How to get 2 Channel and Home theater in one packa

Through a series of upgrades over time, I have arrived at both an excellent 2 channel system as well as multichannel. I have a high-quality preamp and amp for 2 channel and a seperate processor and multichannel amp for 5 channel/movies. The multichannel amp drives the center speaker and rears, while the preamp and amp drive the front channels (L + R). I can either use the HT bypass or not of the preamp in this configuration, and truly get the best of both worlds, as they say, with tons of good clean power due to the 2 amps.

Eandylee: I agree with your comments about matching speakers. I was fortunate in that my rears used to be my fronts, until I replaced them with much better speakers from the same company.
I have had no incompatibilities with my amps at all (Sunfire 5-channel, 400w into 8 ohms; McCormack DNA-500, 500w into 8 ohms). I think as long as the power is in the same neighborhood, if you like the sound of both amps, they will probably sound OK together for movies, etc. My system sounds seamless for movies. I think speaker synergy is more important, especially between the center speaker and 2 front speakers. More and more speaker companies are coming out with center channel speakers as they also see this crossover market booming.