Mcintosh integrated

I have owned several McIntosh integrated as well as other brands. The last Mcintosh I owned was the MA6500 and I was very impressed with the way it sounded. I would still own it but it was just too large to fit the new location my equipment is now in. I felt is was very forgiving with both source and speakers and had a very smooth tube like sound. I thought only McIntosh with Autoformer outputs had that quality. The 6900 should sound even better. Good luck and I do not think you can go wrong with McIntosh electronics.

i don't think you give anything up

Had the 6300 here for a week. It was startlingly close to my 501/2200 combo.

I listened to both a 6900 and an C220/MC252 combo. Based on what I heard, it did not take long to decide for the latter for only $1200 extra (the separate combo was on sale that day, but I would have probably gone for it anyway).

The C220 tube pre is the best I've heard in that price range (try both the 6900 and the C220 with headphones and a familiar CD and you'll see what I mean).

The MA6900 is a great choice if you need power or need to drive difficult loads such as 2 or 4 Ohm speakers.

The MA6500 is slightly less powerfull but has a greater damping factor and results in tighter sound, but not at all less sweet.

I own the MA6400, an older model, less powerful than the 6500 but built with the same philisophy. I upgraded it to the MA6900 for the lack of power I had.

Probably the MA6500 is the best compromise between sweetness (musicality) and being able to controll speakers tightly. If you would go for maximum musicality, consider the 6900. If you need to drive 12" woofers in a reflex system, the 6500 might be more interesting.