I'd like to spend $300 to $400 on a 2.0 or 2.1 setup with receiver ...

Initially, they will be used for 75% music, 25% film off a laptop (with some ipod and possibly XM mixed in for music). Long-term I wouldn't mind having the ability to add on to a 5.1 setup that would be 100% TV/film (once I can afford that HDTV, that is).

I only want to spend $300 to $400 right now, so if I could get significantly better speakers in a 2.0 setup leaving out the sub for now, but that would still have decent bass for music, that would be ideal.

Any suggestions?

Wow, you want a receiver AND pair of speakers for under $400 total? That's a very small budget and doesn't leave you too many options (at least not too many that would sound anything like good). You could try something like the Boston Acoustics CR67 bookshelf speakers for $160 from Circuit City, leaving you about $240 for a cheap receiver. A few $$ more would allow you to get one of the very popular Panasonic digital receivers (SA-XR55 or 57 I believe) which are around $280 or less and quite good. Amazon carries them I believe.

There's also a thread around here discussing a particular set of Insignia bookshelf speakers for like $50 from Best Buy that people seem to like, you might try those.

Or for a receiver you might try a refurb from one of the online retailers like jr.com. A refurb Onkyo might fit your budget for example and would get you a bit better receiver than a straight-up new one.

You might also consider just spending the whole pot on a pair of powered computer speakers or a set of powered pro monitors or multi-media powered speakers. You don't need a receiver with these because the amps are built into the speakers (though of course there's no path to expand to multichannel audio with these other than starting from scratch). Search the forum for "powered speakers" or something like that. Try your local Guitar Center or other pro audio store too.

TheAudioInsider.com carries quite a nice lil selection of active (powered) desktop speakers you might like here:

http://www.theaudioinsider.com/products_new.php?cPath=21_24

I haven't heard any of them personally but they have a great rep, and Jon Lane's products are all usually excellent.

Good luck.

I don't know much about this stuff, but I can say that the $60 Insignias from BB are a major step up over HTiB type speakers. They are also quite good looking.

A Panasonic SA-XR55 @ $175-180.00 would be nice receiver to start with if you don't need HDMI. But, depending upon how long you might think it will be before you go to 5.1, it may be outdated by then.

SA-XR55 brochure (https://home.comcast.net/~schiz/XR55_brochure.pdf)

Beach Audio (http://search.beachaudio.com/search?p=Q&ts=custom&w=SA-XR55)

J&R Music World (http://www.jr.com/JRProductPage.process?Product=4032234)

And yes, you'd be better off getting 2 speakers now and saving up (~$400, at least) for a good sub, later.

Maybe my price range isn't quite high enough for a speaker/receiver setup. I was basically just looking for something that's a step up from the standard Klipsch 2.1s for computer use right now, and that I might be able to add on to in the future.

NEW......thats not going to happen, USED.....now there is a little wiggle room.
eBay if you are so inclined.

Since you are looking to power them from a PC then a self-powered 2.0 system from Swan looks promising. Or other mfgs of same equipment.

Contrary to popular opinion around here, it is very possible to do this without sacrificing too much on quality. Keep in mind that even budget low end HiFi system will sound worlds above PC Speakers like Logitechs/Creative/Klipsch.

Receiver
I would highly recommend checking out Ebay or Craigslist and go after used components. Its not too difficult to find a decent ProLogic receiver that still delivers lots of power at the expense of having bells and whistles such as Component/Digital/HDMI. If you are connecting to computer, all you really need is something with multichannel analog inputs.

If you want all new equipment, go with this route: I would also check out Refurbed Onkyo units. You can usually get these for much less at ShopOnkyo store. My refurb Onkyo had no problems at all while I used it and it is backed by Onkyo warranty as well. Most of the time, they are just cosmetic problems that were fixed and recerted by Onkyo. Sometimes they have heavily discounted 5.1 / 7.1 HTIB setups which bundle a receiver, and its not a bad starting block to get into HiFi. Right now, I see a TX-SR304 for $99 , and im pretty sure you can a -$10 discount for signing up. Not a bad price l for a starter 5.1 receiver. http://www.shoponkyo.com/

Bookshelves
As far as Bookshelves, there are a lot of options you can go with that are under $100. Here are a few off the top of my head....you should be able to search on the forum and find a good amount of information on a lot of these w/ user comments.

Mission m70S ~ $70: http://www.tsto.com/cgi-bin/TSTO.storefront/46d9f71100254cae2740ac100341061e/Product/View/2191

Insignia NS-B2111 ~ $60: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7705307&st=Insignia+Bookshelf&type=product&id=1138085354138

Athena AS-B1.2 ~ $100:
http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=ATASB1%2E2

Polk R150 ~ $50:
http://shop3.outpost.com/product/4965491;jsessionid=4ynRUseoktW6x4SeQYvGNA**.node1?site=sr:SE ARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

Boston Acoustics CR57 ~ $100:
http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Boston-Acoustics-Bookshelf-Speakers-CR57B/sem/rpsm/oid/159492/catOid/-12950/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do

Out of these, id highly recommend the Boston Acoustics. Give them a listen if you can at your local CircuitCity. Very pleasing sound for cheap.

That should leave you about $150-$200 for a sub. Might want to check the subwoofer section if they offer any advice on cheaper subs. Here are some ideas to start you off:

Subs
Velodyne VX10 ~ $150
http://shop3.outpost.com/product/4674948?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

Dayton Sub120 ~ $150
http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=300-635

Hope this helps. It definitely is possible. I did the same 3 years ago