why did you buy a separate HT amp?

I think you just answered your own question, pardner.

Have you considered separate amps for only the front channels and let the AVR handle the surrounds? Since the surround channels rarely get driven hard, it would be a more economical solution. You could even get away with the AVR handling the center. With it driving only 3 channels it should be able to put out the volume you want. This will make your setup better for music too.

I'm with Pacific Island Audio. I use a separate 300wpc amp for my front speakers, along with a passive pre-amp with pass-through. Maximized two channel, not as much strain on my multi-channel amp. Enables bi-amping of center channel with the open channels on the surround amp.

Enjoy,

Dan

It's not just a power issue, it's a noise floor issue. I don't like the hashy sonic mess and compression you get when you have low-level analog and digital decoding components sharing a chassis with all the vibration (60 Hz) and heat you get with what should be a high current 7-channel amp.

I have my power amps on a separate shelf from my pre/pro. True, you can get 150-to-190 wpc A/V receivers, but not only are you adding all that jazz to a low signal chassis, in most cases they compromise the power supply to get everything to fit. And that's another source of compression you get with a receiver.

Look at the specs and test reports for most A/V receivers. They rate the power with one channel driven, and often with a 1KHz test tone (no bandwidth) at 1% distortion. An A/V receiver tested at 90 wpc under those circumstances only puts out about 43 wpc with all channels driven, 20-20KHz, at 0.1% distortion. And I've seen enough Home Theater mag test reports to prove it.

Most A/V receivers rated at 125 wpc will not have anywhere near the balls of a similarly rated separate amp from Adcom, Outlaw, or Parasound, never mind the high-priced spread.