In audio, there's brand loyalty and then there's McIntosh loyalty. Part of that, of course, is that the manufacturer's black glass face panels and glowing blue meters have become audio icons that generations of audiophiles have grown up lusting after, but part of it is undoubtedly because McIntosh is so very good at fostering a sense of community.
A case in point—and for many of us of a certain age, a rite of passage—were McIntosh's legendary "amplifier clinics" (1962–1991), where company technicians (like as not, the late David H. O'Brien) set up shop in hi-fi stores and tested any amplifier the store carried or customers brought in. Measurements were done in public and, most of the time, McIntosh units tested "best."
That "best" is in quotes only because there's still a debate raging over how to measure for that precise property. What's not in dispute is that Mac's components always met their published specs (or were brought up to spec), while many other products didn't. Just ask the man who took a few dismal performers to amplifier clinics. Consumers who owned McIntosh felt validated in their decisions, and those of us who didn't began dreaming about the day we could own one.
Even those of us who didn't actually have any Mac gear had heard about the company's customer care policies. Like Quad in the UK, the Binghamton, NY–based manufacturer took pride in being able to service any model it had ever made—and rare was the tale of an overpriced repair.
On July 16, McIntosh Laboratory announced a limited Trade-UP incentive program for its customers. Between now and August 31, consumers can trade in any mono, stereo, or multichannel McIntosh amplifier on a new model and receive up to 75% of the model's original manufacturer's suggested retail price in credit. That covers any amplifier McIntosh has ever manufactured—although it does have to be working and unmodified.
McIntosh president Charlie Randall said, "McIntosh customers are renowned for their loyalty to the brand. Our Trade-UP program is a way to reward these valued customers for that loyalty and support, and provide an easy way for them to upgrade their components to the very latest in McIntosh style, quality, and performance."
By the way, David H. O'Brien wrote a book about the amplifier clinics, The McIntosh Amplifier Clinics: 1962–1991. And you can find John Marks' Stereophile review of Ken Kessler's McIntosh: "...for the love of music...," for which O'Brien had been a source, here.
