Amp Question Please advise

I'm not sure about the Paradigm 40's but when I went from 140 watts to 300 watts (into 4ohms) with my dynaudio 1.8s, I noticed that I had real bass at lower levels, and didn't need to be cranked as much to get a coherent soundstage. I'd guess around 150 solid state watts (into 8ohms) from a quality amp (no mass market recievers).

I put up with that from my B&W N804s for a year ... increased energy brought out why they were such outstanding speakers, but a morning read with some nice background music was IMPOSSIBLE ... far too flat and lifeless. Give them juice and ... ZOWIE!!! Shifted to Tyler Taylos w/sub and didn't regret it.

Thanks all for your thoughts -
The carpet is thick & has a thick pad,the walls are sheetrock, I do not think there is much ehco from a clap
I will take some pictures and post a link so you can see the layout or the room there are material blinds on the windows but not heavy drapes.

As for the set up the Denons crossover is set to 80 HZ and the paradigm 40's and CC-350 are set to large the rears are set to small, I also have a Paradigm PDR 8 sub The sub setting on the 3805 is set to LFE NOT Lfe& main.
At work I set up a large recption area with Paradigm SA-35s wich are similar to the 40's but they are in wall speakers They are driven by a Carver DSC-60 Pramp tuner and a Crown D-75 amp and there are Much more lows than my 40's Much more noticable at low listning levles and that is why I thought if I added an amp and used the denon as a preamp It would delliver more power to the speakers & get better lows and detail at low listning levles.
Thanks again & I will take som pix tonight

You have great speakers but they have small base cones (I believe 2x6.5 inch on both fronts and an 8 inch cone on the sub woofer) and you have a large room....I suspect that this might be the base issue that you perceive at low levels.

You also mention that you have in-wall speakers in your other similar setup at the office..... but not only are they in-wall but the fronts are Paradigm SA 35's, which have 2 x 8" cones giving a total of four 8 inch cones and a wall mount versus one 8 inch and no wall mounts .....this could be the factor in the different base sound you are hearing at low levels. Bigger cones with correspondingly bigger cabinets generally amount to better defined base - even if they are ugly!

Suggestion: Try auditioning a PDR 12 sub....it might be your cheapest solution to get that missing lower end at low levels at home...alternatively you could just boost the base at low levels....in any case, a larger cone and cabinet will generally give you better defined base.

I can answer your question 2 ways. 1st, yes an amp will improve not only the bass but the overrall sound of your 40s. Generally, the amplification is the weakest aspect of most receivers, and their ratings are often based on a narrow frequency range driving 1 channel. Not 2 or much less 5 simultaneously. I have an Arcam AVR100 with Maggies, and was amazed at how better my bass response was when I added an Ayre V-3 amp. The Arcam is no slouch, but it has an almost nostalgic sound that can be a touch soft. The Ayre drives the speakers with more bass, dynamics and slam.

A 2 channel amp would also allow you the option of adding a 2 channel preamp for music later on. And just using the 3805 for movies, and to drive your center and surrounds.

2nd, the 40s are good speakers, and like most monitors don't have a great deal of bass anyway. If you stepped up to the 60s you'd be surprised at how much more bass you get. Whatever way you go, I'd get an amp 1st to better drive the mains, then decide later on if you need to look at changing out your speakers or the Denon.

I'm not sure of your price range, but an NAD 218, Rotel 1080, or perhaps a Parasound A23 is where I'd start.