Comments.
Walls are not speakers' friends. If this is a primary concern, I would consider using on-wall speakers. There are many good brands out there. If you are sticking with the 8s, and they have a rear port, I might consider putting a port bung in it. Experiment. Anyways, some minimal distance from boundaries is desired for better bass/mid-bass dispersion in general. (They emanate from all around the speaker, not just forward).
Do you need both of those cabinets? The more stuff you have between the speakers, the more your imaging and/or soundstage will probably be compromised. Oftentimes, many audiophiles say the greatest improvement/tweak they ever made was getting rid of all the components in between the speakers.
Last concern would be the heat of your components. For instance, I personally would never have that stuff + telephone + flashlight on top of my receiver. Surely just temporary I presume...
Ouch. Front's will have to stay on the floor. Thanks. In wall speakers are out of question. Apartment
The stuff over the receiver will go once the CI is done. I did not want to keep the AVR inside the cabinet until the CI is done.
There was only one cabinet. I had to get another to stuff cable box, dvd player, xbox 360, hd-dvd player, PS3, VCR (for kids stuff from library), router, VoIP box, cable modem, laptop connected to TV and possibly the AVR. I could not go for a taller cabinet. That would block the view unless the TV is mounted off center.
Any speaker port visible to my son is an open invitation to dump toys in it
My last sub had a front port. I noticed the sub sounding less and less effective over a time. Then one day I saw one of his toys sticking out. I opened the sub found the treasure
I am still searching for a good wide cabinet that is not too tall and can be locked.