I have a 130w Pioneer Elite. I drive the center and rears with the Pioneer, thus preserving all the functionality of the receiver, including driving ceiling speakers in other rooms with channels 6 & 7. I inserted a Wyred for sound STI 500 integrated with a home theater bypass for 2 channel. Before that, I used the Pioneer as a pre-amp and ran it through a Rotel 1095 for 5 channel amp. Sounded great, and was less complicated for the wife and kids to use for movies. You could probably talk me into selling the 1095 if your interested.
The right amp for my system
I have a Pioneer Elite w/130wpc and two Martin Logan Clarity at 200w w/ Acoustic Zen cables and a M/L Vignette for a center. The system lacks clarity and punch. I was thinking of adding Marantz MA-500 monoblocks. Is my thinking correct to improve the quality of sound? Should I hold out for more watts than what is in the MA-500's? $'s is a factor. Thanks, Married w/Children.