An odd idea

Again, thanks to all for the suggestions!

Tok2000, you make a good point . . . . I guess the speakers are the key, moreso than the amplification.

Subaruguru, thanks for the warning!

Perkadin, interesting suggestions! My speakers are already set up as you suggest -- about 2 feet out from the TV (any farther and they are too close to the side walls) and about a foot in front of the TV. I hadn't considered the CD quality issue, though . . . . and my system is definitely not lacking in power or dynamics. I've thought some about the tube CD player idea, too.

I think what I'm going to do is finish all the tweaks I can with the existing hardware -- install the 2-channel passive preamp, upgrade the 2-channel path cables from Audio Ones to Audio Twos, upgrade the power cables on both the 9000ES and the Rotel 985, and apply some isolation/damping treatments to both -- and try to isolate what I feel are the system's shortcomings in a little more detail.

I also want to play around a little with some room treatments -- I don't know much about that, but I figure that there's no shortage of places on the web to learn.

THEN, if I decide the new amp is a necessity, I'll pick one based on what I want for 2-channel, without worrying too much about HT integration, since I know that a) it should work OK, and b) I can always go with seperate speaker cables if it doesn't.

Again, thanks much to all!

Pat

I had a similar experience. I have a home theater system consisting of PSB speakers and a Yamaha 5.1 amp. I wanted to use a Cambridge A300 integrated to just run the mains. I could not, and still can not figure out a way to use both of the amps at the same time without turning up volume on both of them as the movies played. I ended up going to Radio Shack and buying a switch box for just the mains. As some of you pointed out, a mistake will eventually be made. I'm just lucky that the protection circuits in BOTH amps were up to the task and kicked out when I had both amps connected together at the same time. I like the idea of using bannana plugs and NEVER having the amps connected together.

Here's one that'll make you smile :) (And yes, this is a serious suggestion...) replace your TV with a front projector - and then use a retractable screen. This will eliminate a large sonically reflective surface right between the main speakers, becaues the screen will be retracted when you're listening to 2-channel. It has a surprisingly audible impact on 2-channel imaging. I learned this by accident, because I upgraded to such a setup purely due to space concerns when I wanted a big screen, but until I find enough money to build a dedicated theatre room (as opposed to a combined theatre and concert room), I'm not going back!

Also, I've gone down the same path as you have - my speakers aren't identical but they're pretty close. However, I discovered that even adding some very different surround speakers made less difference than I would have expected. In my case, I upgraded my surrounds from Triad Silvers (dipole in-wall cone speakers) to MartinLogan Scenarios (bipole floorstanding electrostatics), and I found that both worked equally well with the main MartinLogan panels up front. Their signatures are different, but this is only perceptible when playing 5-channel audio. I don't perceive the difference AT ALL when watching movies, except that the Scenarios obviously have more bass punch. There is a difference in 5-ch music, of which I have little so far.

I can also report that my amplification is quite different front to back, and this too is not an issue. I have vertically biamped my ML Odysseys with a Classe CA200 for the cones and a Counterpoint SA220 for the panels. (This took a little tweaking!) That's the equivlaent of 800wpc@4 ohms with mixed tubes and transistors for the fronts. The surrounds make do with just a single 3-channel B&K ST3140, at 175 wpc@ 4 ohms, all transistor. This is a pretty big difference, and the only one that can be readily identified is that there is some timbre change from the mains to the center and back. I don't notice the difference to the surrounds very much. I will have to upgrade the center amplifier sometime, although I'm having a hard time imagining precisely what I would put there...

Ah, a projector. I'd like to have a projector . . . . I'd like a pony, too. Unfortunately, they both have about the same likelihood of working out in my living room. Too much light for the projector, I fear (and too much rented carpeting for the pony). ;-0)

Thanks for the suggestion, though -- I'd wondered idly about the feasibility of retractable screens, so it's nice to know that they work.

And thanks for the info on using umatched speakers and amps -- now I'm not so paranoid about trying a partial upgrade.

Thanks again to all!

Pat

You might be surprised how much light you can tolerate with the newer high-output DLP and LCD projectors. Although you cannot manage with either the sun or even a ceiling lamp shining on the screen, the colors are less washed out than you might expect. I have two unshaded windows in my room, and I can watch TV during the day (football, auto racing) quite happily, except the 20 minutes or so that the sun shines directly through one window onto the screen.

Try it - you might like it!