Right. AVR is crap. All of them. That and the center channel speaker, plus whatever else you have in the middle, these are all death to imaging and stage depth.
The good news is a good stereo integrated amp and two speakers is way better quality for way less money than three speakers. With only two you can afford some quality wire too. DIY wire is your second crappiest component. There just aren't any good DIY wires. Period! I have one right now someone sent me as proof I am wrong, that only proved how right I am.
Where you start almost doesn't even matter, but since the AVR is such a total piece of junk, that only serves as a reason to keep the center channel you don't need, I would start with a good integrated amp. If you can stretch to $3k the Raven Nighthawk is an outstanding amp good enough to serve you the rest of your life, or for sure be an anchor piece for a good ten years. What's your budget?
The good news is a good stereo integrated amp and two speakers is way better quality for way less money than three speakers. With only two you can afford some quality wire too. DIY wire is your second crappiest component. There just aren't any good DIY wires. Period! I have one right now someone sent me as proof I am wrong, that only proved how right I am.
Where you start almost doesn't even matter, but since the AVR is such a total piece of junk, that only serves as a reason to keep the center channel you don't need, I would start with a good integrated amp. If you can stretch to $3k the Raven Nighthawk is an outstanding amp good enough to serve you the rest of your life, or for sure be an anchor piece for a good ten years. What's your budget?