Krell 400xi vs NAD M3 vs Music Fidelity A5 vs Naim

I have owned the Plinius 9200, NAD M3, McIntosh MA6900, LSA Signature, Dussun V8i and DK Design MKII. I have auditioned the Krell 400xi and now own the Blue Circle BMPH. The best I've heard has been the Blue Circle, Plinius, and LSA in that order. But, everyone will give you an opinion. You may want a smoother sound with your source and speakers. I would say Blue Circle or Plinius. Both excellent.

You won't know which integrated will provide the sound you want until you have it connected to your NHT's for a week or so. Beyond that, everyone's opinion is not relevant unless they have the same gear you have, with your cables, room and quality of electricity. You're going to have to gamble, try one of the integrateds and if it does not synergize well and make the NHT's sing, you'll have to sell it here and try the next one. If you can audition the integrateds first that's ideal, but I'm sure you're buying used and that's not possible with used gear. It can be a long process finding the right integrated to get the best from a pair of speakers. I previously owned the NAD M3 and was able to audition the Krell integraed in my home with my speakers. I have owned at least 6 high end integrateds and that's my point of reference to your situation. It's hard, but try to be patient. Good luck.

Drobbins, I agree with you on the Krell, it did have an industrial rather mechanical sound in my room, but I will say in fairness that I only had it for a weekend audition so my feelings are skewed by the shortness of time. I'll say that with the right speakers and source (possibly the Krell Standard?) running balanced, it could be a different story with the 400xi. Once again that old synergy and matching issue with speakers and ancillaries can change the whole presentation of an amp, integrated or separate. After all the integrateds I've tried, I eventually learned that I really had a lot to learn. Many of the pieces I've owned or auditioned could have been a completely different experience based on changing out the gear and cabling being run with them. I've coined a new term I like to describe high end gear, "chameleon." Many high end integrateds while having a partcular house sound and sonics can change like a "chameleon" depending on the speakers, cabling, and other ancillaries involved. Often I don't believe I've really known what the gear I've owned was actually capable of because of cabling, speakers and other ancillaries.