I've tried searching around for an answer to this, and I haven't gotten one.

I am going to be buying a sound setup soon. My budget is in the neighborhood of $1500. I was originally going to buy a receiver and 5.1 speakers. I listen to an even split of music/movies. I went out and started testing equipment, and I was underwhelmed with what I was hearing. I soon was given the notion that going for a stereo setup for now would work better for me, given the simple laws of economics ($1500 for two channels of amplification and 2 speakers would buy higher quality than with 5 channels and 5.1 speakers).

The shock was just HOW much better it is. Its like jumping from a Daewoo to a BMW. No comparison.

So, I am certain that I will go with a stereo setup for now. But then the question came as to whether to get a 2 channel integrated amp for now, or get a surround receiver and build into it later.

And then the question comes to mind- is Dolby surround worth it at all? With the better stereo setups I have tried, the soundstage was so freakin good that I had to get up multiple times to make sure there wasn't a center channel on. On some Roger Waters recordings I was listening to, the sounds jumped around the room up to about the 180 degree mark. If a true, quality stereo setup can provide imaging like that, would 5.1 speakers really be an improvement? Could it actually be a detriment? Thing is, the whole surround thing is just kind of there, and I haven't ever really had it proven to me.

Furthermore, if I went with just a stereo setup, when watching movies could I get a processor of some kind for making it work the best possible for 2 channels?

Here is the setup that I am considering:
NAD integrated stereo amp- C320BEE
NAD T515 DVD/CD Player
PSB Image T-45 speakers
And I alredy got my hands on a nice Technics Direct Drive Turntable too.

Better with a good stereo setup than a lousy 5.1, thats for sure. But you do not have to buy all of the speakers at once as that may be quite expensive.

If you like classical music, then multi-channel recordings (mostly SACD) are a great improvement.

The www.sa-cd.net is a great site for information about SACD releases.

Thanks for the reply- reading through my original post, I realize I may have rambled a bit. The real question, I suppose, is why is a center channel necessary? I've heard stereo setups now where the imaging is so good that the sound seems to be coming from all over the place. With that being the case, is the center channel just a band-aid for bad speakers or setup? I have been told now that the reason movie theatres have center channels is simply because the distance from left to right is simply too great for the stereo pair to make a convincing sounstage (logically I suppose this makes sense, with the whole equilateral triangle rule, and the speakers that far apart, you'd lose half of your seating area in the theatre).

It seems to me that if anything, there should be 4 channels, ala quadraphonics. I'm just a skeptic by nature, and have to question everything. Straighten me out! My mind is wide open for new ideas.

There are several threads dealing with the center channel, so just use the search function of this forum. You will notice there are many opinions on this matter :D

That said, I prefer the use of center channel but instead of rehashing the arguments, just read those threads.

cool- I will do a search on center channels specifically. It sounds like there are some others who question it as well, so that makes me feel better at least. Thanks dude- I'll post back in a bit and tie in what I read.

Basically if you always sit in the sweet spot you are correct. A stereo pair will provide you with the proper image and voice location.

If you sit anywhere else then the center channel is needed to anchor the voices to the screen.

You've got the right idea though.

Start with a great stereo setup then add speakers later.

I'd recommend getting a surround sound receiver or preamp/amp setup. Otherwise you'll be wasting money on a 2 channel integrated amp that won't be used later on.

Actually, if you get a Receiver with preouts for all channels later on you could use the integrated amp as a regular amp for the front left/right speakers.

-brien

So upon further research, I found out the following- people on this board LOVE to fight, and most informative posts go to hell within 3-4 replies. :D

But seriously, what I have taken is a lot like you've stated- the center channel is useful in anchoring dialogue and sounds to the screen in Home theatre, and when you are sitting way the heck out of the sweet spot it keeps it together.

So therefore, my followup is this: It seems that a typical HT processor can do 2 channel surround, by somehow combining the data through the magic of electrical things I don't understand. Why not have a 4 channel option? It doesn't appear that any of them have this.

Also- with the setup that I listed, there is no dedicated HT processor. Can the DVD player put out the signal 'already processed' for 2 channels in a proper Dolby 2 channel surround mode?

Before you call me a jackass, I already know I am one. Great advice/knowledge so far.

It seems that a typical HT processor can do 2 channel surround, by somehow combining the data through the magic of electrical things I don't understand. Why not have a 4 channel option? It doesn't appear that any of them have this.
I don't understand the question. What do you mean by "2 channel surround"? Do you mean a virtual surround mode?

AV receivers do allow you to have various combinations of speakers, and will downmix accordingly. You can tell the receiver you have no centre speaker, and it will redirect centre content to left and right. One caveat there is that if you have anything less than 5 speakers, some receivers view you as having a substandard system, and automatically turn on dynamic range compression. This can have a significant impact on sound quality.
Also- with the setup that I listed, there is no dedicated HT processor. Can the DVD player put out the signal 'already processed' for 2 channels in a proper Dolby 2 channel surround mode?
Still don't really understand the question. DVD players always have the option of outputting a 2-channel downmix of the content, for the vast majority of viewers that don't have surround systems.

the center channel is useful in anchoring dialogue and sounds to the screen in Home theatre, and when you are sitting way the heck out of the sweet spot it keeps it together.The centre speaker is beneficial even for people sitting in the sweet spot. But if you can't accomodate one at this time or want to concentrate your funds on a 2-speaker set-up, any A/V receiver will let you run a basic stereo layout. Modern receivers automatically scale the number of channels in the source material to fit the number of speakers in your set-up. Why not have a 4 channel option? It doesn't appear that any of them have this.All receivers have this option. During initial set-up, you simply dial in the receiver for no centre speaker. Information from the centre channel is split evenly between the front L/R speakers, so that it phantom images exactly in between. Can the DVD player put out the signal 'already processed' for 2 channels in a proper Dolby 2 channel surround mode?Sure. Most DVD players can downmix a 5.1-channel signal to 2 channels using Dolby Surround encoding. This 2-channel signal can be output through the player's L/R analogue connections or as a PCM digital signal output through the player's coax or optical connections.

Sanjay

So therefore, my followup is this: It seems that a typical HT processor can do 2 channel surround, by somehow combining the data through the magic of electrical things I don't understand. Why not have a 4 channel option? It doesn't appear that any of them have this.


There is this option. Is is sometimes called "phantom" mode or your simply select "none" for center.

ALL Surround receivers made in the last 5 years have this feature. Hell, almost all pro logic receivers made in the early/mid 90s had this feature.

Honestly I would MUCH rather use the left and right speakers for a phantom center then use one of those crappy "dedicated" center channels.

They suck! If you want to get a center speaker get the exact same speaker as your mains! No questions. EVERY other option is a compromise.

-brien