AV Receiver good enough for high end audio?

10-18-10: Aberyclark
I always thought all the preamp features is what made a/v receivers less desirable

When you find out your 100 wpc receiver only puts out 30-70 wpc,and won't drive your speakers,at least you have the option of hooking up a real amp to it.That way everything is not lost.Research,and read reviews before buying.

Mithch4t, what are saying about the Jackalope?

I started in this hobby in 2004 with an NAD AV reciever, that I then used as a preamp. Went to seperate amps with a processor (first B & K, then Parasound, then Anthem) and was shocked by the improvement, it was still all multichannel.

Finally, I bought a 2 channel preamp with HT Passthrough (first a McIntosh C2200, then an ARC LS26, and finally a Cary SLP98p F-1) and there is just no comparison. I got rid of the multichannel stuff, bought a Denon AV reciever for the HT stuff, but even my wife does not listen to music through the reciever. Even though she must physically turn on the Cary preamp, and switch inputs. The fact that she went to the trouble to learn how to do that versus just hitting "Play Music Server" on the remote and running the sound through the reciever, tells you the difference.

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Macdadtexas, I conceed you might have seen a few jackalopes in Texas, but I'm pretty certain that everything else on that list is a myth.
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Some examples of the power ratings they use for receivers.
Marantz,$1250. Their rating 110watts.[http://us.marantz.com/Products/2980.asp]
Tested [http://hometheatermag.com/receivers/marantz_sr6004_av_receiver/index4.html]Pioneer Elite.$2200,140watts.Tested About 107 watts.[http://hometheatermag.com/receivers/pioneer_elite_sc-27_av_receiver/index4.html]Denon $3000,140 watts.[http://usa.denon.com/us/product/pages/Product-Detail.aspx?Catid=3d9614d1-8000-4106-ab91-8192242cab83&SubId=40b5820d-83c2-4e93-9909-60aae60e0bdd&ProductId=14c37b13-44c8-4d7b-9b5d-5316e646e7b7]Tested 31 watts![http://hometheatermag.com/receivers/denon_avr-4810ci_av_receiver/index4.html]Sherwood,only$450,Sounds like 110 watts,Tested,5 watts![http://hometheatermag.com/receivers/sherwood_rd-7503_av_receiver/index3.html]Replace high end? Its getting more common.

Factory links I missed above.[http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/ephox/StaticFiles/PUSA/Files/SC-27.pdf] [http://www.sherwoodusa.com/prod_rd7503.html][http://usa.denon.com/us/product/pages/Product-Detail.aspx?Catid=3d9614d1-8000-4106-ab91-8192242cab83&SubId=40b5820d-83c2-4e93-9909-60aae60e0bdd&ProductId=14c37b13-44c8-4d7b-9b5d-5316e646e7b7]