I think we need a clear statement of
BUDGET?
An AV Pre-Amp Proocessor plus Power Amps can cost in the range of £4000.
However, a good AV Receiver would probably cost in the neighborhood of £2000. That's a big difference.
Next we need to know the
DIMENSIONS of the Room that the system will be placed in? I takes more power to fill an auditorium than it does to fill a closet.
Why
Richer Sounds? Nothing wrong with Richers they have a fine selection, but why limit you search to them?
Also, how far do you intend to take it -
5-channel, 7-channel, 9-channel, 11-channel, ...? More amps equal more money.
While the
Focal 926 might be rated at 250w, they would most certainly perform fine
(for music) with a 50w/ch Amp. At 91.5dB Rated Sensitivity, they should have no problem filling most rooms.
https://www.focal.com/sites/www.foc...log/document/Aria_926-specification_sheet.pdf
I think you will find most AV Receivers have 100w/channel or more, which is plenty of power. As you go to the higher side of the price range, you are buying a bit more power, but more likely quality and features.
The
Marantz SR7011 AVR is about 125w/ch of power, and it is 9.2 channels.
(~£1200)
The
Denon AVR-X4300 is about 125w/ch and has 9.2-channels.
(~£1500)
The
Denon AVR-X6300 is about 140w/ch and has 11.2 channels.
(~£2200)
The
Yamaha RX-A3060 is about 150w/ch and has 9.2 channels.
(~£1700)
Cambridge Audio CXR120, 100w/ch, 7.2 (~£1500)
Cambridge AUdio CXR200, 120w/ch, 7.2 (~£2000)
Pioneer SC-LX901 - 140w/ch - 11.2 channels - (~£2000)
For ATMOS you probably need a 9.2 or 11.2 channel amp.
If you want higher end AV Receivers, consider Arcam, Anthem, and others -
£3200 = Anthem MRX720, 11.2 channels, 140w/ch
£2700 = Arcam FMJ AVR550, 7-channels, 110w/ch, requires additional Amps for Atmos
None of these are the most expensive amps, they are just on the higher side of consumer AV Receivers. You can easily go as high as £5000 to £10,000 just for an AV Receiver.
Likely any of these AVRs in the £1000 to £2000 range will do a fine job for you. If you can double that, we can start looking at Pre-Amp/Processors and Power Amps.
A quick scan of AV Pre-Amp Processors shows them in the range of £1700 and a bit over £4000. Multi-channel Power amps running between £1000 and £4000 depending on the quality and number of channels.
For high end with Atmos (5.1.2) the Parasound are good quality and well reviewed. The ideal combination would be.
£2600 = Parasound Halo A21, 2x 250w/ch Power Amp (FRONT)
£5000 = Parasound Halo A51, 5x250w/ch Power Amp (Center, Surround, Atmos)
That would give you seven channels, if you need more, then just buy more Parasound A21 Amps. Seven channels would be enough for Atmos 5.1.2. If you want 5.1.4 or 7.1.4, you will need 9 and 11 channels respectively.
As you can see, the budget potential can run very high, so we need you to narrow it down and give us a clear statement of your realistic Budget?
Steve/bluewizard