Hate to ask......

tireguy: the great majority of people who call themselves (or allow others to call them) "audiophiles" have been entranced by two-channel audio-only systems. those who have been into the hobby as long as i, have gone from 45rpm mono singles to ep's to stereo lp's and then, reluctantly, to cd's. for a couple or three decades, we enjoyed watching the two-channel parade pass by, interrupted every now and then by failed "improvements" like quadraphonic sound. manufacturers enticed us with better and better components at higher and higher prices. and it was good.

then came the advent of "home theater." at first, that meant having a big screen tv flanked by a couple of speakers, with a vcr thrown in to watch slightly fuzzy, but pauseable, movies. laser discs gave us improved images, line doublers and processors even better. multi-channel formats emerged like mushrooms after rain. video dvd's caused a mild tide to turn into a sea change. hey, this is fun! watching movies as clear as you might get at the multiplex, and with SURROUND sound. planes zipped by over your heads, engines churning, flying right through the damn wall!. cannon shots shook you in your gut. and the bass. well, you know what it's like to be at a rock concert. sales of HT shot up, rocket-like. sales of two-channel gear declined, confining audiophiles onto an even smaller island, whose beaches were eroding as we watched. our very own manufacturers in the audio highend pantheon did what they had to do in light of shifting tastes. they started turning stereo amps into five and six-channel devices. speakers were designed for "center channels" and rears." we weren't in charge anymore. and it was bad.

now, we of the two-channel ilk are joined by those in the HT clan with enough interest in the "sound" of their systems to become what i think of as a subset of "audiophiles." cost and space constraints cause many of the HT crowd to build "integrated systems," by which they might enjoy the best of audio and the best of HT in a single set of components (some of which may be bypassed or used for only one application). please believe me when i say i don't regard the "integrated" crowd with disdain; indeed, i thank them for helping preserve what might otherwise be an even more moribund industry. but...............i don't think you can have the best of audio and the best of HT in one system. at any cost. you have to chose, IMO, which way you want to go and then recognize you're gonna' need to compromise whatever your choice.

for myself, i've decided to keep building my two-channel system, keeping it only as such. i've begun to start a modest HT, recently buying a loewe aconda 16:9 and a pioneer elite dvd (very slightly used). i'll be adding a processor, amps and speakers. these purchases, tho, will come after i make my planned upgrade to the analogue half of my two-channel system.

i don't know whether this answers your query, tireguy but its my view of this simultaneously fascinating and disturbing issue. -kelly

I like HT very much. I actually built an HT system three years prior to finishing my music system. But the whole reason for starting into the realm of 2-channel was because I was very dissatisfied with the music reproduction of my HT setup.

Well I am glad to see that I am not alone in enjoying HT, I also have a 2-in-1 system, as stated above there are obvious comprimises regardless of what ever you do, the way I see it as long as it brings me pleasure then there is no comprimise(with all do respect Kelly). But it sounds as though even you(cornfed) have been biten by the HT bug...I need more amps, bigger speakers, etc.....But I am curious where all of the HT antagonists have gone, I would really like to know why you hate HT, and I know some of you are out there, don't be affraid I am just trying to understand where you are coming from.

Sorry to disappoint you Tim, but I'm another HT fan. I had an integrated system, but separated it to try to improve the 2-ch side. I do seem to get much more pleasure from music than movies, but I wouldn't give up the theater. I'll be moving in a week, and will have a 500 sf dedicated theater and/or music room, so there may be more incentive now to reintegrate the systems and kick them both up a notch.
Tim

I am an American expatriate living in Taipei, Taiwan. I have spoken to many high-end audio dealers here and they all say that the market trend is overwhelmingly toward HT, rather than 2-channel hi-fi. In fact, of interesting to note is that there are two international high-end audio shows here every year. One is for AV systems and the other is for hi-fi systems. Guess where the hi-fi show is trending heavily - you got it, HT with a great hi-fi.

Dealers told me that most customers have only one room and one budget for one system. Also, many AV processors have been upgrading their preamp to improve audio quality. In the end it seems there will be a convergence where consumers will be able to have both!!

I currently have a HT system with a Lexicon MC-1 processor/Krell 250cd player/Sony DVP-9000ES/Krell KAV-1500 5-channel amp/B&W Nautilus 801s as fronts/HTM-1 as center/Nautilus 805 as surrounds/Magnum Dynalab 101a Etude tuner/PS Audio Power Plant 300.

I can say with confidence that when I play my system on 2-channel sound, it can match or outperform many of the best 2-channel hi-end audio systems in the market. But it has also terrific HT, which none of the Hi-Fi systems out there can put any claims on.

So there is hope for us who want to have both great HT and great Hi-Fi after all!!!