The McIntosh MS500 network player is made in a case with a characteristic McIntosh design, and on its front panel there is only a two-line fluorescent display. All control of the player is carried out using portable devices based on iOS or Android through a special application.
When creating the McIntosh MS500 streamer, attention was paid not only to the highest sound quality, but also to ease of use. It is capable of not only playing music located on the home network, but also receiving content from streaming services Deezer, Murfie, Pandora, Rhapsody, SiriusXM, Slacker, Spotify, TIDAL and TuneIn, and this list can be expanded over time. The device is equipped with a built-in 500 GB SSD drive – it contains the operating system of the device (built on the basis of Linux) and can store part of the music collection. Thanks to the use of a solid-state drive and a processor with passive cooling, the device is completely silent.
An interesting feature of the model is the presence of not only USB inputs, but also an output for external USB DACs, which allows you to sound additional music zones. The streamer is controlled using a standard remote control, a WEB interface and mobile applications for iOS and Android.
The McIntosh MS500 player is based on a motherboard from Autonomic, one of the leading manufacturers of professional media systems. The 8-channel 32-bit digital-to-analog converter in the McIntosh MS500 is the same as the one installed in the proprietary D100 preamplifier. At the same time, its circuit is completely isolated from the computing part to eliminate possible interference. The player's operating system is recorded on a high-speed HDD. Thoughtful organization of the software guarantees an instant response to user commands and stable sound quality when playing music from any source.
The McIntosh MS500 player is equipped with balanced and unbalanced analog outputs, optical and coaxial digital outputs. Also on the rear panel of the McIntosh MB100 there are HDMI and VGA outputs intended for displaying on-screen graphics only. The device is powered by an external DC source.
McIntosh MS500 Specifications
Frequency Response 2 Hz – 22 kHz (+/- 1 dB)
Signal-to-Noise Ratio 102 dB
Dynamic Range 96 dB Total
Harmonic Distortion 0.005%
DAC 8-channel, 32-bit / 192 kHz, 2 x 4 balanced mode
Output Impedance 600 Ohms (balanced / unbalanced)
Output Voltage 4 V (balanced output), 2 V (unbalanced output)
Output Stream S / PDIF 24 bit / 192 kHz
Outputs balanced XLR, unbalanced RCA, optical, coaxial, HDMI (GUI only), DVI-D (GUI only), USB (for compatible McIntosh devices)
Inputs 4 USB (2 USB2.0, 2 USB3.0), eSATA
Additional Power Control in / out, DATA input, IR sensor input
Playback of files with parameters up to 24 bit / 192 kHz
Supports Pandora, SiriusXM, Spotify, Rhapsody, TuneIn, Amazon Cloud Drive, Apple iCloud
Built-in storage capacity 500 GB
Control iOS/Android yes
Dimensions (W x H x D) 445 x 98 x 406 mm
Weight 6.1 kg
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