[ Mcintosh MC 240 ]

Technical specifications

Ladies and gentlemen....It's show time!! A real pleasure...after more than five years trying to find one of this wonderful machines...here with you...a real Mcintosh MC 240! Those who are into the classic audio world know what kind of amplifier is this. Those who doesn't, just let me tell to you that Mcintosh is one of the american legendary brands in the international audio world. Its hi-fi equipment is considered as one of the best that anyone can find in the audio jungle. And that its classic equipment is very,very desirable. Mcintosh amps are legends and maybe with some classic Marantz products, one of the best classic equipment you can find among all other american classic amplifiers. A gem.

Buying and amplifier like the one you see here is a difficult work. Since I started with classic hi-fi I have tried several times to buy an amplifer like this. Even some years ago I had the money in my hands, literally, to sent it to the USA to buy one, but...nothing. I have tried to buy many amplifiers from Mcintosh during all these years: MC 275 (don't try to buy these unit. It's extremeley expensive. 25.000€ at Ebay), MC 30, MC 240, C 20, C 22, etc, etc but I can't. Until now. Maybe you're asking how I got these and where I got it. As always in a nearest location than I expected. Rigth here, in Spain.

Some months ago an audiophile from Madrid (Spain) wrote me an email explaining his interests in the audio field. He's a audiophile interested in old 78rpm records and we were talking many days about this matter. In one of his firsts emails (his name is Paco Garcia. Thanks Paco!!), he described its equipment. In that list a pair of MC 240 were present. I told that this amp was a dream for me and I explained my experience trying to buy one. My surprise was enormous when he told me that perhaps he could found a MC 240 for me. One day after this email he wrote me again and he told me that he have found a MC 240 for me. I was shocked. After all those years a MC 240 was knocking at my door! As you can imagine I answer YES to Paco's offer, so he gave me the name and address of the man who was selling the amp. Who's that men...?

I have had doubts about giving you that information...only for few seconds! I think that if you come here to my page searching information about classic hifi I have to share all the knowledge with you. The man is Miguel Salas from Málaga, Spain, owner of MISACA (see image). Miguel is a professional in the hifi field. He has the shop you can see in the picture below and, also, he has a collection of classic hifi equipment. This is not a little collection, because he has ALL the Mcintosh references in it. Can you imagine such collection? I can't ! It's too much for me. Not only Mcintosh equipment can be found, but also many other classic gems from companys like Marantz, Dynaco, Quad, etc,etc. Miguel is probably one of the most important collectors in Spain. If you want to see some pictures of Miguel's classic equipment, visit the Audio Galleria section.
As I'm saying, after talking with Paco Garcia I phoned Miguel Salas. He was very kind and helpful and we agree with the deal. While talking about the Mcintosh, Miguel explain me that he has many other classic equipment available. So, as you can see this is a very good source. If you are interested in one amplifier like the one you can see here, now you know where to ask. Contact Miguel and enjoy with his knowledge and experience. And if you find want you want, congratulations. Meanwhile, some pictures will give you an idea about what I'm talking about. See Miguel's equipment at Audio Gallery. Finally, I want to thank Miguel for his great work. Thanks!! Here you have an image of Miguel's shop, MISACA, and the address and telephone number.




  • MISACA- Miguel Salas' shop. Address: Paseo de los Tilos 62. 29006 Málaga. Telf: 00 34 95 233 56 97




  • Now, some explanations about the MC 240. The MC 240 is the second amplifier in the Mcintosh classic tube amplifier range, beginning from the top. It is below the incredible and very expensive MC 275 and above the MC 225 and others. It was built between 1960 and 1969 and it is considered as a true benchmark. As I said before finding an amplifier like this is very difficult, because the demand is, every passing day, higher and higher. 3 or 4 years ago it was easy to find at a reasonable price a unit like this at Ebay or USA specialized dealers. Now, it isn't. The prices are no longer reasonable, basically because the market is going crazy with classic hifi equipment, specially in the asian south-east and Japan. The MC 240 delivers 40 watts in stereo or twin amp mode and 80 watts in mono. If you need more information about any Mcintosh equipment visit the personal page of Roger Rusell, former Director of Acoustic Research at the Mcintosh Labs. Roger's page is the best page in the net about Mcintosh. Visit Roger's page at Roger Russell Home Page.

    A final warning about american equipment. As you now in the USA the electrical voltage is 117 volts, and so, all this equipment is designed to work at this voltage or at maximum peaks of 125 volts. If you want to use this equipment in countries with voltages ranges between 220 volts and 240 volts you will need a transformer in order to adapt the higher input voltage to the lower output voltage needed. To do that, you can use a transformer with fixed output. These transformers change the input voltage to a fixed output voltage of, let's say, 117 volts. But if you want a better choice you can use a variable output transformer. With a Variac you can select a continuos range of output voltages, for example ranging from 0 to 150 volts, without problems. The Variac is also a better choice because it can be used to power up classic equipment "injecting" little voltages in them to use it safely. If you need a Variac, check availability at your local electronics shop.

    Finally, some images of my MC 240. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy it.




  • My Mcintosh MC 240







  • My Mcintosh MC 240







  • My Mcintosh MC 240







  • A detail of the tubes







  • Details of input, speaker connectors, and gain controls







  • Up side view









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