Decisions, Decisions.... Mcintosh, Devialet and B&W Advice Needed


Hi all,
First time poster here but a long time audio and music lover :-)I wanted to ask for advice from people who have been in similar shoes or been using the same gear that I am.
I have recently made a change to my setup and found myself a little bit "stuck" in terms of what to do next.

Up until 3 weeks ago, my setup for 2-channel listening and 5.1 surround, was:
B&W 802D1 main speakersB&W HTM2D1 centerPre-amp: Marantz 8802A - for home theater useMain amps + DAC: Devialet Expert 400 monoblocks - for stereo listeningSurround amp: Emotiva XPA-3 (Center + 2 surround speakers).

I decided to change direction and switch to Mcintosh and replaced my pre and amps with a brand new MC452 (for the 2 main speakers) and an MX122 processor to control both surround and 2-channel listening. The rest remained the same.

My impressions so far (very short break-in period) are very positive when I watch movies (multi-channel).However, 2-channel listening sounds just OK. It's good but it's nowhere near the sound quality I had with the Devialet. I assume it is mainly due to the superior DAC the Devialet has compared to the MX122, which is understandable as the MX122 is a surround processor-first.

When I listen to music on the Deialet it was almost jaw-dropping. The soundstage was open and accurate but I felt that I wanted more power, this is why I switched to the MC452, hoping it would open up the sound further.Now, with the current setup, the way I hear it, the sound lacks definition, it's not accurate, it's very different.

So, to make along story short, those are my questions:

1. I was thinking of replacing the MC452 with 2x MC601 amps to try and drive the 802's with more power.

2. Adding a c52 pre-amp specifically for 2-channel listening but I have no idea how it compares to the Devialet DAC and what it would sound like.
I will cost me the same to upgrade the amps or get the C52, but I can only afford one of them.

3. If I add a C52 (in addition to the MX122), how do I connect it to the MX122 and configure it to only be used for 2-channels, while also needing to use the two front speakers for multi-channel when watching movies?

Thank you all in advance, really appreciate getting feedback from more experienced people than me on this forum.
Gurt.
killergurt

Unclear to me why you would switch from Devialet to McIntosh, as you clearly have a budget that would allow for a variety of options.

Anyway, my guess is that you're missing all that signal processing that the Devialet was doing, and probably the only way to get it back is to go back to it.  I don't think that throwing more $$ at McIntosh is the solution.

Why not go back to the Devialet 400, or move up to the 800? 

I preferred the Devialet 200 when compared to the McIntosh C52 / MC452 combo., on Wilson Audio Speakers. The TI PCM1792 DAC inside the Devialet is excellent. 
Im not a fan of B&W at all ,the 802D is ok but lacks bass control and a few other issues IMO.I owned the MC402 and 452 ,I would say your going the wrong direction.If staying with B&W I would match with a backline having speed,accuracy,better bass control, ... thats not Mac,again IMO