Perhaps we should stick with midfi...

Douglas - I like you suggest to mix and match with the OPs other system. I'd probably take one of the new components and hook it up in the old system and see if the sound improves. The next step might be to take one component from the old system and hook it up in the new and see if the offending component could be identified. If it turns out that changing a single component makes a nice difference, it could give some direction for a higher end replacement unit.

Everyone here is very kind and offering sage, well thought out advice to the OP. You are all to be commended.

I'll still bet that this person is a Troll, although I hope to be proven wrong when he posts some pictures to 1 of his 4 systems.

Again, I contend he's just tossing this group as the equipment he mentioned simply doesnt compute. Krell, Audio Research, McIntosh fronted by a Sony CD player feeding 802d's. Maybe if he would post pictures and describe the setup I would feel less like he's yanking our chain.

A few questions.

Since the exact equipment of the high end system hasn't been stated, how are so many people able to claim it's mismatched?

Getting more detailed, there's only so many logical ways the brands can be assembled. We're only given the specifics on the speaker. The Sony could be a SCD-1 or SCD-777. The McIntosh could be a tuner. Which leaves the Krell/Audio Research combo. Are there no combination of Krell/Audio Research preamp to amps that would sound good when linked to the B&Ws?

Then again could be the Audio Research is a crossover and all the amplification is Krell? Or could the Krell be a D/A and the amp/preamp are Audio Research? Or vice versa?

How do you people know so much when so little info has been given?

"(for the most part we agree for instance that Bose is crap),"

Ok, audiophiles agree Bose is crap, but who has actually set up a system with Bose speakers the way they would with a popular audiophile brand? Who has selected just the right amp and preamp to make a pair of Bose speakers sing? Who selected the right CD played, turntable and cartridge to get the most sound out of Bose speakers? What about interconnects and speaker cables? Who set up their system with the right equipment and then, with the advice of a so called acoustical expert, treated their room to get the best sound from a pair of Bose speakers?

Has anyone here ever done any of these things? Probably not. Yet everyone agrees Bose is crap.