Home Theater Preamp/amp advice.

There is currently an Aragon Stage One pre/pro and 2007 amp (200 x 7) for sale for $1750 as a combo and would do exactly what you want. The buyer is also including interconnects for between the two. I have no affiliation with the seller, but have owned many Aragon pieces over the years and been pleased with them. This combo would be hard to beat at this price IMO as long as you don't have to have all of the latest bells and whistles.

I second ATI as a good option for an amp - 1505 or 1805. If you could get a 3 channel (or pick up a 2 channel and add a third through ATI - although the shipping may kill you) you could drive the rear channels with the receiver. B&K 200 watt/channel would also be an option. I think ATI or B&K are both more dynamic than Rotel.

As you probably know, the SF Home center is not up to the quality of the GP. A Thiel SCS4 would be a good option. I used an SCS3 with GPs and the SCS4 is better and cheaper at list.

If you want to use the GP for music, you could also consider a separate 2 channel to drive the GP and let the receiver drive the center and surrounds. You would need pre-outs from the receiver to drive the 2 channel integrated. More complicated, but worth it if getting the most out of the GP for music is important.

The Integra or Onkyo pre/pro is an excellant choice. Combine it with a B&K like this one:

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampsmult&1259978418&/B-K-Components-Reference-7250-

B&K's are rock solid and reliable and very musical. They are able to drive just about any speaker you throw at them. No affiliation.

Bill

DTC,
Thanks for your input. I'm currently using a Krell KAV-300i to drive the Sonas Faber Grand Piano Home's. This setup, along with the Martin Logan sub is also hooked to my Direct TV HD setup. I find that I use this system 95% of the time for watching TV, and only 5% for music, so I really want to concentrate on building a home theater system only.

Ghstudio,
Good point about the power needs. I've already planned to hire an electrician to do the wiring for my in-ceiling speakers. I'll add a dedicated 20a line as needed.

Csmgolf,
The Aragon amp looked really good, but the seller wants to sell the pre also as a package deal. I don't need all the bells and whistles, but I at least want HDMI in/out, and Stage One doesn't have it.

Thanks to everyone else for the comments and recommendations. I now have a list of components to look for in the classifieds. I'll post back when I purchase something. I'm not in a huge hurry -- I just want to get it done by Christmas.

I ran my GPs with a B&K 200.7 for a while and it was a nice combination, especially for home theater. Used it with Thiel SCS3 and SF Concertino's for surrounds. It was a nice combo. Have the 200.7 running Thiels in another setup now and that works nicely also.

Good luck with your hunt.