Is a Denon 5803 too much for B&W CDM 1NT's?

It's not a problem. In fact, you can damage speakers with too little power - because of distortion.

There is not too much of a noticeable difference until power is doubled - in the future, you might want to try a different brand of amp to really upgrade the sound. For music, going separate pre and power amp will give you a better performance. For movies, the denon is ok. Music sounds pretty good too, but for the next upgrade, I would add a dedicated music system, if you should desire a better sounding music setup.

Currently I use my system for about 50/50 music/movies, but I want it to sound the best whatever I do. I would be curious about any thoughts as to the addition of a preamp that has ht pass through as well as seperates for amplification. Would this be a good route to take if I even kept the 4802? I enjoy the DACs in the 5803 for movies, it is a definate improvement above the 4802...But when I am alone, all I use this system for is music. I have enjoyed the additional power of the 5803. It enables a larger soundstage. What other amps or preamps would you recomend, and would you stick with the 5803, or move on?
Thanks

Gonglee is right. When low power amps go into 'clipping' - this happens when the output signal voltage is equal to the power supply voltage - this produces many high frequency harmonics which are routed to the Tweeter by the speakers' crossover, burning it out. It's a lot harder to clip a big amp - higher power supply voltages, etc. Your personal set of transducers would probably burn out first (time to turn down the volume once the bleeding starts) :>0 ;)

I would read a lot on hifi before putting in any more of that kind of money - you would end up with better sound for sure.

You can start here. Also www.hifichoice.co.uk is a good place for reviews of products.

If you really want good music, I would set up a dedicated 2-channel music system. For movies, your present system will do.

You might want to hear pre/power amps from makers like Krell, audio research, and mark levinson. I would buy them used however - you can get them here and other places like www.audioweb.com

This way, you will save a lot of money - also you can resell them without losing a lot if you don't like them.

Since you just got the 5803, I would just enjoy it for a while, before upgrading. Your wife will prabably agree. In the mean time, if you should desire a even better music system, I would try to hear as many systems in hifi shops as I can - before upgrading.

You can also chat alive on www.audioasylum.com and ask questions.

Denon is not bad at all - I would have kept the 4802 for movies, and gotten a dedicated one for music - used to get more quality for the same money.

Welcome to this exciting hobby, but do read a lot before spending that kind of money - your ears will thank you.