McIntosh MC-252 or MC-275 amp

I've not heard the MC-252. But the MC-275 MK V is one of my favs. Great amp for the money... a can't miss amp IME.

I have not heard the Cremonas, however, the center I'm using is a Cremona. There is no matching Amati center available. Before I bought the Amati's, I've owned a lot, and I mean a lot of speakers. The last ones being a pair of the new B&W 803Diamond 2's. At the time, I really liked the B&W's. I love the Amati's. Everything sound natural and "right". It took a long journey getting there.

I tried these two amps in the same system, but with my B&W 804S...significantly less a speaker than your SF. Anyway, both sounded great, but I opted for the 275. Later rolled some tubes and it got even better.

My speakers are smaller and 91 dB. Not sure about yours. Maybe your best bet is indeed Audio Classics.

BTW, I'm considering a SF Cremona M to replace my B&W. Have you tried those with your 252?

I agree with Donjr. Kevin at Audio Classics is a first class guy and really knows his stuff.

While the Integra seems like a top-flight pre-pro, I was very happy to separate out my 2-channel chain from my HT signal chain in my combo 2-channel/Home Theater system. YMMV, but I think a dedicated stereo preamp, and here I prefer tube-based units, would offer a bigger sonic step up for 2-channel sources than an amp change. That said, the 275 anniversary edition is quite an amp.

More thoughts to chat with someone at AudioClassics about.

If you don't get an answer on this contact Audio Classics and ask one of those guys. They will give you an honest answer without trying to make a sale. If you're not familiar with them, they are McIntosh heaven and move a ton of used and new Mac gear, mostly to Japan.