The amplifier company with the blue boppin’ meters just announced a new integrated that offers up a tube amplifier pre section with a solid state power section called the MA12000. The McIntosh MA12000 Hybrid Integrated Amplifier drops 350 Watts of power into each channel and is one of the company’s most powerful to date.
The pre section utilizes 4 12AX7A (two per channel) while the solid state section is capable of driving those 350 watts into 8, 4, or even 2 ohm taps at full power. Inputs are fairly hearty as well, offering 10 analog – 6 SE, 2 XLR, 1 moving magnet, and 1 moving coil for your turntable.
On the digital size the McIntosh MA12000 comes standard with company’s DA2 digital audio module which offers digital inputs (including McIntosh’s MCT connection and an ARC HDMI) and USB connectively with DSD and 24/192 decoding. The DA2 is also Roon tested.
The McIntosh MA12000 Hybrid Integrated Amplifier is available for order as of today, with expected shipping to US and Canada in October. Suggested retail price will be $14,000.
More features from the press release:
Power Guard® that monitors the output signal for over driving and makes real time micro adjustments to the input signal to prevent harsh sounding clipping that could potentially damage your speakers
McIntosh’s fuse-less short-circuit protection circuit Sentry Monitor™ that disengages the output stage before current exceeds safe operating levels and then resets automatically when operating conditions return to normal
A pair of peak responding, trademarked “McIntosh Blue” Watt meters that indicate the real time power output of each audio channel
McIntosh Monogrammed Heatsinks™ which are connected to advanced high current output transistors that minimize thermal equilibrium lag (or warm-up) time and help keep the MA12000 running cool
Home Theater PassThru that allows for seamless integration into a home theater system
McIntosh’s patented Solid Cinch™ speaker binding posts that easily but securely attach the speaker cables to prevent them from coming loose and possibly causing a short; the binding posts are also gold-plated to prevent corrosion and ensure a quality signal is sent over your speaker cables to your speakers
A discrete, eight-band tone control that allows for advanced manual analog adjustment of your favorite recordings
High Drive headphone amplifier with Headphone Crossfeed Director (HXD®) which can bring an added dimension to headphone listening
Power Control to send power on/off signals to connected McIntosh components for easy system power up and shutdown
Doubling of filter capacity compared to McIntosh’s other integrated amplifiers for even better low frequency performance
The latest audio-grade circuit components to deliver the best sound possible
Powerful control microprocessors to improve overall system operation
Easy operation via front panel controls or the included comprehensive remote control
More info: McIntosh Labs