@gnoworyta I'm nowhere near an expert at this type of thing as well or in the different classes of amplifiers but I do own the M1200 and EXTREMELY pleased with the SQ and price performance
In the reviews I read prior to purchase the references to the power rating reveled not in how loud the amplifier could play, but the ability to create a larger and deeper sound stage with headroom remaining to deliver the sonic peaks with equal performance
Rest assured the M1200 delivers as advertised, IMO
I've paired the M1200 with speakers rated at 900 watts and have little concern about over powering or damaging them
The symmetry between the M1200 and the speakers is a thing of beauty, again IMO
It's two channel with no subs and do not feel I'm lacking in bass performance. Though truth be told that's one of the areas that you don't know what you're missing until you've heard it, sort of things. I'm not ambitious enough to go through the brain damage or cost get my room equipped for 3 or 4 subs to do it justice
Relative to volume, on a scale of 1-100, I typically begin playback at 35, the sweet spot for most recordings is 45-50, hi-res formats come alive between 50-65, and rarely if ever have turned the volume up past 65
I begin to get wide eyes and big smiles from guests around 45-50 and reactions of WOW in the 50-55 range
Here's a review from TAS that sums it up more technically than I ever could and if I'm not mistaken in 2021, the M1200 was also on the editors choice products of the year list in TAS as well