help with 2 channel system build

Albumguy,
An Aragon 4004 mkII used at less than $1000 might be a good match. It's 200 watts@8ohms and 400 watts@4ohms. Very rugged, reliable and it sounds good,too. It should play as loud as you can stand if mated with a good, properly matched preamp. Good luck.

Albumguy,

Forgot to mention matching the output impedance of your Crown SL2 preamp (which is 500 ohms)to the input impedance of the amplifier you will be using. The input impedance on the amplifier should be atleast 10 times greater than the output impedance of the preamp. So, 500X10=5,000 ohms, which means any amp with an input impedance of 5k ohms or greater should be a good match. The input impedance of the Aragon amp I reccomended is 22,000 ohms which means it's a good impedance match. If you want a softer sound, a B&K amp might be a better choice for a similar price but I cannot attest to their reliability. Good luck.

Thank you for the suggestions and info Noble 100.Someone had also mentioned that a Vincent sp-331 or emotiotiva xpa-2 might be good choices.Would I be better served to buy new or just as well off with a used amp?

Amps are notoriously rugged and most will last 20+ years with no problems. However, if you do require warranty service it ould be expensive. The Emotiva amps come with a 5 year transferable warrant and are a good value new. They are a smokin' deal when purchased used. You can find more info. and a nice user community at www.EmotivaLounge.com

Good Luck!

-RW-