I bought the NHT 3's and tried them out. It definitely wins in the mid-range...it is a 3-way design after all. I also found the bass to be more controlled than the Energy C3's I have. Despite this, I liked the sound of the tweeter and the overall room filling sound of the C3's. So.....I'm bringing the NHT back and will order the Veritas 2.2i.
As for the receivers, I opted to hold onto my Pioneer 1015TX for another 12-18 months and will get an amp instead, most likely a Rotel or Parasound.