McIntosh MA7200: A beautiful piece of equipment

Like the older amplifiers, the McIntosh MA7200 has a powerful headphone amplifier with Headphone Crossfeed Director technology, a home theater pass-through channel, and also uses Power Guard and Sentry Monitor technologies. The radiators are in the shape of the company logo: they are necessary for the amplifier, which produces 200 watts per channel. The case design corresponds to the eternal McIntosh design with blue arrow indicators, a front panel made of black glass with aluminum end caps, control knobs and a backlit logo.

The McIntosh MA7200 amplifier has: 14 inputs: 5 unbalanced, 1 balanced, one phono input for MM and MC cartridges, a pair of coaxial and optical, USB and proprietary MCT. Digital inputs are located in the removable DA1 module: DA1 comes with an 8-channel 32-bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC) used in Quad Balanced mode. The USB input accepts PCM signals up to 32-bit / 384 kHz and supports up to DSD256 and DXD 384 kHz for high-resolution audio playback, and the coaxial and optical inputs will decode music up to 24-bit / 192 kHz, after some time the user will be able to replace it with a more modern option.

All inputs can be assigned user names for convenient control and system configuration. The McIntosh MA7200 features new Monogrammed Heatsinks that are very effective at dissipating heat, some of which are shaped like the McIntosh “Mc” logo. They are paired with advanced high-current transistors and no warm-up time, so you can enjoy the full audio capabilities of the McIntosh MA7200 from the moment you turn it on.

Part of a new line of next-generation amplifiers, the McIntosh MA7200 includes a host of improvements, including new, more powerful control microprocessors; improved audio components; and Headfish Crossfeed Director (HXD®) technology. The new MA7200 also includes McIntosh’s signature technologies, such as Autoformers (to ensure full 200 watts of power regardless of speaker impedance), Power Guard®, Sentry Monitor™, and PassThru, as well as bass and treble controls and a High Drive headphone amplifier.

The McIntosh MA7200 should be viewed as a competitor to the Krell K-300i, and in some ways it is. Having spent a lot of time with both amps, I am not sure who would emerge victorious from such a duel. Krell has developed a device that fully meets the requirements of today’s models in this class. It is almost a universal device with very wide functionality. McIntosh, on the other hand, has tweaked its recipe to make this amp as good in this decade as any of its models have ever been. I can’t tell you what a Krell amp will be like in 20 years, but I’m pretty sure what a McIntosh will be like then. That timelessness, that confidence, that quality that comes with the company’s gear, and the sheer brilliance of the finished product, is what won me over to McIntosh, and I suspect many others, too. The McIntosh MA7200 is a sensational amp, and it gets our warmest recommendation.

McIntosh MA7200 Specifications

• Number of channels 2
• Power 8 Ohm, W 2 x 200
• Power 4 Ohm, W 2 x 200
• Power 2 Ohm, W 2 x 200
• Frequency range, Hz-kHz 20 – 20
• S/N ratio, dB 113
• Harmonic distortion factor, % 0.005
• Input impedance 20 kOhm
• Output voltage 8 V
• Sensitivity, dB 0.5 / 0.25 V (XLR / RCA)
• Damping factor 40
• Audio DAC 32 bit / 384 kHz
• Supported formats PCM, DSD256, DXD384
• Phono preamplifier MM / MC
• Remote control Yes
• Inputs: Coaxial 2 x S / PDIF (RCA), 1 x MCT, Optical 2 x Toslink, USB 1 x USB type B, Analog audio 7 x RCA, 1 x XLR, Other RS232, 4 x
• 3.5 mm, Data Port, 1 x 3.5 mm IR
• Outputs: Analog audio 2 x RCA, Acoustic 4 x pairs, Headphones 1 x 6.3 mm (HXD), Other 2 x 3.5 mm trigger
• Dimensions, mm 445 x 193 x 559
• Weight, kg 34.1