Bose Acquires Premium Audio Brand McIntosh 23
Bose has acquired the high-end audio brand McIntosh, a move the company says will "significantly" expand its product lineup and open "new opportunities in the automotive sector." The Verge reports: McIntosh has already designed a sound system for some Jeep models, but Bose's audio setups are found within a wider range of cars from automakers like Chevy, Honda, Nissan, Cadillac, and many others. It doesn't look like Bose or McIntosh will make any changes to their existing products. Bose says it will continue to launch its headphones, speakers, soundbars, and in-car audio, while McIntosh and Sonus faber will keep developing premium audio products, including amplifiers, loudspeakers, and turntables. "Over the last six decades we've delivered the best premium audio experiences possible; now, with McIntosh Group in our portfolio, we can unlock even more ways to bring music to life in the home, on-the-go and in the car," Bose CEO Lila Snyder said in a press release. "We look forward to honoring the heritage of these brands, investing in their future and pushing the boundaries of audio innovation to bring customers experiences they've never heard before."
Sad News for Mcintosh (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
I've always wanted one of their systems, but could never justify the expense within my budget. There is something to be said for makers of huge, massive, powerful and high quality audio components, but that sector is slowly dying as it is hard to imagine even billionaires wanting a whole lot more than the top offerings of Sonos. I wonder if high end audio has reached the end of the line, and this acquisition signals yes.
Also sad news for fans of quality audio. Bose is known among musician circles at least, as being really good at creating a pleasing, but not at all flat soundscape. And it can't be made flat if that's something you happen to be looking for, like mix engineers or mastering techs. McIntosh could do the pleasing soundscape thing, AND could be put into a very flat mode. Something that will now most likely be killed in pursuit of cost savings and consolidation. In a just world, Bose wouldn't be allowed to suck u
Re: (Score:2)
Bose is known among musician circles at least, as being really good at creating a pleasing, but not at all flat soundscape
It's better than a car radio from the 90s.
Re: (Score:3)
Vintage audio is where it's at still, except the source. Nowadays a Raspberry PI with a DAC hat or an external DAC is unbeatable for the money as the source. With a hardware volume control you can even bypass the preamp and go directly to the amp. My speakers and amp are 30 years old and are the best I've ever had. The new speakers, amps, and preamps come with a lot of snake oil nowadays.
Re: (Score:2)
I have a couple of Marantz, and several old Japanese receivers and amps from the 70s, that are still working with no issues. Although a few of them started developing issues, likely a transistor issue, like a Luxman I have.
Re: (Score:2)
A few things can happen. Electrolytic caps dry out and lose capacitance. Carbon comp resistors drift and can develop noise. A similar thing happens to volume or balance pots, they get dirty and staticy. If the pots are open you can usually bring them back with a shot of De-Oxit spray. Transistors tend to either work or not work, there isn't much in between.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
People want high-end sound, but hand-wound transformers and vacuum tubes are of questionable value.
Not as questionable as ludicrously-priced cables.
Re: (Score:2)
I get it re: hand-wound transformers. When something is done at small scale (i.e. by hand), then the parts cost becomes somewhat immaterial because of the labor, so chances are the components of the transformer are all higher quality than one manufactured in China. But I have tried hand-winding coils and transformers. It's an exercise in patience, and there's NO way what I do will come out as clean and neat as a machine in a factory doing it. But the thing is, the effect of materials used in a transform
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Components must be getting hard for manufacturers to find too: no one produces the heavy high quality analog parts needed to complete a true hifi design.
Re: (Score:2)
Class-D and energy efficiency (even when it comes to speakers) is what today's craze is. The new folks' jaws would drop at a Nelson Pass Aleph 5 sucking up 600 constant watts. But the good thing is it doubles up as a heater in the winter :-)
So Sue Me (Score:2)
Not good for the brand McIntosh (Score:2)
I don't have much hope for McIntosh. The business model of Bose is to take cheap components and make something that sounds OK. They cost-reduce EVERYTHING.
Re: (Score:2)
Bose (Score:2)
Ick. Bose. Really? (Score:4, Insightful)
I've long known Bose, from single-digit age back in the 70's. It's always muddy and indistinct, anyone back then who would hook up Bose to McIntosh was clueless.
I've had one car with Bose premium in it (didn't have a chioce) and it was a wet blanket thrown over the music. Nothing had changed since the 70's.
Now Bose owns McIntosh? I wonder why DM Holdings sold 'em. (I think they were with DM Holdings, and before that, Clarion)
This is the worst possible owner for anything Hi-Fi. Bose is marketing.
In a just world, McIntosh would be able to have Bose see the light and build superb-sounding stuff, but we don't live in a just world. Bose will never, ever learn what good sound is. The only sound they care about is the gold in their coffers.
Re: (Score:2)
> I've had one car with Bose premium in it (didn't have a chioce) and it was a wet blanket thrown over the music.
I had a Nissan with a Bose premium audio system. Calling it "mediocre" is being generous. It was incredibly under-powered, had poor stereo separation, and sounded terribly muddy. So, no more cars with Bose audio, ever.
Years ago... (Score:2)
Years ago when very young I listened to speakers in a store and ended up buying a pair of Bose ones. Believe it or not, after having listened also to B&W. They sounded rich and warm. Youth!
Took them home, was very happy with them for a day or two, then felt growing unease, finally listened carefully and got to the problem, it was the one note booming Bose bass. Unlistenable to for any length of time if what you wanted was clear reproduction of acoustic music.
What you test with, by the way, is speaki
No highs. No lows. (Score:2, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Buy Other Sound Equipment.
I replaced my Bose Accoustimas 25 Series II 5.1 SRS with a Sony run of the mill speaker set and receiver and it sounds sooo much better. Hell, some radio shack systems sounded better than BOSE. I won't touch them anyomore. And that's after we found out it was cutting out trumpets on a ska CD my brother had to protect it. I got kicked out of the Bose presentation room at a store called "Nebraska Furniture Mart" by playing the CD on their test systems, and starting going "Where's
Bose counter-audio .v. high fidelity McIntosh (Score:2)
what could go wrong?
these two are existential opposites and the power dynamic is with the counter-culture brand.
High fidelity is over OR bad acoustic design is over as Bose goes high end consumer