Working in reverse...

The "4 and 5" speakers are the surround channels at all times -- in 6.1/7.1 modes, in 5.1 modes, and in multichannel analog.

My speakers are a little more than three feet about the listener's ears, which I believe is actually not too uncommon a recommendation. It lends itself well to wall mounted speakers, as it is often difficult to place tower speakers or smaller speakers in stands in the surround positions.

When I started into surround in the mid to late 90's (Pro Logic and the VCR; never got up to the sophistication of LD), I tended to expect surround speakers oriented a bit behind the listener's position (similar to the surround back placement). Outlaw's recommendation for placement of the surrounds (roughly in line with the listener) is also recommended by Dolby Labs. I can't find it at the moment, but I also believe THX recommends this placement for dipole surrounds. I know that in my own system I've found that I get a better sound from the system when the surrounds ("4" and "5") are closer to in line with the listening position.

I've been using some sort of surround back processing for several years now (first the 1050 for Dolby Digital 5.1 material, and for a good while now the 950 with CES or DD EX on everything -- Pro Logic II with CES for TV watching and Dolby 2.0 material, CES or DD EX for Dolby 5.1 and EX movies, and DTS-ES on a lot of DTS stuff. It does help smooth out the surrounds, and as you can tell I use it whether the source was intended for it or not. CES is very good about not letting things collapse to the surround back.

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

[This message has been edited by gonk (edited December 04, 2003).]