Rower, talk to A-ball here, whose system thread is 'To see the Music,' he uses that amp among 4 or 5 others with his horns, and loves it. And, he's probably had some of the others you mentioned.
Me, I owned my first Mc piece in 1973 or so, and have had equipment from a variety of different manufacturers, mainly tube gear. As you will see, I have no Mc in my current system, and tend toward the esoteric, so I'm not saying positive things because I currently use their gear.* I would have no concerns about whether it is "high end,' particularly given the flavor of the month approach- witness Halcro, the best amp in the world 5 or so years ago, now dimly viewed. (I'm not dumping on Halcro, just using it as an illustration). They may not be the last word in one or another hi-fi attributes, but that's hardly the test of whether they make music. I do think the amp-speaker relationship is synergistic, though, and you should listen to them in your home for a week or more before you buy. (And yes, in some ways, they do play to that Harley type image of an old line, traditional American brand that has a distinctive 'look,' but when I used to have bikes, I also owned a Harley among some Italian exotica and enjoyed the hell out of it).
And, whoever said resale value is strong is right. They have a loyal following. There's a lot to be said for 'set and forget' rather than tweaking to death.
Good luck.
*My big home theatre electronics are Mc- after years of running ARC tube amps and Meridian processor for a large projection system. Their stuff is pretty bulletproof on that front too.
Me, I owned my first Mc piece in 1973 or so, and have had equipment from a variety of different manufacturers, mainly tube gear. As you will see, I have no Mc in my current system, and tend toward the esoteric, so I'm not saying positive things because I currently use their gear.* I would have no concerns about whether it is "high end,' particularly given the flavor of the month approach- witness Halcro, the best amp in the world 5 or so years ago, now dimly viewed. (I'm not dumping on Halcro, just using it as an illustration). They may not be the last word in one or another hi-fi attributes, but that's hardly the test of whether they make music. I do think the amp-speaker relationship is synergistic, though, and you should listen to them in your home for a week or more before you buy. (And yes, in some ways, they do play to that Harley type image of an old line, traditional American brand that has a distinctive 'look,' but when I used to have bikes, I also owned a Harley among some Italian exotica and enjoyed the hell out of it).
And, whoever said resale value is strong is right. They have a loyal following. There's a lot to be said for 'set and forget' rather than tweaking to death.
Good luck.
*My big home theatre electronics are Mc- after years of running ARC tube amps and Meridian processor for a large projection system. Their stuff is pretty bulletproof on that front too.