We are in a Golden Age of affordable gear so NO you don’t need to spend big bucks to have great sound...
But we do need to know several things besides budget.What types of music do you listen to mostly,how big is the room and how loud do you listen..What is the rooms acoustic signature,lively/bright(lots of reflective surfaces),highly damped(lots of stuffed furniture,heavy drapes,thick carpet)or something in between?Do you need a Phono stage?Can the speakers be pulled out from walls and boundries or need to be close to walls?Do you want floorstanding towers or stand mount Monitor style speakers
Off the top of my head with no other intel I say a Streaming Based system with an all Tube Control Center/Amplifier like my Quad AV-One and the best speakers you can afford...All in 1 box solutions have surpassed the need for separate preamps and amps with manufacturers like Ayre,McIntosh,Mark Levinson and other heavy hitters supporting the consolidation...
But we do need to know several things besides budget.What types of music do you listen to mostly,how big is the room and how loud do you listen..What is the rooms acoustic signature,lively/bright(lots of reflective surfaces),highly damped(lots of stuffed furniture,heavy drapes,thick carpet)or something in between?Do you need a Phono stage?Can the speakers be pulled out from walls and boundries or need to be close to walls?Do you want floorstanding towers or stand mount Monitor style speakers
Off the top of my head with no other intel I say a Streaming Based system with an all Tube Control Center/Amplifier like my Quad AV-One and the best speakers you can afford...All in 1 box solutions have surpassed the need for separate preamps and amps with manufacturers like Ayre,McIntosh,Mark Levinson and other heavy hitters supporting the consolidation...