Just wanted to chime in with a couple of more points without submitting to the deluge of **** that has been yet again stirred up in here (mods, where are you?)...
I am quite opinionated on this subject, so I hope no one here gets offended.
It's okay to be opinionated -- but let's be clear, as with everyone, that it's our personal opinions we're speaking of here, and that we all have a right to voice one.
Many will agree, many will disagree, but we can express these sentiments comfortably knowing that they're just opinions and viewpoints on another's opinions.
IMO, 2-channel audio is one of the best ways to go (of course with a subwoofer hooked up as well). 2-channel audio is great for music and that's the basic thing audio systems are for. Having speakers in multiple rooms in a house so everyone can hear the same music can be great as well, but that's a different subject altogether.
I agree that a single room with two speakers (and possibly a sub -- which I don't feel is absolutely critical as you seemingly do so long as the mains are of decent enough full-range capabilities) is the right way to do serious 2-channel -- it's the way I do it and have always done it, with a listening seat/chair directly between two speakers, a rack of stereo gear in the middle and a nice stereo image, and I never agreed with piping in music to a house via one receiver or amp where six different family members could listen to 60 different sources at once; there's just something odd about that.
5.1, 7.1, etc, surround systems are messy with speakers everywhere (in the same room) and just look tacky. And now don't they have 9.1 and are coming out with 10.2 and 22.2? Gimme a break! I can't imagine how much of a mess those are! IMO, that stuff is fine for movie theaters but ridiculous to have at home.
Two different issues here -- first of all, 5.1 etc. systems
do not have to look "tacky" or "messy" with "speakers everywhere;" our 5.1 setup is as clean as can be, with two large towers for front main channel duty sitting flush and neat against a wall unit/entertainment center with NO wires or cables showing, and our surround channels are up in the ceiling, so there's NO "mess" to the install whatsoever. My point is that these rooms set up for surround sound don't have to look messy or tacky.
The second element to your statement has some validity in it -- that is, the amount of speakers for a home entertainment arrangement has gotten ridiculous and out of hand already. Receiver manufacturers want us to buy their models which are boasting more and more channel support with each passing model succession, but there's still NO software support for these setups -- in other words, 99% of Blu-ray and DVD titles released STILL only carry 5.1 channel soundtracks, and although many HT enthusiasts will argue that the end user can "matrix" these 5.1 tracks through more channels, and "spread" them through additional speakers via certain modes, I don't buy it.
As soon as my Onkyo 605 was released, it became almost obsolete in that the next generation model was already adding "height" channels and other nonsense, which suggests a bigger stage could be experienced in your room by adding more speakers above the main channels and on and on...it never seems to end. So I agree with that.
I think movie theaters actually need surround sound much more because they are much larger spaces compared to peoples' living rooms and therefore people can hear sounds better in movie theaters with all those speakers everywhere. So there is an actual practical use for surround sound systems in movie theaters, but not at home.
This thinking is a bit skewed, but I don't have time right this minute to explain why -- in a nutshell, the concept of home theater is designed to recreate the theater experience in your living room or dedicated home space, so there isn't just use for this in a large multiplex...
At home, I would much rather hear Beethoven's 9th Symphony properly through a 2-channel system than watch and listen to really loud and "in-your-face" sound effects from some cheesy movie like "Transformers". IMO, movie sound effects that are too loud or "in-your-face" are nothing but annoying.
Well, this is just complete personal perspective and preference.
On the other hand, good music can sound great even when played at high volumes. A good quality 2-channel stereo system has loud enough sound effects for any movie without being annoying.
I just don't buy into the whole "immersive" surround sound thing. IMO, 5.1, 7.1, etc. are just too gimmicky for home use. 2-channel audio is time-tested and here to stay.
Two different worlds at play here -- there will always be a place for two channel music listening...dedicated, pure, honest and the way music was MEANT to be experienced and enjoyed. HOME THEATER does have its merits -- when you want to sit down and check your brain at the door with a senseless action film, there's nothing like cranking up a well-mixed DTS, Dolby Digital or lossless soundtrack through a multichannel system and getting fully immersed in the experience. But these are two different concepts that have a place in their own ways.
