If you want a realistic picture of products I'd head to the Totenham Court road. This is the best place for Home Audio, purpose built audio rooms and the selection that places like Currys don't have.
I have run my Yamaha Natural Sound amp for some 15-20 years, this was a £500 unit back then and paired with Yamaha and Mission speakers. My front's were only £110 for the pair but truly epic, in fact I remember the day @ Totenham Court Road, I was listening to them and I turned around to see 20 other people and their jaws on the floor. That for me was a win and I've had them just as long as the audio kit.
In fact these were the same speakers I heard at te HI FI show held at the Novotel Hotel in Heathrow, where there was a £8,000 monoblock amp and these £110 speakers. Again the people in the room were amazed at what they could handle and their size in comparison to a flagship Sony amp.
The Onkyo reference above is a good one, they make some truly fantastic hardware. Read up on reviews though, and make sure everything is paired up nicely.
Oh to add I had the full B&W surround speakers for a short time and they were in my eyes fantastic!
Good luck in your search, and if you need a 5 Tier Hi-Fi stand there's one for sale