McIntosh MC-60 Tube Power Amp – One Of Two
Current Price: 102.50
Current Bids: 2
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This is the cosmetically rougher of two McIntosh MC-60 tube power amps that I acquired and serviced after the original owner passed away at the age of 103. Although he could barely hear at the time of his death, he refused to part with his McIntosh / JBL stereo system that he started building in the 1950s. These fine (and extremely heavy and well built) mono amps were sold between 1955 and 1961, and still survive today and are much sought after by today's audiophiles.This particular amp has some minor issues, none which affect its operation. It appears that it may have lived beneath an open window for many years, as the chrome finish on top of the chassis is pitted, as seen in the picture with the tubes removed. The lettering for the tube call outs is still intact, and the tube sockets themselves are not affected. Further, some moisture had previously gotten to the bottom cover, as some of the black paint near the mounting edges and chrome has peeled away. One photo shows this with the bottom cover removed. And, one of the terminal screws on the speaker connecting barrier strip has gone missing.When I received this amp, I was horrified to see that one of the Tung Sol 6550 output tubes had been cracked from careless handling. I replaced the 6550 pair with a new KT90EH matched pair made in Russia, just to make the amp properly operational again. The tube sockets were all treated with anti-corrosion cleaner, and grip the tube pins well. The power supply rectifiers are both RCA 5U4GB, and the balance of the smaller tubes seem to be vintage RCA, some with European numbers.At some point in its life, the owner chose to have the old original black, and often leaky coupling capacitors replaced with more modern ones, like Sprague Orange Drops. (When I worked for a McIntosh dealer back in the early 1970s, this was a very popular modification.) Although the tech who did this on this amp got all the connections right, his soldering technique left a lot to be desired. Many connections were "cold", meaning the leads could be easily moved within the solder joint itself. Some he had totally missed completely, after wrapping the lead around the terminal post. (I can just imagine the frustration of having the sound cut in and out intermittently, AFTER this mod was performed!) So I carefully inspected all connections, and resoldered the ones that needed it. Now this amp is mechanically and electrically solid.Everything else works as it should. The hum and gain controls move quietly, the preamp tubes are free from mechanical noise when tapped. The interior of the amp is very clean and without rust. Some of the silk screen lettering around the two octal sockets (for very early preamp power and speaker wiring) on the end has worn away, but this is not an issue for most people using the barrier strip for speaker connections.It's not the most beautiful MC-60 I've ever seen, but it sounds great and is very solid electrically. Please be aware that it's massively heavy, 46 pounds before packing material, which will add a few pounds as well since it will most likely require a very solidly constructed shipping box and a fair amount of padding. Shipping is only available to US and Canadian destinations, and the extra insurance expense beyond the minimum provided by the carrier is the responsibility of the buyer. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have before bidding.
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This auction is valid until 2010-12-18T07:56:19.000Z
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