any advice appreciated

I will definitely be upgrading components as I move further into the hobby.

A few more questions:

ON THE SPEAKERS: I chose the Vienna's because it is one of the few speakers I've had a chance to spend any time listening to. My local Best Buy has a Magnolia section and I spent about an hour listening to the Viennas vs. Martin Logans. I preferred the Viennas for their smooth warm tones. Maybe a bit less crisp than the Martin Logans. Will the Vienna Acoustic Mozarts be too small for a room as big as mine? The demo room I listened in was much smaller. Are the Harlechs really better than the Mozarts? I feel like I'm getting a pretty good deal on the Mozarts, plus I've heard them before.

ON THE AMP: The NAD is obviously a compromise. I chose it because there is one conveniently available to me at a reasonable price. The reviews look good online, and it is relatively inexpensive. It also should not be hard to sell once I have another $1000-$1500 to spend on a good amp. Does anyone have a better recommendation on an integrated amp that would suit my needs better? I just need something to get me by for 6 months or so.

ON THE CD PLAYER: I'm on the tail end of my budget here. Don't have much bread to work with. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Again I'm just looking for a transitional unit. Something to tide me over until I can squirrel away money that my wife won't mind me spending. I could use a decent DVD player. Is it sacrilege to play CDs through a DVD player?

Again thanks for all your input. There are so many angles to consider, it's a bit overwhelming.

I think that will be a great system. You will need to nearfield listen in that large room. The Mozart is a great speaker, I have a pair in a second system. If you have an Ipod, use that instead of a cd player for now and save for a USB dac.

Welcome aboard!

I can't stress enough how important your front end really is.
Try not to skimp too badly on the player. A used Jolida CD player would fit nicely into your setup.

$1200 can buy a lot of speaker used. It's a shame you're not able to get out and listen. You could get a speaker of comparable quality for less and put that money into your amplifier and source.

If you have to just use a current DVD player or whatever you have laying around. Wait and add some money to those $200 dedicated for the source. Believe me ..you'll wish you had.

My source and amplifier cost much more than the speakers I use. Spending the majority of your money on speakers isn't always the correct path.

You ever heard that saying sh@t rolls down hill? Well the rules apply to audio as well. ;-)

Just something to think about.

Good luck and have fun!

Spend most of your budget on the best power cords you can buy.

Really though...take the long approach. This is a great place to start. Get your equipment(particularly staying close to your budget), set it up, enjoy the sound and continue to squirrel away some money. After awhile you'll know what more you want from your rig and you'll take the next step. Remember this is a hobby.

Don't forget to have fun!

listen closely to the vienna acoustics. i believe they have cabinet colorations(resonances) which are audible.

i vote for the logans with a tube integrated amp.