New McIntosh MA252

Auditioned the MA252 driving a pair of Harbeth 3.1s (wish they would have set them up with the 3.2s) at Overture in DE and it was delightful. My best description would be that the combination was very musical and got the RP&T near perfect. On complex orchestral music the speakers got a bit congested in the lower-mids (the reason I wish they would have set up with a pair of 3.2s). Next step is find a way to audition at home. At least it is small enough that dragging one home to try won't dislocate a shoulder.

I have been using a Counterpoint SA 3.1 preamp/Adcom GFA-555 power amp combination in my system since the late 80's (!!) and was long overdo for an upgrade. I recently purchased an MA252 and for me, the improvement is a revelation. I can finally understand what reviewers mean when they describe things such as hearing "space around the instruments" and there being a "black background."  This integrated amp is so much more musical than what I've been listening to (or suffering with) for all these years. 

Has anybody compared the 252 to any of the “top dog” solid state integrateds from Mc, such as the MA8900 or 7900 or 8000, etc.? Not features-wise, as I realize the 252 does not have a Dac, HT passthrough, etc., but exclusively sound-wise.

Have had my MA 252 since February (my 50th birthday gift!) As an audiophile with discerning taste I will say that my baby blows most other integrated amps away with its pure clean analogue...to say this little amp with it’s beautiful green glowing tubes is worth every penny and is a beautiful addition to our audio gear is an understatement...nicely paired with Focal 836s, Chord Qutest DAC, Rega p6 with Hana EL cart (using a Rega MC phono but the on board phono stage is terrific....have done some reference testing with MM) and RB 330 arm, Cambridge CXN, lovely Nordost Silver Shadow IC...nice to look at, beautiful sound

Any other folks have updates here? The MA6500 has been a great amp and I’ve no need to move on from it, but that tube glow is calling to me..