John, I certainly need major upgrades in the entire system, but my receiver is probably the weak link, old and underpowered. The speakers aren't too bad, JBL HLS 820s from about 3 years ago. They just aren't getting anywhere near the power they're designed for. I believe I can survive without the speakers for a couple of months (my old receiver probably wouldn't drive the M80s anyways).
As far as the receiver is concerned, I'm pretty set on seperates and I'm real partial to the Anthem stuff. I'd love to buy the AVM 20 at the same time, but it's not in the cards right now. That's why the NAD seems to be a great option, it is one of the cheapest processors available for HT (just happens it has amplification too). If they made a product without the amps...that'd be the handsdown winner. But they don't...so I don't really see it as 'wasting the amp' on the receiver. I just need a really cheap/effective pro option.
