McIntosh components have a signature look and a high-quality sound that's prized by audiophiles
the world over. Hi, my name is Eric, I'm a writer here at Crutchfield, and today we're going to
talk about the McIntosh 252 integrated amplifier. McIntosh refers to the 252 as
a Hybrid Drive amplifier. That's because it has a tube preamp stage and a solid-state output stage.
There are four tubes in the preamp stage: two 12AX7a tubes and a couple of 12AT7s as well.
You'll notice that the tubes do light up, and the colors mean something. When the tubes are
functioning perfectly, they're green; if you hit an overdrive where you're in danger of clipping,
they will flash amber. The high-output transistors in the solid-state part of the amplifier help the
tubes warm up quickly, so you don't have to wait before you play your music, and they also produce
a certain amount of heat that's dissipated through the McIntosh monogrammed heat sinks.
These have a very clever design that does incorporate the McIntosh logo, but they also
do a very important job of dissipating that heat that can damage an amp. This is a pretty powerful
amp. It gives you a hundred watts per channel into 8-ohm speakers and 160 watts per channel when you
use 4-ohm speakers. I did get a chance to use them with a pair of 4-ohm tower speakers, and
it performed very well. This is an all-analog amplifier with a fairly simple input stage.
There is a pair of balanced XLR inputs, two pair of unbalanced RCA inputs, and then a dedicated phono
stage for moving-magnet cartridges. It's very important that you know there are no digital
inputs on this amplifier. There's a mono RCA output for connecting to a powered subwoofer,
and you'll also find a power control input and output which allows you to connect to your
other McIntosh components and have them all power up simultaneously when you turn on one.
The simplicity of the 252's design is mirrored on the front panel as well, where there are two
large rotary knobs and a display screen. There's a volume knob and then there's an input selector
knob, and as you choose from your inputs you're going to see that displayed on the screen, which
is very convenient. Naturally, most of the time you're going to want to listen through your
favorite pair of speakers, but if you need to be quiet, maybe you're listening late at night,
there is a built-in headphone amplifier on the 252 that accepts a quarter-inch headphone jack.
There are bass, treble, and balance controls, but those can be bypassed as well.
Like all things McIntosh, the 252 is a statement piece and a conversation starter. It's got a
stainless steel chassis with a mirror-like finish, it's got stainless steel protective cages for the
tubes, and that classic McIntosh blue on the display screen. And of course, the McIntosh logo.
I was fortunate enough to get a chance to assemble a sound system around the 252 with some
Sonus Faber Lumina 3 speakers and a Pro-ject RPM-5 turntable. I was really impressed right away with
the way that the 252's hybrid Drive technology allowed me to get high volume with a lot of warmth.
Since we had the turntable hooked up, I brought in a lot of my favorite albums from home with
the intent of really testing what we could do with the 252. I had classic John Coltrane jazz
albums, I brought in an album by an Icelandic composer so that I could hear some classical
music with the 252, I also had some reggae, I had some hip-hop, I really ran the gamut.
No matter what I threw at the 252, it sounded great. It sounded like it was supposed to, as
the artist intended, and sometimes I could even hear things that I did not hear the first time
I listened to them on my small home speakers. Like I said, McIntosh is known for their sound quality,
and this is just another piece that they've added to their arsenal and it did not disappoint.
If you want to learn more about the 252 or get a little help assembling your own
sound system, don't hesitate to contact us here at Crutchfield. Thanks for watching.