C22 III and McIntosh L72 Cabinet

[clpetersen]

+1 -- looks great.

[PeterMusic]

OK, you are officially the best husband in audiodom. I don't think I've ever seen a full system presented so beautifully and unobtrusively. I just hope my wife doesn't see this thread...

[Stahle]

Originally Posted by PeterMusic

OK, you are officially the best husband in audiodom. I don't think I've ever seen a full system presented so beautifully and unobtrusively. I just hope my wife doesn't see this thread...

Thank you so much for the compliment. I actually have the best wife in audiodom. She got me the C22 for my birthday this past December!!!

The cabinet for my MR7084 just arrived so I will be adding it back to the system tomorrow. I think I’ll put it under the C22 because it doesn’t generates any heat at all and I want those tubes of the C22 to be able to breathe. If it looks to busy having the stacked components I’ll use the tuner elsewhere.

[TWInsall]

Looks perfect to me. I think Mac is missing the boat by not having cabinets . But then there are independents making them.

[cleeds]

Originally Posted by TWInsall

Looks perfect to me. I think Mac is missing the boat by not having cabinets ...

Me too! Maybe Ivan could get involved as a sideline to his terrific Mac handles.

[Stahle]

I don’t think you’ll find anybody making an exact copy of the L72 due to the screen. I was actually going to make one until I discovered that the original L72 from the 90’s fit. The issue is getting the exact screen material. If you were doing many, you could have it cut and it would help with the cost, but I was making one. The early style would be easier to get a screen for because it’s mounted from underneath, but the later ones like mine have a screen that is flush mounted on the surface and this kind of screen would have to be made due to the perimeter area with no holes. The advantage of the flush mount is that if you have another component stacked on top, you’ll have an even surface.

[Stahle]

So after some consideration, I thought I would play it safe and allow for more ventilation of the C22 III due to the fact that I placed it into an L72 cabinet. To do so, I purchased a replacement outer metal cover from the McIntosh parts department so that I could cut out the area that is located directly under the L72 vent. The metal cover was only $20.00 plus shipping. I then cut it and had it powder coated to match the original finish. Here is what it looks like after putting it back on. I know it's not pretty, but when the C22 is in the L72, you can't see it. Also, I kept the original uncut metal cover and put it away for safe keeping so that it can all go back to original condition should I wish to do so.

FYI, my C22 III is from a late production run. I say this because McIntosh at some point changed the outer cover from a three piece with thick metal sides to a single one piece wrap around that slides over the the unit from the rear. The earlier units do not have this so the photos below may not look like your C22 III.

[Stahle]

Here are a couple of photos of the L72 cabinet with its original feet before I swapped them out.

[Stahle]

And here is the C22 in the L72 cabinet along with my MR7084 that's in an L70 cabinet. I upgraded the feet on each of the cabinets but kept the original feet should I ever which to put them back on.

[brownbear]

The looks really nice, well done!