It seems like more and more folks are getting into HT and multi channel receivers and amps are becoming the norm. Also companys going more multi-channel. The mainstream electronics stores visited by the masses ala BestBuy, Circuit City, I never see a 2 channel amp for sale. In high end stereo stores visited by the minority the 2 channel amps are there but not as much as previous years. Will the 2 channel amp (one pair of speakers) make a slow death? I guess the 2 channel amp will live on with the few in the high end audio cult perhaps. Thoughts? Any stereo salesmen out there know the sales trends?
This is nothing new. I spent a year selling mid-fi audio equipment in '97 and back then 99% of the receivers I sold were surround sound. Even people just looking for a two channel setup would get a multichannel receiver because they were the most economical.
I just bought Parasound 2 channel and 5 channel amplifiers for a 7.1 HT setup. I previously used a Carver 6 channel amp with a setup that used only 1 surround back or rear center channel speaker. My processor is THX Ultra 2 certified and thus contained some additional THX processing only available when configured for 2 surround back speakers. Of course two amps take up more space but weight is distributed over two units. One 7 channel amp, at least the ones I were looking at, can weigh 95+ pounds. I use the 2 channel amp for the front speakers and the 5 channel amp for the remaining speakers.
If you are Bi Amping a set of speakers a 4 channel amp
comes in handy if precious rack space is an issue..
Otherwise I would go dual 2 channels or even more preferable
4 monoblocks.
2Channel is not even remotely close to "dead" but eventualy
it may be with the J6P crowd and 2Ch will stick around with
the audiophiles or those in the know.
Amp configuration is like length of skirts. It goes in and out of fashion depending on the season. Right now, we're seeing a lot more multi-channel (more than 2-channels) amps b/c there's a need for it. This wasn't the case many years ago. So with the new multi-channel amps, comparatively speaking, there seems to be less 2-channel amps. However, 2-channel audio is not going away so sooner or later companies are going to redesign their 2 channel amps w/ the latest and greatest technology for those people who want to replace or get into good 2-channel audio.
In the end, buy what makes sense for you. Don't worry about the configuration as much as the quality of the amp.
Add it to a 5 channel to make 7 channel.
Add it to a 3 channel to make it 5 channel.
Maybe you already have a system and just want a seperate nice 2 channel system.
I think it is the upgrade bug that hits...that makes people want to add 2 more channels to there existing system.
2-channel is FAR from dead.