New MCD12000
 

I wish my rack had room for this beauty: https://www.mcintoshlabs.com/product...ayers/MCD12000

Looks very nice.

Gorgeous! Might be trading in my MCD1100!

I wonder what the price of this bad boy is..

$12k - Google is your friend.
https://www.theabsolutesound.com/art...ence-level-dac

12.000,00 Usd + tax. In Italy 22.000,00 €

mcmlix… Welcome to AA! :wave:

I'd like to know who made the transport.

It's the same of the MCD600

Very interesting! I haven't made any purchases in a while but this defiantly sparks my interest. I may have to see what the offer is on my MCD1100 for a trade in.

All outputs are driven by discrete amplifiers or a blend of vacuum tubes and discrete amplifiers. For vacuum tube output, one 12AT7 tube and one 12AX7A tube are assigned to each the left and right audio channel. Solid-state output is via a discrete balanced op-amp. A digital coax and optical output are included for added flexibility to connect the MCD12000 to the rest of your home audio system.


Very nice!

Me too! That's become a critical question.

This definitely looks very nice. It's pricey, but not as bad as I expected.

If it was a stand alone DAC I would probably buy it. I have enough Disc spinners:thumbsup::thumbsup:

What should I do with my mcd 550 ?

They might offer a trade in program!

I don´t know if this is possible here, in Spain.....

...But this little window could match so well with my C500T´s one :scratch2::scratch2::scratch2:

$12,000?!?!? Charlie has finally lost his mind.

McIntosh still needs a basic stand alone DAC that does not double as a preamp or a CD player and is in a chassis similar in size to the D150. Something like their old MDA700.

Very nice, but at 12G's, I'll pass

Yes.

Wonder what brand of transport is in this thing. Marantz?
For $12k….Esoteric all the way. Sorry.

Interesting unit. I’ve been considering the c12000 but have held off to see what they release as a digital compliment. Was thinking there must be a reference level stand alone D12000 product in the works. Funny though, I’ve been thinking about adding a disc player as well so….hmmm…..

The real question for those who are not died-in-the-wool McIntosh aficionados will be:
Is it sonically competitive with offerings from other manufacturers at or near this price point? Lots of great stuff out there.

Pete don't mean to change the subject, but is there any news on the MDA1000?

Looks absolut great, but what a pitty that it doesn´t have a volume control and a USB Drive Input Connector for USB Flash Memory Drives like the MCD 600.

No news that is good. Nobody can figure out what is wrong with it. :dunno:

At first we were told we could get a new main board, then told we couldn't. All other attempts to isolate the problem have failed. Speculating that there could be a parasitic trace on the board, something you can't even see. Very mysterious. As of yesterday, McIntosh is again trying to see if they can somehow source out a new main board. It's not looking good, it's heartbreaking. Almost three months now, and looking at the prospect that my beloved MDA1000 is unrepairable. :tears:

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming...the MCD12000 looks great, though I too thing the volume control should be there.

Sorry to hear that Pete!

I'm sure Mcintosh put in a very good amplifier section and with the tube output stage the MCD1200 is going to be a very warm lush sounding DAC. Great streaming Dac. They should have made it a two box system. Dac with optional spinner. It would look great combined.

Exactly--we really have no idea yet if $12K is a high price or a good value. Looking forward to reviews comparing this to other DACs

+1 for now :D

14,990€ in Belgium and The Netherlands.
Italy will not be that different.

It would have been better if they used the digital audio module method used on the new preamps and integrated amps. Better than yet another expensive box on my rack.

Yes, but a module doesn't spin silver discs unfortunately.
A lot of us still use physical media.

MCD1200 has ESS most advanced chipset ESS SABRE PRO ES9038PRO 32-bit/8-channel DAC


https://www.esstech.com/products-ove...diophile-dacs/

My point was that a digital audio module would allow the new CD player's DAC to be upgradable in the future without the consumer having to continually buy separate DAC's or new CD players. This is what McIntosh has been doing with their latest preamps and integrated amps. Is there a good reason why they can't incorporate that design platform into this new CD player? Upgradable and interchangeable modularity is a win-win for the audio consumer as long as the manufacturer continues to support it. It also benefits the manufacturer which won't need to release new models every other year to keep up with the ever-changing DAC hysteria. I also wish McIntosh would bite the bullet and develop an all-in-one digital player that can stream and play discs like other manufacturers. While I'm at it, I doubt very much that this new player will provide $5,000 worth of improved sound quality over the MCD600. It IS pretty and should attract tube fanatics with deep pockets. Is a tube streamer next? How much supplemental heat does a home need?

This assumes that the module approach would yield equivalent sound quality. Since there are a large number of excellent DACs beginning at $2,000 or so, and all of those DACs rely on dedicated power supplies and large architectures that would not fit inside the module or a Mc pre amp; I question that assumption.

Maximum convenience in the Mc family is definitely a C2700 with DA2. But many have reported better sound quality with external DACs. This product is targeted at them

I suspect if it was feasible to install a digital module Mcintosh would have done it. I have a D1100 reference Dac and it didn't come with the module even though Mcintosh was designing preamps with Dacs at the time.

The best DAC is whatever the user's ears and brain are used to. It's the same as vintage tube component fans who can't find any modern amp that sounds as good as their 50-year-old space heater. Upgrades are usually not immediately noticed IMO, unless your brain is trained to believe that the newest and more expensive component HAS to be better in their system. It usually takes quite a while for me to perceive real sonic improvements between modern McIntosh components. I've A/B'd different components and immediately thought I heard a difference, but really couldn't tell if the difference was actually better or not until I played a good portion of my musical library on it.

This is a reference level CD/SACD Player on par with the C-12000 and meant to be used with it. For around 30K you get reference level quality. Paired with a 3500 MKII or a 1.25KW, I'd soon as have in fact rather have it as the much pricier Japanese gear (in the US, Mac is much more expensive over seas). I'm quite impressed. It's gorgeous.

Best

Charles