Way to go, guys. Very helpful thus far. I have located a Cary 200.2 which is a possible start. It would good amp to build on; I had an AES tube preamp by Cary for a few years, and I really liked it. I've had a pair of Quicksilver mini monos paired with a pair of gigantic Altec horns, which believe it or not sounded really nice. I did tubes for about a year until I came upon some Krell 250 monos then a pair of CS6's and I was off and running again.
I heard Joseph Audios at the RMAC in Denver last year, as well as some Ryans(nice!) and a butt load of other speakers as well. I'm considering a trip to Chicagoland for Axpona this year;however, I did find the big audio fest to be confusing after awhile; stumbling off the elevators into hotel rooms crammed with gear, trying to find the "sweet spot" chair..
Thanks to all!