Okay, here are the preliminary results of our quest for the $3,500 HT system. My friend is more into 2-channel music, but wants to have HT capabilities, so we spent most of our time listening to the various components in stereo configuration (as opposed to full 5.1 setups).
He wanted to buy new, so we decided fairly early on to go with a receiver, as opposed to separates. Going in, the 3805 was a front-runner, but after comparing it to the Rotel RSX-1056, I was amazed at how noticeable of an improvement the Rotel was over the Denon. We were quite happy with just 5 channels of amplification, as he has no desire, currently, to go the 6.1 or 7.1 route, and he is not majorly concerned with having his HT setup just so (again, he is mostly concerned with 2-channel audio), so the auto-calibrate features of the Denon, while slick as heck, weren't an overwhelmingly compelling feature. For straight up 2-channel sound, the Rotel really does have an edge over the Denon, despite its much lower power rating (75w, versus 120w for the 3805). The Rotel was more clear, had greater instrument separation, and created more a realistic soundstage. Instruments sounded more true and convincing. Really quite impressive, and while I expected the Rotel to have a slight edge, this was very noticeable with the NHT ST-4's we were auditioning. So, the Rotel became a sure thing, besting not only the Denon, but Yamaha and Marantz receivers that we listened to. We also considered, but were not able to audition, the Cambridge Audio receiver.
On the speaker front, we auditioned the Magnepan MG12, which were the closest thing that the dealer had to the factory direct MMG's. In addition to the child-damage factor, the WAF, and the room placement issues, I just was not very impressed with the sound of the Maggies compared to the competition. I do like Maggies (and Martin Logans, and Quads), but with a Rotel receiver, and with the kind of music my friend prefers (mostly rock), it wasn't a match made in heaven. We also listened to multiple models from Paradigm, Klipsch, and B&W, but these failed to make our short list. The final four came down to the above-mentioned NHT ST-4's, Totem Arro's, Meadowlark Swifts, and a model from Krix (forget the name). After much thought and further discussion (and a comment from my friend's wife that the Swifts were "ugly"), it came down to the ST-4's or the Arro's. The ST-4's had the edge in instrument separation, low frequency reproduction, and the ability to play loudly. The Arro's had much better soundstage/imaging, sounded more refined, and sounded good at low, moderate, or louder volumes (the NHT's did seem to need to be pushed to a moderate volume before they sounded REALLY good). The Arro's did manage to fart out on us a bit when we cranked them up, but the older Cambridge Audio integrated driving it was almost all the way up, and may have been contributing. We decided, though, that if we went with the Arro's, we'd need a sub for sure (for higher volumes only, as the Arro's have very convincing bass at lower volumes, especially considering their size). The NHT's could probably benefit from a sub, but they had fairly respectable low end output even without one, and kept their composure even when driven fairly hard.
Ultimately, I would prefer the Rotel with the Arro's (and Dreamcatcher center and surrounds), paired with a quality, musical subwoofer, but depending on the price of the sub, this would put us just beyond our price range. Those Arro's are just a phenomenal speaker, and they are so small that they can really disapper. Not to mention the fact that they will get everyone's jaw to hit the floor when they realize that all that sound is coming out of such a petite speaker. However, I must also say that the NHT ST-4's are an extremely impressive speaker. It soundly trounced the B&W, Paradigm, Klipsh, and Maggies, and surpassed the Meadowlark Swifts in many regards. I would have liked to have heard it straight up against the Krix, as I think that it would have been close (with the ST-4's winning narrowly).
So, I am not sure which route my friend is going to go, but from what I heard, I can recommend the RSX-1056 to anyone looking for a multi-channel receiver (but doesn't need 7.1), and the NHT's and Totem Arro's are outstanding choices IMHO in the @ $1,000 floorstanding speaker category.
TOm.
