I was just in a similar situation. I plan on HT in a few years, and for now I thought the 2 channel stereo was fine for me, as I listen to music 95% of the time. I ended up getting a Denon DRA-395 with 80W/channel - plenty of power.
I paid $300 + tax (I was lucky to find it on sale locally.)
It has a phono input (important to me) and a sub-woofer input, nice if you decide you want to add a sub. I just got my M60s last week, and so far I'm thrilled, the system sounds great, no need for a sub-woofer at all. (Maybe I don't know what I'm missing?) I also listen to a wide variety of music, lots of alternative rock, classic jazz, blues, classic rock, blue grass, alternative country. I come home after work every day eager to try out a CD I've thought of at work. I'm got plenty to choose from, as I have over 3,000 CDs and 6,000 LPs. I also wondered if I should get an AV receiver, it's still early, but so far I'm very happy going the two channel route. Now I just need to win the lottery so I can blow big $ on a HT system. Happy hunting.
