Hey strube, why are you looking for a new amp? Are you thinking that your current model can't power your speakers in your room well enough?
if it's for new codecs, you could get an entry/mid level receiver, and use that as a pre/pro to your beefy rotel.
savings might be better spent on room treatments. after all, it IS a dedicated room, and you don't have any yet? or do you . . .
just throwing out my present thoughts that just hit me.
now, if you were PD, or someone else, I just get out of the way, and let them help our economy out. But I remember even when you were eyeing an $80 remote, you were trying to wait until the next month to pay off bills or something. just want to make sure, help you out define where money is best spent.
good luck!
Your concern is certainly reasonable.
The amp is a combination of celebration, and sort of the first piece to a new setup in a new place, actually. My lady friend just got a great job offer, which is amazing in its own right for these tough times, and I *should* have my own offer within the week. We will probably be moving to the desert, so I sold my snowmobile for not much less than I bought it for, and we are saving 1/2 of that and spending the other
.
It may be a little silly to start with the amp (especially since it is extreme overkill for my current speakers - my current AVR doe just fine), but it seemed to fit the bill when my fiancee came to me and said, "You really want to buy something don't you, since you had to sell your other toy? Well I think it would be okay as long as you buy something (within reason) that isn't going to be a nightmare to move and doesn't have the possibility of being obsolete in a year."
I didn't want to do room treatments to the HT because we will be moving in a matter of months, and the house that I am renting will be passed on to my sister and cousin, as will the HT room, though they will not have as nice of gear in it
. It has not been determined whether the PJ and screen will stay or leave, we will have to work that out soon. I had thought about doing speakers first, but I decided I would rather move 1 75lb amp than 3 100+lb speakers, and I wanted an amp that would be perfectly capable with most any speaker system. The next model year of AVRs will be out for pre/pro purposes by the time we are ready to make the move on that too.
After we move and save for a little while, we will be ready for the next step, whatever that may be. Needless to say, I am so ready to be done with school and moving on to new things.