I am in the same catagory as you as I am an old Mc lover. I have always felt,heard and understood them to be the best in audio as quality,durability and value retention. I have come to the conclusion as an owner of a MX132 control pre-amp and two amps a MC352 and a MC7205 5 channel amp. They do hold up their reputation. I would say the MC7205 isn't the build or sonic quality I expected but is still a very good peice and I would trade it for a Byrston,McCormack or Linn but I am hooked on the blue meters. Although I do believe that the 7205 does offer good resilience in dynamic range in that it answers the call when power is demanded.
The MC352 is...well another level entirely. The McIntosh Autoformers add so much to this amp. The MC352 is quieter,cleaner and much more accurate than the 7205. I amd driving old Infinity Kappa Seven's and they have always
left me disatisfied in the mid-range and bass depth. The 352
brought the speakers back to life. The MX132 is a wonderful
pre-amp and fantastic processor. I just traded a McIntosh C39 control pre-amp and a MSD4 processor in they were good but the pure stereo pass on this MX132 is sooo much cleaner.Not to mention the home theatre benifits are outstanding. So to answer your question YES buy McIntosh amplifiers especially with the Autoformers. Their pre-amps are very clean I really think they are most dependable, mostly credited to the elctro-magnetic switching. Best of all I have found that the McIntosh people are so willing to help you with questions and service. I would however stay away form source components such as dvd, cd players etc. Their tuners are awsome though.
The MC352 is...well another level entirely. The McIntosh Autoformers add so much to this amp. The MC352 is quieter,cleaner and much more accurate than the 7205. I amd driving old Infinity Kappa Seven's and they have always
left me disatisfied in the mid-range and bass depth. The 352
brought the speakers back to life. The MX132 is a wonderful
pre-amp and fantastic processor. I just traded a McIntosh C39 control pre-amp and a MSD4 processor in they were good but the pure stereo pass on this MX132 is sooo much cleaner.Not to mention the home theatre benifits are outstanding. So to answer your question YES buy McIntosh amplifiers especially with the Autoformers. Their pre-amps are very clean I really think they are most dependable, mostly credited to the elctro-magnetic switching. Best of all I have found that the McIntosh people are so willing to help you with questions and service. I would however stay away form source components such as dvd, cd players etc. Their tuners are awsome though.