Moving from stereo amp to 2.1/5.1

[alienmango]

Hi, I hought I'd post it here since it's about getting 2.1 sound essentially, though I realise 5.1 amps are far more common.

So basically I don't want to downsize on power/quality, I currently have a nad c370 and an arcam rdac, I wanted something with a built in dac which will also cross over my speakers to a sub (digitally) since I don't want very low frequencies going to my speakers.

So I was wondering if for £500 (what I'd get for my equipment + the minidsp I'd avoid having to buy) I could get something (new or second hand) which is 2.1 or 5.1 receiver with the same sound quality.

Thanks for any help. I realise this may simply be impossible, but I also know how far av amps have come.

 

[Leeps]

I believe the NAD D3020 (a stereo amp with built-in DAC) has the facility to use a sub with a selectable crossover and comes in at £400. It's had excellent reviews, although it's not especially powerful so it might depend on the sensitivity of your speakers as to whether this is a good partnership or not. That's obviously in addition to the usual consideration of tonal balance when partnering amp and speakers.

I can't recommend the amp personally as I've not heard it myself, but spec-wise it seems to meet your needs.