New Amp = New Speakers (Again)

I recently purchased a set of Focal 1028 BEII's from Music Direct to match with my BAT VK3000-SE.

I thought this pairing was excellent. The somewhat laid-back performance of the BAT suited these speakers perfectly. Things were going well in audio-city...

Then, I see the MA252 integrated amp from McIntosh online on a Friday afternoon. I just had to have this piece in my living room ASAP, and it was there by noon Saturday.

The thing I really didn't consider was the matchup with the Focals; on a acoustic performance I was still impressed, but I heard some true nail-to-chalkboard unpleasantry from virtually any songs that featured electric guitar with pace (classic rock), which is where I basically live.

I tried the McIntosh XR50. I thought it was astonishing because they truly delivered some deep bass with a tiny footprint. However, the 100w of the MA252 would not suffice. I was getting the clipping warning lights on any bass-heavy songs at moderately-high volumes.

I was beginning to lose hope of finding a speaker that would mate well with the MA252 for my purposes.

Then...Music Direct suggested the JBL line. I had actually looked into these before buying the Focals. Loved the retro looks.

I can say that the MA252/4429 combo is the finest amp/speaker combination I've EVER had. The speakers do everything (that I care about) well. Bass is profound-enough; I would never need a subwoofer. Mids and treble are entirely enjoyable and palatable (on DAY ONE), and these speakers disappear and hologram like no others I've had at any size, or any price point.

For classic rock, these speakers are absolutely wonderful.

Other components:

Lector CDP-7T

Audioquest Cables