Mcintosh Quality after buyout by D&M holdings

I have owned a few Mc amps and more recently I had a MC352 that was a product of McIntosh when Clarion owned them, then traded in for a MC402 which came out of the D&M era. The 402 is a much better amp in all areas of sound reproduction. As mentioned above they are now owned by the same company that owns Audio Research, Sonus Faber to name a few, so I expect only better will come out of Binghamton in the coming years.
It seems that no matter who owns them that the engineers at McIntosh are allowed to produce the best product they are capable of designing. As far as what will drive the C1's best, your ears and budget will be the deciding factors.

Matt4551,
As one who has owned the Pass X250.5 as well as the MC 402, and 3 other Mac amps, I would strongly advise you to hear both in your system before purchase. The Pass was thin and electronic sounding in comparison to the Mac 402. Of course, that is to my ears and my taste, but the difference was plain enough to advise caution. Both companies offer great customer service though.

First of all, I really appreciate everyone's input. This was my first post on here and it has been very helpful. I would love to audition each amp but I cannot afford a new Mac amp and I don't have a Pass dealer close to me. At this point I was leaning towards the Pass x250 for the price. I am looking for something around 2-3k and a decent MC402 is at least 4k. I'm currently using the MC150 and it seems somewhat flat and was hoping that was because of the cables. Right now I'm just using generic 12 gauge wire. I am about to purchase some Transparent speaker wire.

My main question for someone that has owned the C1's and hopefully paired them with a mac amp. Should the MC150 be enough to properly power them? I hear so much about the C1's being power hungry and I feel like the 150wpc isn't enough. If it is enough than I know to look somewhere else for the problem whether it be cables, placement, source audio.

In your price range, look for a used MC252, it will be closer to 3k but it will mate very well with your C50 and be more than enough to drive your Dynaudio Signature C1's.

I have had the C1s with a Mac 352 and C2300 for about two years and am In heaven. These are the original C1s not the series 2 and do need power. The 352 is a great amp and great bargain. Talk to Mike at Audio Classics