Help please choosing AMP wattage for a newbe

Speakers are usually damaged by using an amp that is too low in power rather than too high. When an amp is overdriven it will go into clipping and pass DC current through to the speakers , heating them up and eventually burning them out. The power rating usually denotes the constant power input they are able to handle. Music consists of constantly changing power levels, with peaks usually lasting only a short time. I myself use a 275 watt amp with speakers rated at 50 watts and have no trouble. Unless you play hard rock at a constant , extremely high level you should have no problem. Speakers rated at 50 watts can withstand 500 watt peaks, 200 watts is a high power rating in any case.

Always buy the speakers first. They are the final element of your system and have the job of turning electrical energy into sound waves. The only other component which has a task like this is the turntable. They make far more difference than the amp. How will you know which amp to buy, you can't hear the amp without the speaker? Chose the speaker you like best and then chose an amp that maximizes it's qualities. If your favorite speakers are horns, you don't need 500 watts. If they are Apogee's , then SET is out. The amp is a tool to get the best performance out of a speaker, if you don't know what speaker you are using , how will you know which tool to select?

That was the classic Linn position, spend ALL the money on the front end. You can do it this way. But the fact remains , if it doesn't come out of the speaker you won't hear it. The variation in speaker sound is far greater than in front ends or amps. Nobody suggested that you immediately purchase the most expensive speaker system you can. Try to see what kind of sound you like and then purchase a used pair of speakers part way up the chain of that type of sound. You may love them forever or trade them off in disgust but you will not be out an exorbitant amount of money. The whole question is governed by your musical taste. What kind of music do you like to listen to and at what level. If you are a vinyl user there is something to be said for putting 50% or more in a turntable. If you use CD the case is different. Technology is advancing and by the time the rest of your system catches up to your expensive CD player it is likely that something cheaper and better will be available. The central thing in audio is to learn what kind of sound you yourself like. I see all these letters searching for THE BEST. There are many kinds of good sound , and even more of bad. But THE BEST does not exist.