As always Bob, you make a point.
Butrflynlambie,
Given the confusion, I'll try to explain things one more time, just to be clear. Your current situation is that you have a mid level Onkyo/Integra HT receiver driving your HT speakers, of which the front mains are the Paradigm 100's. Your idea for an upgrade is to get a separate power amp for the 100's. As far as upgrades go, I think that's a good idea. It seems like your main concern is will it be worth the $1000 you've allotted to buy an amp. As long as you pick the right amp, I say yes. You don't need to spend $3000. You can if you want to, but its not necessary.
The main thing I would like to address is how much of a change you can expect for your money. As others have stated, there is no guarantee that you'll hear anything better than what you have now. Technically, that could happen. Nothing in life is 100%. But as far as upgrading your HT goes, getting a better sounding, more powerful amp to replace the internal amp in your receiver is just about a safe a bet as you can make. The chances of you being disappointed are extremely low. Were not talking about hearing the difference between the Furutech RCA connectors vs the WBT, or the differences between solid core and stranded copper. These are large changes that anyone, audiophile or not, can hear.
If your new room is bigger than your old one, will the new amp be an upgrade? Yes. If the new room is smaller, will the new amp be an upgrade? Yes. And just as big. Your speakers are capable of quite a bit of detail. Providing better, more clean power will reveal details in music and movies that you haven't yet heard on your system. Not only that, most speakers, including yours, will benefit from more power even in a smaller room. The new amp will be able to take control of the speakers in a way your current amp can't do. You'll hear a much better sense of timing, along with a lot more musical details in the bass frequencies than what you have now.
Other posters may say, "You can't guarantee this!! Blah, blah, blah....." Technically, I can't. Like I said before, nothing is 100%. But based on my extensive experience, with the equipment you have, and other similar gear, I'll say at lest 95%. I'll keep it low, just in case.
That's about all I can say. This is a very popular, cost effective upgrade, that people like you make every day. To get this much resistance to such a simple thing is not the norm. I think if you seek more opinions from knowledgeable people, I think you'll agree.
Butrflynlambie,
Given the confusion, I'll try to explain things one more time, just to be clear. Your current situation is that you have a mid level Onkyo/Integra HT receiver driving your HT speakers, of which the front mains are the Paradigm 100's. Your idea for an upgrade is to get a separate power amp for the 100's. As far as upgrades go, I think that's a good idea. It seems like your main concern is will it be worth the $1000 you've allotted to buy an amp. As long as you pick the right amp, I say yes. You don't need to spend $3000. You can if you want to, but its not necessary.
The main thing I would like to address is how much of a change you can expect for your money. As others have stated, there is no guarantee that you'll hear anything better than what you have now. Technically, that could happen. Nothing in life is 100%. But as far as upgrading your HT goes, getting a better sounding, more powerful amp to replace the internal amp in your receiver is just about a safe a bet as you can make. The chances of you being disappointed are extremely low. Were not talking about hearing the difference between the Furutech RCA connectors vs the WBT, or the differences between solid core and stranded copper. These are large changes that anyone, audiophile or not, can hear.
If your new room is bigger than your old one, will the new amp be an upgrade? Yes. If the new room is smaller, will the new amp be an upgrade? Yes. And just as big. Your speakers are capable of quite a bit of detail. Providing better, more clean power will reveal details in music and movies that you haven't yet heard on your system. Not only that, most speakers, including yours, will benefit from more power even in a smaller room. The new amp will be able to take control of the speakers in a way your current amp can't do. You'll hear a much better sense of timing, along with a lot more musical details in the bass frequencies than what you have now.
Other posters may say, "You can't guarantee this!! Blah, blah, blah....." Technically, I can't. Like I said before, nothing is 100%. But based on my extensive experience, with the equipment you have, and other similar gear, I'll say at lest 95%. I'll keep it low, just in case.
That's about all I can say. This is a very popular, cost effective upgrade, that people like you make every day. To get this much resistance to such a simple thing is not the norm. I think if you seek more opinions from knowledgeable people, I think you'll agree.