Jeremys4runner wrote:
Lets say you have $1000 and you are trying to put together a decent home
audio system.

Your budget figure is pretty important. With careful spending, you can
do a lot more with even $1400 than $1000, but if $1000 is what you want
to do, then here's my own suggestion.

If you are willing to forego FM (which isn't a bad idea in this day and
age of Internet Radio), you might consider a classic integrated amp.
I saw a Fisher X100 today for $250 on Craigslist at:

http://www.craigslist.org/eby/ele/72733265.html

CD players can be had for very cheap. $100 or less.

With a $1000 limit, I'd recommend staying out of vinyl just because
any turntable you'd really want would cost you a good $300 to start.

Since you say you can build your own loudspeakers, that's precisely
what you should do. Take the balance of your money and go to
Madisound at:

http://www.madisound.com/

Russ