Impressions: $1k-$2k integrated amps

I have always leaned towards the simplicity of integrateds but I tried separates. Hey, I have the Anthem I225 and like it. I did tweak it with a HiFi Supreme fuse that helped a ton,  and it came with aftermarket Mundorf caps rather than the standard ones. It seems to do everything pretty well throughout the frequencies top to bottom.  I also had the Yamaha AS 2000. It was more refined than the Anthem but was more polite and less visceral.  It's impossible to compare because I've changed speakers and sources. I will say that I have spent more time with the Anthem because I spent so much money over the years that I have to stick with the gear I have now as I approach retirement in a few years.  (Do not make the same mistake-be smart with your purchases and get off the merry go round if you are on it - unless you have money to burn) I'm going off topic now.  What I have learned in the past 17 years is that the quality of your electricity, and the matching of your system (or mistakes made in matching and pairing your system) can change your opinion about many of the audio pieces you own. Paired with the right speakers and sources, many of the integrateds that I bought and sold would I'm sure have never left my hands. Being smart in matching your amp (integrated or  not), speakers, and source will make or break your system, and can make you fall in love or dislike your integrated or any other piece of gear.  Example: I used to own the very beautiful all aluminum in silver (stunning) Blue Circle BMPH integrated. To this day, I still have loving memories of lust about the beauty (looks) of that integrated amp. And I know it was an excellently built and engineered piece of gear with loads of potential. But I was impatient (foolish) and sold it here because I was dissatisfied with what was coming out of my speakers when I listened to music. The problem was, I had it paired with the wrong speakers. With the right speakers, it would have been a different story. Changing integrated amps is so much easier than changing speakers. (man did I learn to hate shipping speakers on pallets and having big trucks at my house!)  But here's the rub, (and what I learned over the years).  Listen to, find, and buy the speakers with the sound you love, then find the amp that makes the speakers sing. This is amp speaker matching 101, and your key to satisfying sound.