Well, the 125 wpc was sort of arbirtary. Right now, I'm pushing 75 solid, and the speaker I currently have respond well. I figured 50 more certainly would be enough for most speakers, although the 200wpc is in my mind, the ideal target. It seems that many amps have a big jump in price to go from 125ish up to 200, and like I said, for the systems I have used, I couldn't justify 75 watts of headroom at such a premium. If I go with the HT3's, I'd power as appropriate.
I certainly would be up for discussing pre/pro and amps, or even SS vs tube (I've never ventured into tube but it seems rather popular on this forum). Right now I'm exploring options, and I certainly want to get what's best, which to me, means supporting master craftsman like Jim and Frank Van Alstine with their speakers and amps. The fact that not only can you get quality products, but great customer service and have direct line of talk to the owners is a great, and rare thing.
To give you an idea, the basement of my townhouse is 18x20 and thats where the system currently resides. I'd say I sit about 9-10ft from the system, about in the middle of the room. Currently, I have no sub. The RS760's are a nice full range speaker for the price, and push out enough low end to keep my wife and I happy. It by no means is the end all, be all of quality sound though, but quite better than a Sony box set.
We use the HT mainly for movies/tv, and I do a fair amount of 2 channel listening myself (my wife does not enjoy just listening to music with nothing going on, but will listen with me while she sews or otherwise). We both grew up playing musical instruments, and I have a fair idea of what I want the system to sound like. Overall, I want the bass to be substantial and musical, but not too boomy. I'd like the highs to be present and clear, but not harsh. I played the drums for 10 years, and I really appreciate a system that can accurately depict the kick drum, and the cut and decay of cymbal patterns and crashes and the swish of brushes along a snare. Which is why I'm turning to a builder like Jim Salk in all likelihood, while the Onix kit is certainly a good value for the average consumer, it does not do these things quite as well as I'd like and appreciate.
Because I place a pretty good premium on accurate, full range music reproduction, I tend to favor 3 channel systems for extended range. I certainly will not discount the ST or HT2, as I'm sure they are quite the speakers, and can do at least as well, if not better than my RS760's, which I believe are rated down to 38hz.
On another note for the AVAhifi amps, I don't believe he sells processors to decode Dolby or DTS, as he concentrates on the hifi music market. If anyone can recommend something to pair with his electronics (or if he does indeed offer these processors), let me know.