordings.
Big Mac fan. Thanks Scott.
Indeed. More to come.
I wanted to get one of these. I noticed the vintage McIntosh is almost as expensive as their newer models.
Yes, resale on used McIntosh gear is very good, but you can still get these MA-6100s for under $1500. The equivalent new McIntosh integrated amp goes for $6000!
For the vintage McIntosh amp with the most mind blowing sound quality, is it the old MC 30 monos? Or is there some vintage McIntosh amp with even better sonics than that?
My first also
i have a mc 2100 and macintosh speakers
I too have a MC 2100 I use it with a C 26 preamplifier.
Awesome! What model are the speakers?
@@stereoniche XR 240 Walnut
@@stereonicheI’m using Cerwin Vega AT-15 bought new in 1991
Refoamed the drivers in 2021
I need à MC intosh with big blue V meters, this model is like a pair sailboat without sails…
Absolutely! Go grab yourself an MC2205 and you will be all set!
Not much on the sound of the unit, was this because of being underwhelmed? I have been considering one of these but I have several nice Sansui and pioneer receivers. Thanks!
Not at all. I just don't comment on it in my videos as I think there are too many variables and given the age of these units, very likely they can all sound different. But, in general, I find most all early SS macs to be quite warm to my ears. It is why I used one as my reference amp.
Hi!! I noticed below the 6100 you may have a QX747 or QX949 wasn't able to make out the model number. I have 2 747's what are your thoughts on these? I've found from vintage audio repair shops they are very difficult to work on.
It is a 949. Quads, in general, are very complex beasts from any manufacturer. They included so much more complexity for the 4 channel formats. Personally, since I have so many units, I only use them for 2 channel stereo and often times you can find them for less money than 2 channel models. There are some, like the Sansui QRX-9001 that suffer cold solder joint issues, but even then, some techs are intimidated by them. If you are interested in having a full quad experience, they are wonderful for that purpose, but probably need a full restoration for reliability.
Se escucha muy bien, pero hay algo que no me convence en la mayoría de pruebas de sonido de amplificadores altavoces y es que casi siempre utilizan como fuente de sonido un tocadiscos con el cual es normal que se escuche el sonido precioso has el amplificador marca cucarron se escucha bien con tocadiscos, creo que lo ideal sería también hacer pruebas con cd, bluetooth, radio y saber si realmente son tan buenos con discos vinilo cualquier amplificador se escuchan bien
Hey Scott, it’s Mark. I had talked to you several weeks ago in reference to the big speakers that you had and I said I had the same set anyway I just want if you’re willing to answer this I’m just wanting to find out what you think those speakers are worth the ones I got granite there And really really good condition. Only issue I got is on one of them. The screen has got a small hole in it but other than that they’re in great shape the labels are still on them and there’s some type of line array not lying array, but they say something to that affect timeline or something like that on the back of them and they got the colored speaker connectors big banana plugs, they got the weird notches in them anyway appreciate it I don’t know if you buy equipment but I’ve got those. I’ve got a set of the big carvers that have the ribbon tweeters it run. They’re about 6 feet long and each cabinets got 410 inch woofers in it and finally I’ve got a champagne colored Marantz power amp model 300 DC or DC 300 got the meters on the front of it, get back with me if you want and let me know and appreciate it. Have a great weekend.
Hey Mark. Easier if you send me an email. stereoniche@gmail.com
plz how connect my 6100 in my phone
See my other comment
Well, the 4100 does not get Love for their own community but is a wonderful sounding unit (I own 2). Those who work on Mac gear will say, the 70's stuff at least, parts quality was selectively good but not those ribbon cables that delaminate, internal wiring which brittles, push button switches are finicky, RCA jacks are not very good and the Volume control (6100, C26, C28) fail. I prefer there 60's Point-to-Point wiring Amps and I wish Mac would get back to its Tube roots. Many would say the 70 Amps are dark sounding (Transformers), but they are Lovley. Luxman in the 70's (L-100/110, C-1000/1010, M-4000, M-6000) takes the Crown of engineering, sound. Service is a Must, but I cannot explain why people who condemn those on Recapping and will defend on keep their gear Original??? Thank You for sharing your story.
I try everything n not work
is new
See my other comment
you think lneed poweramp
because 6100 is preamp amplifier
If you have an MA6100, you can use a lightening to RCA cable. Connect the RCA right/left to the AUX inputs on the back. This is an example: tinyurl.com/583kvvpd