Beginner system that can hold its own? Any Ideas?


I have just caught the audiophile bug, but I caught it pretty bad. I am starting to build my first system and I am doing it piece by piece. As of now this is what I have that is worth mentioning:

- Njoe Tjoeb 4000 (tube driven cdp sounds excellent)

- Bottlehead Foreplay Pre-amp (another excellent tube product and with the mods it is even better)

- Luxman L-80 Amp (it is a good amp but is temporary until I find what I really want but for $100 I didn’t do so badly)

- Tributary interconnects (not the best but I needed something and it is the only thing I could afford at the time)

I am thinking about getting GMA Europa speakers but I am not sure yet. I also don’t know what budget speaker cable, interconnect, and power cords to use. I am not at all opposed to DIY gear, used gear or vintage gear but don’t know what to look at. I also need suggestions for an amp. I would love a tube amp because I love the sound, but I need one with decent power at a decent price which is hard to do. I am not looking at super efficient speakers so any 1-10 watt system will not cut it. I was looking at the DIYcables.com consonance Ella amp but it is a little bit pricey. If anybody has any ideas, (a good solid sate will work wonderfully too I am open to suggestion) please let me know.
iamcrazy111
Honestly, power isn't everything. I would much rather have my 17 watt triode amp with 94db coincident speakers than a 120 watt solid state amp with a huge pair of power hungry maggies. 1 watt on 94 db speakers = 8 watts on an 85db maggie. Therefor, my 17 watt amp will roughly equal a 120 watt amp in this situation.
Otherwise, you taste is nice in the other gear you chose. Have fun and don't marry an amp-try many.
For speaker cables, try DH Labs T-14, used 8' should run you about $60. Very nice cable w/o any major flaws.
Don't be too quick to discard the older gear like your Luxman L-80V. It will kick the but of many a "high-end" amplifiers. I have demoed this Luxman model against alot of new SS amps and the new ones don't really stack up.