McIntosh MT10

McIntosh MT10: used price, price history, and what to check before you buy

By HiFi Registry Staff · Published November 1, 2026

In short: The MT10 is McIntosh's flagship turntable and the first one the company sold: a belt-drive deck with a 12 lb silicone-acrylic platter on a magnetically suspended ceramic bearing, a brushless DC motor with electronic braking, a 9 inch dural-aluminum tonearm, a factory-fitted 0.5 mV low output moving coil and an illuminated blue speed meter on the faceplate. It launched in 2008 at $9,500 and now lists at $14,000 in the US. Dealer-certified used units have sold for roughly $7,000 to $9,000, and private asks run wider. HiFi Registry's recorded sales for this model are in the table further down the page. Prices checked November 1, 2026.

Versions and years

There is one MT10. McIntosh has announced no mechanical revision, and the published specification today matches what the company described at launch: the same platter, bearing, motor, arm and 0.5 mV ebony-bodied moving coil. What has changed is the price.

McIntosh showed the deck at CEDIA in September 2007 and launched it at its February 2008 open house as the company's first turntable. SoundStage! Ultra reported that the design is largely sourced from Clearaudio, based on one of that company's magnetic-bearing decks, and that the cartridge is a selected, rebadged version of Clearaudio's Talismann V2. McIntosh's page names neither a supplier nor the cartridge; dealers list it as the MCC10. We found no evidence of a cartridge change over the run, unlike the MT5, whose Sumiko cartridge has changed.

The MT5 uses the same magnetic-suspension ceramic bearing and silicone-acrylic platter in a lighter 31.5 lb chassis, with a Sumiko moving magnet cartridge, no meter and a dust cover, at $8,500. The MT2 is the entry deck with a black POM platter and 33 and 45 only.

Specs that matter

• Belt drive from a Swiss-made brushless DC motor with electronic speed control and a braking feature. 33 1/3, 45 and 78 rpm, each with fine speed adjustment through a small panel on the rear
• Speed meter: a single illuminated blue meter on the faceplate reads platter speed. Launch coverage described speed sensing from 1,595 strobe markings per platter revolution
• Platter: 2 1/2 inch thick, 12 lb CNC-machined silicone-acrylic platter, lit from beneath
• Main bearing: magnetically suspended ceramic bearing. Magnets carry the platter's weight so the ceramic shaft runs with minimal contact. The owner oils the bearing at setup
• Tonearm: 9 inch dural-aluminum tube, gimbaled in two horizontal sapphire and two vertical ceramic bearings, eccentric counterweight. VTA, anti-skate and azimuth adjustable. Dealers quote a 239 mm effective length
• Cartridge: McIntosh MCC10 low output moving coil, ebony body, elliptical diamond on an aluminum cantilever. 0.5 mV at 5 cm/s, 400 to 500 ohm recommended load, 20 Hz to 50 kHz, compliance 6 x 10-6 cm/dyne, 2.4 g tracking force, 11 g mass. SoundStage! Ultra quoted a $900 replacement at the time of its review
• Tracking force, anti-skate, cartridge position and arm height preset at the factory
• One pair of unbalanced outputs, one Power Control input and one output. External power supply
• Rated signal-to-noise 41 to 44 dB, wow and flutter 0.10 to 0.15 percent
• 17 1/2 x 8 13/16 x 21 inches. 42 lb, 63 lb shipping
• Dust cover: not included per McIntosh's specification. A fitted cover exists and has turned up with used units; one dealer valued it at $385 and another said replacements are available through McIntosh
• US list: $14,000 at authorized dealers (November 2026)
• Warranty: 3 years, limited to the original owner, void on units bought from anyone other than an authorized McIntosh dealer. The warranty text does not mention cartridges or styli

Used prices

HiFi Registry's recorded sales for the MT10 are in the table below this guide. What the wider market shows, as of this writing:

• Dealer-certified pre-owned: The Music Room has sold a one-owner MT10 without a cartridge at $6,999, a unit with the McIntosh cartridge and a dust cover at $7,999, and a sealed, under one year old unit at $8,999, the latter two against a stated $12,000 MSRP. Cosmetic ratings were 8 of 10 or better. A 5 year old, one-owner unit with full accessories passed through the same dealer without a retained price.
• Open market: US asks in 2025 and 2026 have ranged from $5,001 on Audiogon to $9,500 and $10,500 on US Audio Mart, with a 2019 unit refitted with an Ortofon Bronze at $9,499 and a new-in-box example at $15,995 on Reverb. HifiShark's median for 2026 listings across all markets was about 9,150 euros.
• Refitted units: Some used MT10s arrive with a different cartridge or none at all; the Aural HiFi unit carried an Ortofon Bronze and one Music Room unit had no cartridge. A deck sold bare should be priced a cartridge below a complete one.

Put together, a clean MT10 has been trading at roughly 50 to 65 percent of the current $14,000 list through dealers, with private asks anywhere from a third to three quarters of list. That is in line with the MT5 and softer than McIntosh amplifiers: the cartridge is a consumable, the deck weighs 63 lb packed, and buyers discount both. The range rests on a handful of dealer sales plus asking prices, so lean on recorded sales where you can.

What to check before buying

1. Which cartridge is fitted, and how many hours. The MCC10 is a low output moving coil, so a worn stylus means a retip or a new cartridge, not a stylus swap; the factory replacement was quoted at $900. If the seller cannot give hours, price in a cartridge. Confirm your phono stage has a moving coil input with 400 to 500 ohm loading. The MT5's cartridges run into a moving magnet input; the MT10's does not.
2. Platter bearing and suspension. With the belt off, the 12 lb platter should float on its magnets and spin silently. Grinding, a platter that sits low, or wobble points to a dry or damaged ceramic shaft. Ask whether the bearing was oiled at setup.
3. Speed and the meter. Watch the meter settle at 33 1/3 and 45 and ask whether speed has been checked with a strobe or an app. Trim pots on the rear correct small drift; drift that will not trim out, or a meter that hunts, is a motor or sensor fault. SoundStage! Ultra's sample needed a speed adjustment out of the box.
4. Belt. Cheap and easy, but a glazed or stretched belt causes the speed instability buyers blame on the motor. Treat it as a replace-on-arrival item.
5. Tonearm bearings and height. Floating at zero tracking force, the arm should drift freely in both planes. Stiction in the sapphire and ceramic bearings is a trip back to McIntosh. Check the arm is parallel to the platter; the SoundStage! Ultra sample needed about 1/8 inch of correction at the setscrews.
6. Dust cover and finish. No cover ships with the deck, so a used one with a cover is a plus; one dealer valued it at $385. Covers crack at the corners, as a 2019 unit sold through Aural HiFi showed. The mirror-finish stainless chassis shows scratches under direct light, so ask for photos lit from the side.
7. Accessories. Record clamp, mat, counterweight, anti-skate weight, stylus force gauge, level, bearing oil, protractor, arm height gauge, tools, power supply and the factory carton. Dealers list all of these with complete units.
8. Shipping. The MT10 ships disassembled: platter, belt, counterweight and anti-skate weight off, arm secured, everything in the factory packaging. Packed weight is 63 lb. If the carton is gone, buy local or have a dealer pack it. SkyFi sells its new MT10 stock in store only and will not ship it.
9. Isolation. SoundStage! Ultra found the stock rubber feet limiting on a wood floor and recommended a dedicated base. Plan on a solid stand if the room has a suspended floor.
10. Warranty. A unit under 3 years old from an authorized dealer is covered for the original owner only. It does not transfer, and the warranty is void on units sold by non-authorized dealers regardless of age.

Who it is for, and what else to consider

The MT10 suits a McIntosh owner who wants the turntable that matches the stack, arrives set up, and carries a low output moving coil rather than the moving magnet on the smaller decks. SoundStage! Ultra described a natural, organic presentation with a quiet background, solid bass and a midrange the reviewer called an overachiever for the money, and found the stock deck came close to a $16,000 Clearaudio Innovation Wood with a $4,000 cartridge. The criticisms: not quite plug and play, less air on top than costlier setups, and a meter that is styling rather than a tool.

If you do not need the meter or the moving coil, the MT5 keeps the platter and bearing design at $8,500 and adds a dust cover. The MT2 is the budget route. For the phono stage, the MP100 and the tube MP1100 are the in-house options; a C2700 or C53 preamp has a built-in phono section, so check its moving coil loading against the 400 to 500 ohms the cartridge wants. Outside McIntosh, Clearaudio's own magnetic-bearing decks are the direct comparison given the reported build relationship, and at this used money VPI and Rega trade on sound per dollar rather than styling.

Frequently asked questions

What is a used McIntosh MT10 worth? Dealer-certified units have sold between roughly $7,000 and $9,000, with the lower figure for a unit without a cartridge and the upper for a sealed example. Private asks have ranged from about $5,000 to $10,500. See the recorded sales table for what has actually changed hands on HiFi Registry.

What cartridge comes with the MT10? A factory-fitted McIntosh MCC10, a 0.5 mV low output moving coil with an ebony body and elliptical stylus. SoundStage! Ultra reported it is a selected and rebadged Clearaudio Talismann V2. It needs a moving coil phono input loaded at 400 to 500 ohms.

Is the MT10 a Clearaudio turntable? SoundStage! Ultra reported the MT10 is largely sourced from Clearaudio and based on one of its magnetic-bearing designs. McIntosh does not name a supplier.

When was the MT10 introduced? McIntosh previewed it at CEDIA in September 2007 and launched it in early 2008 at $9,500. It was the company's first turntable.

Does the MT10 come with a dust cover? No. McIntosh's specification lists no dust cover. A fitted cover has been supplied with some units and dealers report replacements are available through McIntosh.

Does the MT10 play 78s? Yes. It runs at 33 1/3, 45 and 78 rpm, each with fine speed adjustment, and the meter displays all three.

Does the McIntosh warranty transfer to a second owner? No. The 3 year warranty is limited to the original owner and applies only to units bought from an authorized McIntosh dealer.

Is the MT10 still made? Yes. It has been in production since 2008 and lists at $14,000 in the US as of November 2026.

Related

• A Buyer's Guide to McIntosh
• McIntosh comps: MT5, MT2, MP100, MP1100, C2700
• Live McIntosh listings on HiFi Registry
• Sell your MT10 on HiFi Registry, $25 flat, no commission

Written by HiFi Registry Staff. Not a review: HiFi Registry has not owned or auditioned this unit unless the text says so. Price ranges describe open-market sales and dealer asking prices observed on the review date and are not offers to buy or sell. How we research these guides