I've got to head out of town tomorrow to look over a used C32 pre and MR80 tuner. What should I look for in terms of overall condition, etc. to help me in evaluating my purchase? Thanks.

A good start:
Print this (http://www.audiogon.com/scale.html) out and take it along to help assess condition. Digging through past postings here and seeing what
things have needed attention in these models. Make notes of those to verify operation.


Carl

My outlook on used McIntosh, cosmetics = cost, any Mac can be fixed but if it has rust or mechanical damage it may not be worth fixing, remember dirty can be cleaned - have found some real gems under the grunge.

Of all the vintage Mc preamps, the C-32 and 33 are my favorites. It's a modern design preamp and a clean sheet of paper from the C-28. The 32 has built in amps so it will drive a pair of speakers or headphones. Spring clip connections.

Terry has commented on problems with ribbon cables (there's a bunch of them) but this is fixable. Never had any trouble with mine.

I've never seen an MR-80 but it is perhaps one of the less popular McTuners for whatever reason. I'd grab it, however, if the price was right.

Of course, cosmetics are everything. Cracked/broken glass will have to be replaced and rust on the exterior creates a pretty big problem. Bashed end caps and scratched extrusions on the top and bottom of the glass can be tough to find and are expensive. There's a lot of carping about burned out lamps but replacement is no big deal.

Let everyone know how it turns out! :music:

Murray