Speaker advice

I'll second the sub/sat approach. SVS sells a sub for $600 that -on paper- provides astonishing performance. The informed sub crowd on this forum, Bob Reynolds, Shadome and Drew Eckhart among others can provide more detail if you decide to go this route. Bob, in particular, is a fan of SVS.

One main speaker to consider is the small Magnepan MMG ($600). Like the SVS sub, it's sold factory direct with a money back offer. I sometimes use an MMG/sub set-up, and can assure you that at $1200 this combo offers terrific performance. As Blindjim noted, it allows HT in the future. It will also allow you to add a Velodyne SMS-1 sub controller in the future. This device allows you to analyze your room, and optimize the bass - it's very effective for app $500-$600.

Good Luck

Marty

I don't know how powerful your amplifier is, but for $1000 plus shipping you could audition a brand new pair of Ohm Micro Walsh Tall speakers. They're omni-directional, throw a huge soundstage, and produce amazingly robust bass. They're a time-honored brand that now sells only direct, and you get a 120-day, money-back home trial. http://www.ohmspeakers.com . John Strohbeen, the President, answers the phone and will be glad to give you personal advice.

Kef IQ9's from audio advisor on blowout for less than $800/pair...read the reviews, especially Hi Fi + product of the year issue! You will have serious sound on a budget.

if HT is definitely in your future, i second the advice about monitors and sub. get them used and 1200$ will get you a very nice set up with plenty of slam for rock and movies. advice... shy away from monitors that rely too heavily on sub for normal deep bass reproduction. sub is best used for deep deep bass and harmonics or it gets tricky to fine tune. jmo. dont forget the room treatments or it is all a waste of effort!

Big10 - before I can offer you any advice, I'd like to know a little more about your system and your preferences.
1. Which Hafler amp do you have and how is it being used?
2. Is the Elite being used as a preamp in your system? 3. What other sources do you have and is your $1200 budget solely for speakers?
4. You listen to jazz, classical and rock but at what kind of sound levels?
5. You have a fairly nice sized room - is it a very live room (hardwood floors, hard surfaces, etc) or a dead room (w/w carpeting heavy drapes) where sound gets absorbed as opposed to reflected off of surfaces?

Since you like a lot of different types of music it comes to reason that you would be most happy with a speaker that is very neutral sounding and presents all types of music in an authentic even-handed manner as opposed to a speaker that emphasizes the bass or treble. Also, since you wish to try to integrate this into a home theatre system, to get the best bang for the buck, I would suggest a 3 piece system - a subwoofer/satellite system.

This type of arrangement has the advantage of being much smaller than large floor standing speakers but has the same full range sound as a floor standing speaker. To me, this makes the most sense and there are many, many options to choose from.