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Craig Chase
Driving can be a taxing experience, with people cutting us off in traffic, round-a-bouts becoming the latest fad, and law enforcement using Scud missiles to make sure we behave (ok, so that’s a bit of an exaggeration). McIntosh’s new MX950 car audio system provides an escape from the aggravations of daily driving, a sonic respite to soothe the savage road-warrior beast. Let’s delve into a system that makes taking our music with us, not just a necessity but an event!
McIntosh MX950 Audio System
- A car stereo that images like a home audio system
- McIntosh Power Guard® prevents clipping
- Excellent sound in all three rows of seats
- Easy smartphone integration with Jeep’s Uconnect®
- 19 speakers and a 17-channel amplifier with 950 watts of power
- Integrated 10-inch subwoofer
- LD/HP speaker design for Low Distortion and High Power
The Year was 1982, and I was just finishing my studies at Penn State. I was also completing four years of selling stereo equipment to help pay my way through those college days. It was time to settle on a career and to say goodbye to the audio world as a profession. The early ’80s saw the downfall of a lot of traditional stereo stores (home theater and the compact disc were still in the future). The store where I worked was closing its location in Erie, Pennsylvania. The country was slowly working its way out of a recession, and after looking at a few other options, I ultimately took a job selling cars at a Ford-Datsun-AMC-Jeep dealership. You read that right: I am old enough to have sold Datsuns before they became Nissan.
My love for audio never diminished. Over the 40 years since my entry into the auto retailing world, I have owned and tested dozens of speakers, amps, and subwoofers. Audio has been a 45-year love affair that shows no sign of ending. Today, I am also the owner of Cunningham Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in the university town of Edinboro, Pennsylvania. It’s a beautiful small town with a nice college campus, a boat-worthy lake, old-fashioned retail stores downtown, and plenty of other activities.
As the owner of the dealership, it is my job to make sure I drive our finest vehicles. Yes, sacrifices must be made. But I don’t just do this for the fun factor or because I’m the owner, it’s my job to become intimately aware of the cutting-edge features any new car model we sell has. We must know what we are talking about when interacting with customers. Most are well informed before they even set foot in a dealership and can tell right away if you don’t fully understand what you are trying to explain to them. The latest of these vehicles includes the all-new, full-size Jeep Wagoneer / Grand Wagoneer. It would be an understatement to tell you that these are great vehicles. They are quiet, capable and a wonderful place to spend some time while traveling. The new Wagoneer also makes available an impressive audio system from an All-American name that is as steeped in tradition as is Jeep: McIntosh Labs of Binghamton, New York.
The McIntosh MX950 system is the result of a collaboration between Jeep and McIntosh. It was developed for both the new Grand Cherokee L and the new Wagoneer (The Grand Wagoneer gets an even more impressive MX1375 system). In most cases, it’s a part of a larger luxury package. The MX950 system consists of 19 speakers and a 17-channel amplifier that delivers 950 watts of total power. The engineers took great strides to ensure a quality listening experience for each passenger. Included with the system is a subwoofer mounted in the rear of the vehicle.
McIntosh and Jeep took no shortcuts in their approach to this new system, and for the entry price, I believe it represents one of the best values in car audio history. As a bonus, it even includes a feature that allows one to get the full McIntosh experience with the 10.1-inch screen presenting the world-famous McIntosh Blue Meters. They work just as any McIntosh power amp would and show off an even higher level of luxury. The only caveat is one must be careful not to be staring at the needles while driving. Safety First!
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A recent road trip of about five hours each way allowed me to experience the McIntosh system the same way one would use a home audio listening session. I downloaded about 20 hours of music onto my smartphone, and the Wagoneer has a nifty charging plate onto which one can place the smartphone and never worry about the battery losing power. The phone and McIntosh system synced up easily, and now it was time to “rock on down the highway.”
“Brothers in Arms” is a long-time favorite rock album, and it opened this road trip. The album opens with “So Far Away,” which features Mark Knopfler’s husky voice and some incredibly well recorded bass drums. The MX-950 immediately separated itself from any other factory-installed sound system I have heard in this respect: one actually gets a proper sound stage such as one would get from a pair of well-positioned loudspeakers in the living room. Knopfler’s vocals are crystal clear, and the bass drum is palpable, both in its depth and power, much like a good pair of tower speakers would present. “Money for Nothing” is an all-time classic rock anthem and based on the thumbs-ups I was getting from the kids on the school bus that was next to me on I-90 outside Buffalo New York while I was air drumming along with this track, it’s safe to say the performance was outstanding. (Editor: Eyes on the road Craig, eyes on the road.)
Uriah Heep is not a name not known to many, but in the 1970s, they had a solid run of albums. Rolling Stone magazine once said that Uriah Heep combined the best heavy metal with the vocal harmonies of The Beach Boys. This live album is a treasure of David Byron’s unique voice, fantastic guitar work, and solid drums with a sound mix to rival anything from the likes of Supertramp or Pink Floyd. It’s over 70 minutes of pure rock history, with songs like “July Morning,” “Gypsy,” “Look at Yourself” and “Circle of Hands” making it impossible not to play air something in your vehicle.
Through all this, the McIntosh system rocked the house with some serious gusto. “July Morning” is the first ‘anthem style’ song, lasting 12 minutes, and it’s an inspired piece of work. The only downside is this song was ending while I was waiting my turn in line to cross the Peace Bridge into Canada. Based on the look from the border patrol, I may have almost caused an international incident! Fortunately, the agent did have a sense of humor. With a promise I would never make her hear me sing, she waved me through. Uriah Heep rocked the Wagoneer beyond the US-Canada border to the outskirts of Toronto on the QEW. The encore song is a medley of “Roll Over Beethoven/Blue Suede Shoes” that redefined these two songs. The band is clearly having a great time, and the hard-driving beat is the stuff that puts a smile on one’s face. Next up is one more collection to get me to my destination.
Two Against Nature was just featured in my review of the DALI OBERON 9 tower loudspeakers. It has been a favorite for speaker reviews for over two decades with its distinct vocals and percussion work that often gets down to 20Hz. The MX950 once again made gorgeous music with this disc. The second track is “What a Shame About Me,” and features a synthesized kick drum that has a fundamental in that 20Hz range. The McIntosh system lets one feel the sheer depth and power of this disc on this, and every track. It’s nothing short of remarkable what McIntosh and Jeep have accomplished with this new audio system.
The return trip started with 2 hours and 15 minutes of Led Zeppelin’s 23-song compilation dubbed “Early Days and Latter Days.” We are talking some serious rock history, combined with gratitude that Jeep built so many safety systems into the Wagoneer. Forget texting and driving as a lethal combo, air guitar, and trying to hit Robert Plant’s vocals while driving is the stuff that keeps ambulance-chasing lawyers in wine and brie.
Thanks to all those safety systems, there were no problems in the Wagoneer – special effects were panning across an immense sound stage while Jimmy Page was thrilling with guitar riffs. Special mention for “Whole Lotta Love” is in order. While driving in the center lane on the QEW, the band was bouncing back and forth from the right lane to the left lane. Every 70’s rocker reading this knows this effect in a home stereo – to experience this out-of-the-room performance at 100km/hr (give or take 50km/hr) is more fun than should be legal.
The trip home was finished off with The Who, “Who’s Next” and “Face Dances.” The opening track is “Baba O’Riley (if you think it’s Teenage Wasteland, go buy a Taylor Swift CD as a form of atonement), and it’s more rocking the house – or Interstate 90 going through Buffalo. Having an almost limitless amount of wonderful music with no commercial interruptions and pristine sound made this five-hour return trip fun in a way I have never enjoyed on previous trips. Roger Daltrey’s vocals are raw and palpable, Pete Townsend’s guitar work is delivered with authority, and one gets to experience Keith Moon’s drums in all his glory while appreciating Kenny Jones for his talents on “Face Dances” when he became the drummer after Moon’s untimely death.
For just $5995 extra, you can get the MX950 audio system in your Jeep Wagoneer and equal the sound of an $80,000 home system. How does it get better than that?
- Easy to sync a smartphone with the MX950
- A truly high-end audio system in an SUV
- The McIntosh blue meters
- One fantastic subwoofer
- 13 times it says McIntosh inside a Jeep
- Two of my favorite hobbies in one vehicle
- An MX2000 system for the Dodge Hellcat vehicles
- The look on an Escalade owner’s face when he hears this system
McIntosh and Jeep have put together an audio system that is entertaining for all types of music and rivals many high-end stereo systems that one might find in one’s home. Taking a road trip no longer means that mediocre music reproduction is something one must suffer for the sake of getting to their destination.
As for the pricing, I think McIntosh and Jeep have knocked it out of the park. Let us look at this in terms of value. A really good McIntosh system can easily set one back over $80,000 for one’s home. In the case of the Wagoneer, it currently sells for about $77,800.
I look at it this way: One can buy the McIntosh MX950 Entertainment System for $77,800 and get the Wagoneer for free. THAT is one incredible value! On a more serious note, the system is part of a $5995 package on the Wagoneer. This package includes:
- McIntosh® MX950 Entertainment Sys with 19 Speakers
- 22″ Polished Aluminum Wheels w/ Black Noise Pockets
- 285/45R22XL BSW All-Season Tires
- Adjustable Roof-Rail Crossbars
- Foldable Cargo Shade
- Luxury Front and Rear Floor Mats
- Power Deployable Running Boards
- Reversible Cargo Mat
- Tri-Pane Panoramic Sunroof
When one considers the power running boards are usually about a $1500 option, the 22-inch wheels a $1200 option and the sunroof about a $2000 option (totaling $4700), the MX950 in this package for under $6000 is a bargain. I wish that everyone could experience audio of this quality at some point in their driving lives. The McIntosh MX950 car audio system is the finest OEM audio system I have ever had the pleasure of hearing. Highly recommended.