Which integrated amp for rock/metal (and why McIntosh?)


Dear all,

I recently obtained new speakers (Fyne Audio F704) and I have the idea (my wife says it too) that my NAD M32 doesn’t seem powerful enough to push music through our living room. On the Totem Winds I had before, it was less of a problem, the F704’s are really massive. I mainly listen to rock / metal, my wife likes to add some EDM/EBM (dance) in between. I’m also running a REL Carbon Special so the low is covered well :)

Which integrated amp should I look for (probably opening Pandora’s Box here) to enjoy rock/metal? The few hints I found online, were Krell and McIntosh. I’m wondering if it’s because of the "rock ’n roll name" (Krell) or the rugged look (McIntosh). I could for example get a MA9000 (300w, Class AB integrated amp) - would that be a good choice? Is it worthwhile to move from a Class D amp to AB?

Looking forward to read your input.
128x128koenvingerhoets
From what I hear (I have not heard them yet myself) the Fyne speakers are more forward and can benefit from warmer, smoother amplification.  

That being said, those speakers are efficient with a 96dB sensitivity.  You should not need a lot of power to drive them.  I wonder if they have some wonkiness with the impedance curve that is making them difficult to drive.  Realistically 20w of power should be able to make them unpleasantly loud, 180w should deliver 115dB in volume.  

This may be an amp matching issue and you might need to look for a warmer, richer sounding amp.  

I would look at 3 solid state brands.  Naim, Pass and AVM for solid state.  They are lovely, warm, rich sounding amps and ought to work well with the Fyne speakers.  I would also consider looking at tube amplification.  It can add more richness and dimensionality to the sound.  
i have a mcintosh amp in my 2 chanell setup. what i like about mcintosh is it's power guard! i like my rock music loud and i don't have to worry about distorsion!!

I also have McIntosh receiver. At 200 watts it is plenty to play rock music very well. 
And, I, too, got it down to Krell or McIntosh. To me, the McIntosh sounded more natural with a fuller sound. The Krell was a little too thin and analytical. 
Thank you for your feedback already. While I set out to see if the MA9000 would be a good match, the last 6 hours I got very interested in the Hegel H590 (power & connectivity), the Gryphon Diablo 300 (mentioned as the best amplifier ever).
Thank you for the feedback @jjss49 and @verdantaudio for the references, thx @kenrus and @g_nakamoto for vouching for the MA9000.