AD, you're off to an excellent start on the new setup with the 809, which is overall excellent and would have plenty of power capacity for driving the M80s.
As to the speakers, since your budget is $1500-$2000, you shouldn't start off with a full 5.1 or 7.1 setup. The most essential elements of the HT would be the main speakers and side surrounds. The center speaker(the mains can form a "phantom" center)and sub can be delayed.
To stay within your budget I'd suggest the M80s plus QS8s at this time, which if bought through the Outlet at 10% off would run a little under $2000.
Edit: I'll add a comment, similar to Jason's, that when comparing quality audio components, terms such as "huge", "night-and-day" or "blown away" have no application.
Last edited by JohnK; 12/09/12 04:02 AM.
