How important is it to power surrounds for HT? (1 Viewer)

[ScottH]

I have a home theater only system, and I'm thinking of getting an amp such as the Stratos 3-channel to power my mains and center channel. My main question is, would I then need to buy another amp to power the surrounds, or could I just use my Marantz SR-8000 to power them? Would I be better off buying a 5 channel amp (such as that new Rotel)? Does anyone know how the SR-8000 stands up as a pre?

For Home Theater only, is it even worth it?

 

[Jerome Grate]

Your Marantz will do fine, dedicating an amp to the front stage is a good idea considering that's where most of the work is done in HT application. Surrounds need full power also but not as continuous as the front sound stage. If you have a choice between the 3 channel amp and the 5 channel amp, personally I would go with the 5 channel amp though.