Is McIntosh a stepping stone into HI/FI?

All of the above comments are correct. I would not say that McIntosh products are a stepping stone into audio. Their products are expensive, look great and many people love their sound (and the high resale value). I owned the McIntosh MA6900 Integrated amplifier for a while (and their matching CD player). The problem was I borrowed an Ayre AX-7e Integrated amplifier and felt it sounded much better in my system than the McIntosh did. I sold all the McIntosh equipment and purchased the Ayre CX-7eMP CD Player to match my Ayre amplifier. I am using the Sonus Faber Auditor M speaker. As was stated above, this hobby has people switching gear all the time. People go from McIntosh to other brands and other brands back to McIntosh.

The better question to ask is what combination of audio products sound the best to you in your listening room. If the answer is McIntosh, you have your answer. If it is another brand(like the one mentioned above), that is also okay. This is your decision to make based on your ears listening to your music in your living room. I suggest you select several recordings you like and go listen to the equipment that is within your budget. Of course, the many comments on this web site may help you narrow the list but you still have to decide for your situation. I hope this helps.

I think the new 452 and 601s are quite a big step up from prior versions. And build quality is just unmatched that price.

It may not be everyones choice, but it is great gear and definitely high end. I think even thier entry level stuff is expensive and other than the modular unit, probably prohibitively expensive to use as a strating point, unless you have the means and don't want to start at the beginning.

MAC is good stuff! My dad's MAC system (in my profile but now mostly sold) was damn seductive. Cut through the audiophile BS and made engaging music.

Once we're talking higher end brands, we;re really getting down to preference. Most of us wont see any piece of gears potential in our rooms (me included--I'm only just beginning room treatment voyage).

Replacing gear often has nothing to do with improving things per-se...at a point that everything is sounding great in your system it's time to change stuff because YOU CAN, and you're an audio hobby junkie...I've replaced things merely because of appearance and compulsive curiosity, for which there is no cure (except to replace things). As for McIntosh stuff...its allure is clear to me: it looks cool. I know from experience it sounds cool also, but man...the glass faces and meters! I put my Squeezebox Touch in the "meter needle" setting to emulate the Mc meter's ability to indicate something is alive in there. I think all gear should have meters...even tiny ones on cables (now THAT'S an idea...I'm calling my investment banker..."Garcia Meter Cables" for $4,625 each!).