$1000 and a tall order

[nightflier]

Thanks for all the good suggestions. Here are some more details:

The reason we wanted to go with the HK receiver is because they will be using several sources for the sound: a widescreen TV (already donated), VCR, FM radio, DVD Changer (already donated) and possibly digital cable. The HK has video switching too so that will come in handy. My thinking was to try it out with the receiver's built-in 120 watts first. Correct me if I'm wrong, but with 6 speakers running on an Adcom switch, that would still give us 20 watts per speaker, or should that be 40 Watts? That said, I am a little concerned from what RGA said about extended use of the receiver. Our hope is that this receiver will last us at least 10 years. Is that unrealistic?

The HK alone (at least for now) would allow us to spend more on the speakers and leave the option of adding the amp and running the HK as a preamp later if we needed it. And the Crown amps look ideal for that, I had completely forgotten about checking the pro-audio store; we have a Guitar Center nearby. They also sell speakers.

The room does not have acoustic treatments and there is an echo, which I know is not good news. So what I need a little more help on is the speakers. Some of the things I had not considered before is the dispersion angle. The Klipsch speakers are very directional so they may not be the best solution. People have recommended MTX and Cerwin Vega, but I have very little experience with these. I only mentioned the JBL Nortbridges because they have really nice specs for what we need. When the speaker switch is set for just two speakers, they will need to be able to handle a full 120 watts and still be able to play loud with just a 20 watt load when all six speakers are activated.

I should also mention that purchasing second-hand and from eBay is really not an option. The school has very strict purchasing guidelines that require purchase from an established vendor who stands behind his products.