Tube or SS

In the spirit of my aim to simplify and de-clutter that wouldn't work as the Cambridge Edge NQ has a pre which is why I matched it to the MC275, my thought is to go SS with another amp or stay with the tubes.

Why not go with tube preamp and SS amp?

Best of both worlds...

+1  to  Rogue audio cronus magnum ii (used) or new III.

I fitted Telefuken ax7 and amperex au7 in  Magnum ii.

It sounds excellent.

Thomas

not a fan of that mac 275 amp- at all.
i had harbeth c7es3 for years using a rogue audio cronus magnum ii tube integrated amp, the new iii is even better. this is a magical amp speaker match as shared by many who have tried to beat it.
seriously good.

Hello xiang!  You have heard about the new Class D modules NAD is using, yes?  Right now, Starke Sound is selling their rival AD4.320 power amp (4 channels at over 200 Watts each, can be "bridged" to give you a stereo amp with over 400 wpc into 4 ohms, over 600 wpc into 2 ohms) on a Black Friday price of $839. I got mine today and it's as good as the Danish modules NAD is using from Purifi Audio. I have two of their EVAL 1 kits and they are spectacular. So is the Starke amp. Give it a look. It's as good as anything you have heard to date, regardless of price.

That is entirely up to you.

If you decide to stay with Harbeths - get yourself a powerful SS. Thats when the magic starts.....listen to Alan - he knows his stuff. I drive my 40.2 with two 400W simaudio mono blocks.....If you want something nice get a Hegel H190/H390/H590 (finances dependent) - Alan used H390 to voice the Anniversary and XD line...

Here is my analogy of using tubes with Harbeths - you buy yourself BMW M8 with 4.4-liter BMW M TwinPower Turbo V-8 with 600 HP and you decide to put 87 Octane gasoline when the designer C L E A R L Y specifies in the manual to put at least 93 Octane.

All your friends are wowed by $140K sport tuned car waiting to see what it can really do on the road - instead, you tell everybody that you like the romantic lack of engine power when cheapest gasoline is used.....

Yes, you will be able to drive that car in the city traffic with 25MPH speed limit and if that is all the driving you do - fine, but why the hell did you buy the sport car? 

One day you decide to go and do some highway driving - car has absolutely no power and engine light turns itself on.....now you confused! Upon return home, you email BMW with questions regarding your machine's lack of power.
 Meanwhile, you go on several car forums complaining that the specification says 600HP so why there is no passing power.......Several technicians from BMW calls you to explain the reason of your frustration but you are telling them that the car just drive better on 87 Octanes fuel......After several months of your persistence, you decided to sell the car (loosing at least 60-70% of the purchasing price).

Anytime somebody mention BMW, you look the other way expressing your negative opinion and disappointment on multiple car forums....

I have seen MANY scenarios like that especially with HL5s and 40s.....severely underpowered amplification was used and users left disappointed and unhappy. I will not even discuss the room acoustics and other important factors.....

The 275 is powerful enough for any harbeth..... 
I simplified myself getting rid of monoblocks pre seperate phono and got a SS luxman 550ax2 which is class A.

A bit of that magic middle that tubes always gave..... 

Yes,
Side by side comparison before you pull the trigger. It would be great to know how the 275s held up.

I swore I wouldn't go back to tubes, but just ordered a Muzishare X7 from amazon for $1300. This one has a great review on Youtube from Zero Fidelity. Also well reviewed is the Willsonton amp and the Musical Paradise amps. All of these putting out 45-55 watts tube power.
I just can' pass on the seductive richness and vivid sound of tubes. 

without any doubt, id say keep the tubes

I've got an MC225,240,and 275, all lined up. They look pretty cool..
They are all visually sweet as could be. 8.8-9.8. I have an MC275 GG CE also...Different as could be the two models. Sonicaly they are Macs..

275 is a powerful amp.... Push some very hard load. Get hot but chugs right along.... YEARS..... 1962 or 4. I like them coupled with a Mac. C20 all fixed up.. Newer C25-2700. wonderful units. they just work better.

Regard..

I'll take your 275 when you're done with it.

Of course, but before I do that I wonder what other members views are and maybe if any have had a similar situation

It’s a no brainer for me if I am getting the opportunity to audition a gear in my home at no obligation. 

What do you have to loose if dealer is willing to refund your money? It’s your system, your room and your ears that are the only and most important factors in determining if Edge W amp stays or goes back.