McIntosh C8

The C8 is a valve preamplifier whose format follows that of the MA252 integrated amplifier. Its operating stage relies on four 12AX7a valves, each protected by a dedicated cage. On the connection side, the unit offers a balanced analogue input as well as two unbalanced inputs, complemented by two dedicated phono inputs for turntables: one for a moving coil cartridge, the other for a moving magnet cartridge with load adjustment. All inputs can be renamed, which makes them easier to identify on the front-panel display. Separate bass and treble controls allow the sound to be adjusted according to the user's preferences. On the output side, there are three connections: one balanced and two unbalanced, one of the latter able to be dedicated to powering a subwoofer to emphasise the bass register.

As standard, the C8 does not include a digital input, but its architecture allows the DA2 module to be added as an option through a McIntosh dealer. This provides access to two coaxial inputs, two optical inputs, a USB input, an MCT input (compatible with the brand's SACD/CD players) as well as an HDMI ARC connection. It houses a recently designed quad balanced DAC, with 8 channels and 32 bits, capable of natively playing DSD up to 512 and DXD up to 384 kHz. For headphone listening, the preamplifier also incorporates McIntosh's dedicated High Drive amplifier, whose power and versatility allow a wide range of headphone models to be used.

• Coaxial digital inputs: 2
• Optical digital inputs: 2
• USB input: 1
• MCT input: 1
• HDMI ARC audio input: 1