Meat's Dream System, $2700 w/ remote, rack, cables

I get that a lot here, too. Thanks though Rusty.

Wow, Im impressed with that lineup. *feeling smug*

If anyone has questions why I chose what I did, feel free to ask.

Those speakers are the best I've heard at that price point period. Never owned them.

The 805 is being superceded by the 806. The 806 has a much weaker amp, less touted DAC, and will cost twice the price. The 805, when first released a year ago or so, sold at CC for $1,100.

That sub is a sweet spot buy at full retail. Its extremely well measured. I don't think you can find a sub that good at either at CC, or BB, possibly at Magnolia, but even then... and the costs won't even be close.

Words of warning, both the receiver and sub are very large.

is a one time thing, and will never happen again, FWIW.

Anyone else ever see a receiver w/ Ultra amp for less than $1,000? Ever?

Anyway, it sounds like a helluva performance & value proposition to me. Bear in mind, because the Ascend are sold internet direct & are not as well known as others, few have had the chance to judge their performance as hyped as nearly fantastic.

I think I've thought enough about cables. I have a whole bunch, Tara labs, Montser, Acoustic Research, generic stuff, and of course Monoprice. Mono is so affordable. my 35 ft hdmi cable is $43, and bluray + hd-dvd look astounding on my 159" screen, 1080/24. The short cables are only a couple of dollars, and are plenty robust.

good point on some sort of power center. Id probably recommend a refurbished APC ups system, with enough wattage if plugging in amp and/or beefy sub. The amp draws the most at turn on when the caps get charged. Im thinking a minimum of 500 watts. However, my Belkin UPS for my PJ makes some noise (though my computer's Belkin does not). Its in a place where it has no significance, but it could be bothersome in particular setups.

Ascend has, easily, the best off-axis response I've heard anywhere near that price range. Which leads to excellent imaging and stage. A bit inarticulate in lower register, but in context of what you're getting for the money...

Well, I didn't really mean a UPS. Those will last only a few minutes with the power demands of an audio system in the event of an outtage. I was talking about surge protector/power centers

I would stay away from APC for audio applications; they are more PC oriented. Belkin is a good choice as well as their other name, Pure AV. This is one case where I might justify paying for Monster. I personally have a Monster HTS2600MKII and it rocks.

but if you can afford it, why not?!

It's the single driver, at $599 base price. The b-stock I listed are already sold out now. They ALWAYS sell out SO FAST. Because the deals are arguably as good as they get. If I was looking at a sub at this price point, I would check into the b-stock every day.

The amp has been redesigned pretty recently. Its a marked improvement.

jonnybones

I know you didn't mean UPS, but I did. Some people don't need one. Some people do. I will just say that some extraordinarily knowledgable people believe that drops in voltage are just as deleterious to AV electronics as are the spikes and surges.

That being said, its all price point. If I was offered a suitable power center for $100, or suitable UPS for $1000, sure I'd take the former. But if the costs were $250 vs $300, well I'd take the latter.

APC is probably the most recommended in the AV forums. They make models that are totally suitable. I have read that they have very good CS, and you can call for advice.

APC being good for home theater is news to me.

It is 100% correct that drops/surges harm electronics, that is not in dispute. That's why I suggested a power center. I don't claim to know about ALL the options out there but my power center corrects voltage within a certain range (I forget the specs) back to a safe and stable voltage. It also turns itself off if it sees voltage outside its correcting range (higher or lower) until that power is back to a stable condition. The other day the power flickered and it turned itself off. After 15 seconds everything came right back on. Even though monster power is expensive for what it does; it does it well.

I have the same problem here.

Check out this duplicate post of mine. They should work there:

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?p=447397#post447397