Milestone Moment: McIntosh Releases Limited-Edition Grateful Dead 60th Anniversary Wireless Speakers

(March 7, 2025) McIntosh and the Grateful Dead have a long, storied history—one that stretches back to the legendary Wall of Sound in 1974, a groundbreaking live audio experiment that turned up the volume on what was possible in concert sound. Now, to celebrate the Dead’s 60th anniversary, McIntosh is once again bringing high-fidelity audio and psychedelic rock together with a new limited-edition run of the RS150 and RS250 wireless speakers. Whether you're trucking through your favorite live bootlegs or just looking for a reason to keep on groovin', these special-edition speakers build on the 2023 models with fresh Grateful Dead branding while keeping the same high-performance wireless audio experience.

The RS150 Wireless Loudspeaker ($1,500) remains a compact yet powerful bookshelf-style speaker designed for seamless music streaming. It delivers 120 watts of power (90 watts to the woofer, 30 watts to the tweeter), covering a frequency range of 48Hz to 20kHz. The front panel features McIntosh’s classic illuminated logo and digital watt meter, while the new edition includes an exclusive Grateful Dead 60th Anniversary badge. Streaming support includes Spotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, Apple AirPlay 2, Bluetooth 5.0, Google Cast, and Roon Ready functionality.

The RS250 Wireless Speaker System ($3,500) is the larger, more powerful sibling, offering 650 watts of total output across a stereo array consisting of two 4" x 6" woofers, four 2" midranges, and two ¾" tweeters. Frequency response extends from 40Hz to 20kHz, with dedicated inputs for external sources, including turntables (via a built-in phono preamp), optical digital inputs, HDMI ARC for TV connectivity, and a subwoofer output. Like the RS150, the RS250 supports multiple streaming protocols and now features an updated Grateful Dead anniversary emblem.

Both models stay true to McIntosh’s heritage, blending high-performance sound with classic design elements, making them as much a collector’s item as they are functional audio components. The RS150 and RS250 Grateful Dead 60th Anniversary Edition speakers are available now. For more details, visit www.mcintoshlabs.com.

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[Todd Anderson]

I love the look of these speakers. And I really love the LE nature of them. I wish more audio companies orchestrated limited edition runs of equipment, even if it were special runs of color or blinged out gear.

 

[Sonnie Parker]

Not a Deadhead but like the look. Now if they do a set with Pink Floyd... hmmm!

 

[Todd Anderson]

The Dead logos and graphics are sweet!

I wonder what the licensing fees are like?

 

[Sonnie Parker]

All the Dead are dead... so I suppose it's an agent for their family members doing the negotiations?

The last Dead concert I attended was back in the early 90s when I was a ticket scalper and needed to get rid of extra tickets we couldn't sell before the event. I spent about 45 minutes inside before finally leaving. The band took a break, and all the lights came on. Fans were walking around with bongs... it already wreaked of pot like nothing I'd ever smelt, even though, admittedly, I smoked my share of weed back then. The girl sitting next to me said she was traveling to the moon and back and asked me if I wanted to join her on her trip. She was explaining to me what acid did to her. I told Matt (my business partner) it was time for us to go. It was beyond belief what I witnessed. Fans were doing some crazy ballerina-type dancing in the foyers. All of their fans were pretty much drugheads, pot, acid, etc. Their livelihood was selling custom-made jewelry and t-shirts from their mini VW vans. It might be interesting to know how many of them would have been successful enough to afford McIntosh gear.

Of course, I'm sure there are plenty of fans who maybe never even made it to a concert, and the band has sold tens of millions of albums. I suspect many of them can afford McIntosh gear.

 

[ddude003]

Nice kit... Been a McIntosh fan for many years... Because Audioformers...
BTY, I don't think Bob Weir or Phil Lesh are dead yet...
I have a friend that followed the Dead around the USA from the 80's onward, always getting his spot to record Off The Board...

 

[Sonnie Parker]

BTY, I don't think Bob Weir or Phil Lesh are dead yet...

I sit corrected.

 

[Todd Anderson]

I like the Dead… but prefer the Jerry Garcia acoustic albums. “Almost Acoustic” is great one.

Not a pot head, tho! That I can confirm.