Fay Butler Fab/Metal Shaping
Fay's Ultimate Library
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“McIntosh Laboratory is dedicated to bringing you the finest reproduction of music through equipment built to the highest engineering standards.” (signed) Frank H. McIntosh This is a comprehensive history of the company, people and products that are known as “McIntosh”. (It should be noted that this company has nothing to do with the computer company of the same name, which came afterwards and uses a different spelling.) McIntosh Labs started in Maryland in 1949 quickly establishing itself as the premiere sound system producer. Half a dozen years later, they moved both their head quarters and manufacturing facility to Binghamton, NY, where it is today. All products are still made in Binghamton, NY, and the company has a large support system, servicing any of their products from the very first to the current new products. Over the years, the exterior look has gone through a number of changes, yet a style is kept for a number of years for continuity. Planned obsolescence is not a part of McIntosh. This is a company where uncompromising excellence has always been the driving force. Two traditional formats for sound systems are commonly found: 1) radio/receiver and 2) individual components. Let me describe these two formats. The first group is what most of us are familiar with, that is a single item for playing music…called a radio. In sound system language, it is known as a “receiver”. The second style of system is made up of individual components. Three individual components: pre-amplifier, amplifier and tuner, make up what the one unit called a radio or “receiver” is. McIntosh has made both styles, yet the individual components have been their emphasis. It gives a person more options as they can upgrade a single component without needing to replace the whole system. Early versions of electronic equipment used vacuum tubes, yet as advances in solid state progressed, McIntosh moved to that circuitry. In 1969 it was McIntosh amplifiers that powered the music at Woodstock, then later the Grateful Dead concerts, called the bank of McIntosh amplifiers and speakers as “the Wall of Sound”. This was the first year for solid state. In 1999 McIntosh introduced a 50th anniversary edition of the vacuum tube amplifier. Tube amps had not been made for around 25 years. This tube amp was so well accepted that from then on a purchaser of new McIntosh equipment has the option of either solid state or tube products. Their current look is a rear printed glass front, with sharp edge blue lights and duel blue analog meters. Anyone pursuing excellence needs to become aware of the joy McIntosh can bring to fine reproduction of sound, and this book is a written and pictorial history of this great company and their entire history of products. I first became aware of McIntosh sound from a very early customer. He was very knowledgeable about classic cars, particularly V12 Auburns, fine food, particularly Greek food, and fine cameras, Leica, Contex and Hasselblad. He was a Leica camera dealer and I quickly realized he knew quality. He advised me that I would appreciate the sound of McIntosh and suggested that I visit The Stereo Shop, in Hartford, CT, an authorized McIntosh dealer. It turns out that it was not just any authorized dealer; it was one of the first. When Frank McIntosh would visit this dealership, he met the owners’ sister and shortly after they were married. Years later on my first trip to the Stereo Shop, I left with a used McIntosh receiver and a used set of B&W speakers…I was hocked. The sound was so real that sometimes I would think someone else was in the house talking. Later I moved the receiver to the shop, with the same affect. I would stop to see who was in the shop talking, only to realize it was the McIntosh receiver. A few years later, an unrelated fellow showed up looking for me to do some metal shaping for him. It was summer, the doors were open to my shop and I was outside with another customer. He said he would go inside and wait till I was done. When I finally went inside he was sitting in the middle of the shop and he said he wanted to tell me a story. He said back when he was in college, nearly 40 years ago, his roommates’ father was a concert pianist. He said the first time he went to his roommates parents home, when they entered the house, there was this sound playing. He said he stopped and asked his friend what that beautiful sound was. His friend said his father had this great sound system, and took him to this room in the house with a wall of built in cabinets. When they opened the doors to the cabinets, there was the most beautiful sound system, all made by McIntosh. He said from then on when they purchased a new rock album, that was where they would listen to it. This fellow said when he walked into my shop, the sound of the music brought him back to the sound of first entering into his friends parents home, 40 years ago, with the McIntosh playing. He said he looked around and saw that I had a McIntosh sound. In terms of high-end sound this book is as beautiful as the look and sound of a McIntosh, excellence at its best. |
©2005-2016 Fay Butler
