Ditto Joekapahulu's remarks. Mac has gone through several owner changes, but all have left Mac alone to do their thing, and all seem to have infused a lot of money into their investment. Mac's laser-cutting machine for the glass faceplates is just one of the things Mac benefitted from by Clarion's ownership. So don't worry about Mac, the quality is still there, regardless of what your dealer inferred. I do have a problem with the pricing of the newer pieces, to where it's getting to the point that "Joe average" has to sell the farm in order to own the new stuff. That aside, Mac's look is second to none, and oh, those beautiful blue meters! "The sound is like music", not fatiguing, and a pleasure to listen to. So have no fear about buying that new amp you want, you will enjoy it for many years to come.
Mcintosh Quality after buyout by D&M holdings
I am wanting to upgrade my amplifier and a local dealer is trying to sway me to Parasound with the argument that Mcintosh hasn't been the same since D&M Holdings bought them in 2008. I know it has changed hands once more and it looks like again pretty soon. I currently have a MC150 and want to upgrade to a bigger amp, maybe a MC352 or MC402. My speakers are Dynaudio Signature C1's and I recently bought a C50 preamp. Also, are there other amps that would perform better with the C1's than Mcintosh?