Whats more important? Speaker or the Amp

I've always auditioned speakers in the store, decided what I wanted, bought them and then started the search for a suitable amp. I suppose you could do it the other way around.

Give me a great speaker and an old used amp and I will be happy. In fact, I have a $20 Luxman that is actually impressive.

I will buy the best speakers first according to your listening taste, budget, and WAF. Then start saving again and hunt for the appropriate amp that will go well with your speakers.

How do you know what amp to buy if you do not know how demanding your speakers are? Just like you want to buy the tires first when they are on sale without knowing what car you are going to buy.

If you have your dream speakers, you will have the motive to get extra cash (legal or not) to get a good amp asap. You will suffer a bit in the short run. If you need 5 years to save up the money for the amp, then it is another story.

If you don't match the speaker to your room acoustics, the money you spend on the rest of your system is a complete waste (well, almost). You will never appreciate the differences between higher quality source, amplifiers, cables etc. if you don't (first) get the speakers/room right. At least, that has been my experience.

I thought that I would throw in a dissenting opinion. While I agree that the speakers have a greater effect on the total sound, I would say that the distortions of loudspeakers are, basically, consonant with the sound of the music itself. On the other hand, the sound that electronics produce are electronic sounding distortions, which are much more irritable, even in small amounts, than the distortions of loudspeakers. So, cast my vote for the amp being much, much more important.

Oh, and without the amp, no sound comes out of the speakers; the amp is the chicken.