Mac MA 352 vs Pass INT-60

Ive had many Pass products, as well Mac..currently own a int60 and mine doesn't get hot, ever..warm to the tough but hot or room heater never...Pass sounds colored?...that's a new one to me.As far as McIntosh, I wouldn't  touch one now with a 10 foot pole, especially with Bose involved. 

@howardlee I’m jealous of the price you paid for a new INT-60

I’ve been toying with the idea of replacing my McIntosh MA-252 with an INT-60.  I was worried about going down in power as my speakers are power hungry ATC SCM19v2.  It doesn’t seem like this should be something I worry about based on what I'm reading in this thread.

Why I’m reviving this thread is to hear how the soundstage is with the INT-60.  When I "simplified" my system and moved away from some Merrill amps I had and went to the MA-252, the soundstage width definitely shrunk.  Depth seemed to be the same or slightly better but the width came in quite a bit with no other changes to my system.  I’m curious what you are experiencing (or other forum members such as @dwest1023 and others).

@howardlee   You will have many fanboy biases for either brand. IMO you would be better off upgrading to a MAC MA 12000 and not have any concerns regarding power or dynamic headroom.

Interesting to hear from you regarding this older thread.  I actually called Pass at the time to find a dealer (unbelievably,, there was  no one in Houston) and they were very helpful and recommended usatubeaudio.com in, I think, Arizona.  The guy I dealt with was named Paul.  They had  a new unit for about $2K below list, although the catch was you didn't get the 60 day or whatever it was return.  I don't remember the real specifics, but they were good  to deal with.  That amp weighs almost 100 pounds so is a serious item.  The upside is that it is probably the heartbeat of my system.  It is built like a tank, is very neutral with my KEF speakers ( what I wanted), but also closer to a tube sound than most solid state stuff.  I wouldn't call it warm, however.  I had all BAT tube electronics and a 2A3 self-built amp with open baffle speakers in my past life and as much as I miss that stuff  would have to say that this sounds better.  All my other equipment here is solid state.  I like the integrated amp concept and see little reason for separates as good as this thing is. The soundstage and everything else is exceptional.  I would say to make sure your speaker requirement is within the 60 watt range.  My KEF's are 4 ohm and go down near 3 so power not a problem here, but I've been known to crank the INT-60 all the way up, although usually 2/3 or so gets me into the 80-90 dB range.  If that doesn't cut it there is the AMP-250, only about 10 lb heavier.  Some people like the INT-60 a bit better but it's hard to imagine the topology being much different.   I would suggest a call to Pass and seeing what they say.  Good luck to you!!

Interesting to hear from you regarding this older thread.  I actually called Pass at the time to find a dealer (unbelievably,, there was  no one in Houston) and they were very helpful and recommended usatubeaudio.com in, I think, Arizona.  The guy I dealt with was named Paul.  They had  a new unit for about $2K below list, although the catch was you didn't get the 60 day or whatever it was return.  I don't remember the real specifics, but they were good  to deal with.  That amp weighs almost 100 pounds so is a serious item.  The upside is that it is probably the heartbeat of my system.  It is built like a tank, is very neutral with my KEF speakers ( what I wanted), but also closer to a tube sound than most solid state stuff.  I wouldn't call it warm, however.  I had all BAT tube electronics and a 2A3 self-built amp with open baffle speakers in my past life and as much as I miss that stuff  would have to say that this sounds better.  All my other equipment here is solid state.  I like the integrated amp concept and see little reason for separates as good as this thing is. The soundstage and everything else is exceptional.  I would say to make sure your speaker requirement is within the 60 watt range.  My KEF's are 4 ohm and go down near 3 so power not a problem here, but I've been known to crank the INT-60 all the way up, although usually 2/3 or so gets me into the 80-90 dB range.  If that doesn't cut it there is the AMP-250, only about 10 lb heavier.  Some people like the INT-60 a bit better but it's hard to imagine the topology being much different.   I would suggest a call to Pass and seeing what they say.  Good luck to you!!