Percentage to spend on Amp and Speakers

Using list prices I have what amounts to a $1500 system for the most part, so spending the same amount for each component worked for me. Rotel RCD-990 Cd Player ($1500); B&W P5 Speakers ($1500); Conrad Johnson MF2100 Amp ($1500); REL Storm III Subwoofer ($2000 in cherry, but $1500 cherry Stratus III wound be a perfect match); Conrad Johnson Motif MC-8 Preamp. (Was $2250, but the $1500 PF-2 wound great). I probably have about $1500 in cables and interconnects. The only things I did not spend $1500 on was the Tuner (Onkyo Integra) or Turntable (Rotel RP855 w/Sumiko Blue Point). My secondary system in my den/office is a $500 each system except the speakers (B&W CDM-1) Happy Shopping.

I could easily double the cost of the speaker to say the Nautilus 804's $3500 and the other components would still be fine, so the person who said spend more on speakers is a good recommendation.

I would recommend spending a good bulk of your budget on the source (as recommended earlier). My rule of thumb is garbage in, garbage out. No matter how great your speakers and electronics are, if you are feeding them with bad signal, that's what you'll end up getting. I would say spend about 40% on the front end, 30% on electronics, 25% on speakers and the rest could go to cables.

I know this may be unorthodox, but when I buy products, it is for the long haul. I buy the best piece I can afford. It also requires I fall in love with it. But, my ultimate goal is to build a long term system. I don't want to build a $3500 system, then go to work next on building a $7500 system, then... All the while keeping in mind my own tastes. Matching components synergistically to those tastes, as I believe synergy is far more important than individual components or money spent. Sure, in the beginning, the great piece will stick out. And at the end, the lower priced one will. But, as I am not blessed with the funds of some of the more lucky people here, I feel this will get me to my ultimate destination with as little wasted money as possible. Like I said, it may be unorthodox. Call me crazy, but there are always more than one path to a goal. This happens to be the one I have chosen. Good luck!

Regardless of the budget set aside for one component or the other, if in the end they don't work at least reasonably well together the money wasn't spent proportionately. Don't let the money burn a hole in your pocket. Take time to audition enough equipment to develop some sense of the level of quality you want out of a system, then compare that to what you can afford to spend. Trelja speaks wisely. There are no absolutes except that system synergy is paramount and falling in love, true love, takes time. Finding pieces you love that work together takes even more time, but it's worth it. Now, to answer the question more directly, in my case (using retail prices as some components were purchased used) the ratio was equal amounts for amp, speakers, pre-amp, source and cables/accessories (not including acoustic treatments for the room). This was completely unintentional and YMMV.