OK, I'll weigh in on the source vs. other component question. The entire system makes up the total listening experience from start to finish. The equation works like the weakest link in the chain. Since the speakers are the part that converts the electrical energy into acoustical energy they have, by an enormous margin, the widest possibility of causing problems or making your system great. The speakers must be addressed first in the making of a great system for this reason. Once that is accomplished you should then start to concentrate on the other components and their vastly more minor detrimental effect on your overall system. Your comment about the speakers not being able to reproduce what is missing right from the source is very true in theory but in reality there is just not much missing from the source, especially when compared to what can be missing (or added) by the speakers. We have conducted extensive tests to this end over the years and the answer always comes out the same; get the speakers right first.
