i also talk about the listening position as important as well. i guess you missed that.

i do not think that people can get good surround sound from the speakers being too close together.

7.1 is "generally" for larger rooms, but that does not in any way mean that it is NOT for normal sized rooms. ill concede that much, as i have before.

also I have not touched upon the lack of 7.1 material available, last time i checked it was only BEGINNING to be produced with 6.1. thus, most titles are 5.1 and the 6th and 7th channels are duplicates of the 4th and 5th, which lends itself to stadium type of seating (or multiple rows) in which there is a larger listening area. if there is no difference between the 1st and 2nd surround sound "row", there will be no "side" sounds and no "rear" sounds, instead it will be all rear. hearing the same sound coming from two different places in a room as an effect will not enhance the experience (in fact, if not properly setup, has a greater chance to lessen it), and definitely would not be a big improvement over 5.1 speakers. and if the material is encoded for 6.1, then the "rear center" channel is split between the 2 rears which is not ideal, seeing as the sound was intended to come from the middle rear.

its so easy to get off topic, but the jist of what i have been saying is that 7.1 is fine and dandy, BUT the cost vs reward right now is low. if i was wiring, i would wire for anything possible. if i was buying, i would not buy 7.1 unless i had a large enough room (or listening area) to appreciate it, and i planned on scouring dvds for discs encoded with the likes of es or ex.

i am talking from personal experience as well as audio knowledge, and i have found that what i said holds true.

i guess if sound could travel the speed of light placement wouldnt matter, but alas the laws of the universe make it travel a slower and that enables us to detect its movement.

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