C22

Preamplifier, McIntosh, 1963

A six-tube stereo preamplifier with an illuminated glass front panel and the PANLOC mounting system, which McIntosh's manual calls the first professional installation technique used on stereo instruments.

A-20, isometric, same camera for both

Drawing: A-20
Introduced: 1963
Produced: 1963 to 1972
Made in: United States
Designed by: Not credited by sources
Launch price: US$279 (1963)
Size: 406 x 138 x 330 mm
Weight: 7.3 kg

McIntosh introduced the C22 in 1963 as the control centre for a stereo system, amplifying phono, tape and tuner sources and providing tone control and source switching. Six 12AX7 tubes handle the gain stages. Its PANLOC system lets the unit lock into a metal shelf behind a panel and slide forward to reach the output level and equalisation trims. McIntosh later issued several revivals, and a Mk V remains in the current catalogue.

See it in listening room no. 01, at the Farnsworth House

Front elevation of the McIntosh C22, 406 mm wide and 138 mm high — Front elevation, dimensions in millimetres. Drawn from published dimensions and descriptions; detail is simplified.

Specification

Item	As published
Tubes	6 x 12AX7
Frequency response	+/- 0.5 dB from 20 cps to 20,000 cps
Distortion	Less than 0.2% at 10 volts output; less than .02% at 3 volts output
Total noise	High level inputs 85 dB below rated output
Phono sensitivity and gain	2 millivolts, 47,000 ohms; 62 dB to main output at 1 kc
Power requirement	117 volts 50/60 cps AC, 34 watts

Its successor

McIntosh C22 Mk V

McIntosh sells its direct descendant today. Pricing is through dealers.

See it at mcintoshlabs.com

The house

Founded: 1949
Founder: Frank McIntosh and Gordon Gow
Origin: Silver Spring, Maryland, United States (moved to Binghamton, New York, in 1951)
Today: Owned by Bose Corporation through McIntosh Group, after Highlander Partners sold it in a deal announced on 19 November 2024.

Further sheets

Sources

Notes for the record: The US$279 price is given by Radiomuseum as the first-year price and by Nuts and Volts as the 1963 introduction price; Nuts and Volts also says it sold for US$330 in 1965. Radiomuseum dates the model 1963 to 1968 with a question mark, while McIntosh's legacy page says 1963 to 1972. An Absolute Sound article reportedly dates the C22 to 1962, but theabsolutesound.com returned 403 and was not opened. No designer is credited in sources opened. Dimensions are the manual's front panel width and height (16 in, 5 7/16 in) and chassis depth (13 in), converted at 25.4 mm per inch; weight is 16 lb net.