McIntosh introduces the MA12000 hybrid amplifier. Its pre-amp circuitry is powered by 4 12AX7A dual triodes, and the power amplifiers are built entirely using solid-state components. The MA12000 is considered the most powerful hybrid integrated amplifier the company has ever released, capable of delivering 350 watts of power to each of its two channels. Moreover, the maximum power does not depend on the impedance of the connected speakers, which can range from 2 to 8 ohms. The speaker cable is connected to proprietary Solid Cinch terminals.
The X Power Guard technology is responsible for the safety of the speakers in the MA12000. The amplifier itself is protected from short circuits by an automatic proprietary Sentry Monitor system. McIntosh Monogrammed Heatsink heatsinks provide reliable passive cooling of the output transistors, and McIntosh Blue peak wattmeters indicate power output. On board the new product is an eight-band analog tone control assembled on discrete elements and a High Drive headphone amplifier with the Headphone Crossfeed Director (HXD) function. Seamless integration into a home theater system with proprietary components is ensured by PassThru technology.
To process digital signals, the MA12000 uses a McIntosh DA2 audio module, based on an 8-channel 32-bit DAC. On the USB input, the DA2 supports native playback up to DSD512 and PCM up to 384 kHz. Two coaxial and two optical inputs can accept digital audio up to 24-bit/192 kHz. In addition, the digital module has an MCT input for use with proprietary SACD/CD transports of the same series.
For integration into video systems, an HDMI audio input with ARC function is provided. The DA2 module is Roon Tested, allowing MA12000 owners to use their amplifier in the Roon ecosystem. It is important that a hardware upgrade of this part of the amplifier is subsequently possible.
Analog switching of the MA12000 is no less diverse. These are 2 balanced XLR and 6 unbalanced RCA inputs with gold-plated brass contacts, complemented by two built-in phono inputs of the MM and MC type with adjustable loading. The amplifier also provides a pair of linear outputs in balanced and unbalanced versions.
The rear panel of the amplifier includes connectors for controlling power to connected McIntosh components. If we talk about powering the MA12000 itself, then to improve the bass, the circuit uses a battery of filter capacitors with twice the capacity compared to other McIntosh integrated circuits. In addition to the controls located on the front panel of the new product, you can also use the standard remote control.
The MA12000 amplifier has a distinctive corporate design. On the top panel of the case there are 5 glass plates with information about the product. The model name is printed in the center and surrounded by a decorative ring. The black glass front panel is complemented by aluminum control knobs, an illuminated logo and a polished stainless steel chassis.
Specifications McIntosh MA12000
Power 350 W per channel into 2, 4 or 8 ohms
Frequency response 20 Hz – 20 kHz (+ 0, – 0.5 dB), 10 Hz – 100 kHz (+ 0, – 3 dB)
Harmonic distortion 0.005 %
Dynamic headroom 2 dB
Input sensitivity MM phono input: 2.5 mV, MC phono input: 0.25 mV, unbalanced input: 0.25 V, balanced input: 0.5 V, power amplifier input: 1.4 B
Signal-to-noise ratio (preamp) 95 dB
Signal-to-noise ratio (power amplifier) 114 dB
Signal-to-noise ratio (MM-phono preamp) 84 dB
Signal-to-noise ratio (MC-phono preamp) 82 dB
Input impedance (balanced and unbalanced inputs) 20 kOhm
Damping coefficient more than 40
Maximum output voltage 8 V
Equalizer 5 bands, ± 12 dB, adjustable frequencies: 30, 125, 500, 2000 and 10000 Hz
Output autotransformers 2 pcs. McIntosh Autoformer
MM and MC phono stages yes
Built-in DAC bit depth 32 bit/192 kHz
Upsampling up to 32 bit/192 kHz
Headphone amplifier High Drive, can connect headphones with impedance from 20 to 600 Ohms
Adjustment of channel balance using the menu yes
Signal level adjustment for each input within ± 6 dB yes
Switching to mono mode yes
Panel backlight LED, fiber optic
Inputs 6 line (RCA), balanced XLR, 2 MM and MC phono stage inputs, direct RCA input to the end section (connected via removable jumper with preamplifier output); asynchronous USB 2.0 (up to 32 bit/384 kHz – PCM, DSD256, DXD384 formats supported), coaxial and optical (up to 24 bit/192 kHz), HDMI input (ARC)
RCA outputs for recording, 2 RCA preamp outputs, one of which connected to amplifier input by jumper, 6.3mm headphone jack
Other wiring 2 trigger jacks (12V) for on/off control. components connected to the amplifier, six 3.5 mm DATA PORTS connectors for providing the ability to control signal sources from the amplifier’s remote control, a jack for an IR receiver, an RS-232C mini-jack for controlling the amplifier using external devices, a 3.5 mm MAIN connector for remote on/off, 3.5mm PASSTHRU (for connection to AV processor to control amplifier turn-on), ground terminal
Input renaming and reassignment yes
One of the analog inputs (except the phono inputs) can be switched to Passthru Mode to provide direct access to the final section of the amplifier when integrating it into a home theater system yes Speaker
output 8 gold-plated screw terminals (separate terminals for acoustics with an impedance of 2 , 4 and 8 ohms)
Power consumption in standby mode less than 0.25 W
Universal remote control
Dimensions (WxHxD) 445x24x559 mm
Weight 48.9 kg
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