Opinions of McIntosh sonics may depend a lot on the vintage of the gear. Way, way back in the day McIntosh was considered the best in the world. Then sometime during the early solid state era, the management swore they would never "go back" to tubes under any circumstances. They sort of stood pat with most of their audio designs - which always measured well but lost the enthusiasm of audiophiles. Then, after some ownership changes, they rediscovered their roots, began building both retro and brand new tube designs as well as upgrading their SS stuff. The result is, IMHO, they are back among the very best both sonically and build wise (see reviews in TONE and elsewhere). Interestingly, although management changed, some of the current designs were executed recently by engineers that have been with them forever. And the current president is a long time employee as well. Maybe best of all, everything is still made in the USA.
