Hello everyone, I've been reading your forum for a while now but never posted. I use my system for 90% movies and 10% music, but when I listen to music I'm looking for top quality sound.

I currently have a setup consisting entirely of Boston Acoustics CR series speakers. These were purchased around eight years ago and I have enjoyed the sound quality but am ready for an upgrade. On occasion, I feel that the system is a tad bright but I'm not sure how much of that is caused by the speakers vs. receiver vs. lack of room treatment. I have notice strain at high volumes, sibilance at moderate to high volumes, and the center channel is pretty weak.

I have been a Boston Acoustics fan for many years, using their equipment both in my house and also the car. I don't have the extra cash laying around to buy an entire system, so I'm looking at an upgrade path to purchase one piece at a time to achieve best results whether they come with Boston Acoustics or Ascend Acoustics. I am willing to wait and purchase one piece at a time to end up with the system that I want in the end. Here is my current equipment:

AVR: ............ Yamaha RX-V995 (DD/DTS, 5x100w)
Front R/L: ...... CR8
Center .......... CR2
Surround R/L: ... CR7
Subwoofer: ...... PV700
TV: ............. Hitachi 57F59a

Should I stick with Boston Acoustics knowing that I've liked their sound in the past, even though it's a tad bright at times? Or try Ascends? I don't want to feel like there may be something out there that's better, that I'm missing out on due to ignorance of a better product.

If I stick with Boston, my system would most likely be replaced in this order: VR12 center (used), an SVS cylinder subwoofer, VR3 mains, and then Bravo, VRB, or VRX surrounds. More than likely I would continue using the RX-V995 receiver until all speakers have been replaced, then as a pre-amp while purchasing separate amplifier(s), then upgrade the receiver to a dedicated pre/pro in the end with some newer features. If I go with Ascends, I would like to end up with 340SEs across the front and 170SE surrounds.

What do you recommend, and do you agree with the upgrade path or recommend a different route? Thanks for the advice!