My father was a big music lover and one of the things he always wanted was a good stereo. All my mother cared about was that the stereo matched her Danish Modern Living Room set (The P-Man would have flipped over this furniture). So in order to maintain marital harmony Dad settled for Webcor stereo console the sounded like crap but match the rest of the furniture perfectly. Although I got my love of music from him we never got to share this passion or chat about gear (he was an EE as well), as he passed away when I was just 13 years old.
For many years I have said that when my mother passed away, if her medical bills did not leave here broke, I was going to take some of his money and buy something in remembrance of him (Dad was a big saver and although he was very young when he passed he did leave my mother in good shape financially).
As you guys know, my Mom passed last spring and now that things are settled I have kept the promise I made to myself many years ago and I purchased a McIntosh MC 275 Series VI tube amp. Now I know that being the saver that he was my father never would have sprung for a McIntosh, as a matter of fact he wanted to design and build his own amp from scratch, but Mom was not entertaining the thought of having any of those ugly electronics in her Living Room. But back in those days, McIntosh was the gear to have and if he couldn't live the dream himself, I am going to do it for him.
And, sorry, but in spite of what my mother said, that amp is anything but ugly. :drool
The amp arrived earlier this week and things have been rather busy around here, so I haven't had a chance to put more than 3 or 4 hours on it, but so far it sounds outstanding. I will post more thought once it has had the chance to break in and get settled.
This is not a logical purchase, but rather an emotional one. I am quite happy with the way my system sounds now and really didn't feel the need to upgrade anything (don't let my wife hear that, she'll rush me to the doctor thinking I am sick). It is just a way for me to (at least in my mind) spend some quality time with my father doing something I know we both would have loved doing, but I was just too young to understand or appreciate while he was still alive.
Here's to you Dad.