Long story short: I had a surround system, sold it, planning to upgrade to some newer stuff. I do really like music, though. So I am now considering taking my entire budget (~5k) and putting it into the best pair of speakers I can afford and 2-channel electronics. Am I crazy for considering this? Have any of you ever gone from surround to 2-channel and actually been happy about the move?

Am I crazy for considering this?
NO!

I am extremely happy with my decision. The amount of satisfaction that I get out of my 2 channel system is so much more than what I was getting from my 5.1 system. Granted, now, my stereo is vastly more costly than my original 5.1 setup, but even when I first got into stereo and had a much more modest system, the difference in quality was immense. From my auditioning, I found that it really paid off to lose the surround sound and divert all funds into stereo in the price range between 300$-4000$ for surround set vs. stereo set. That is, within this range, I found a stereo much superior sounding than the equivalently priced 5.1 setup. I haven't tested much beyond the 4k$ price due to my budget constraints.

To me, I was able to accept the compromise of missing the surround effects for gaining in quality in the front two speakers.

During your auditions, if you still feel that you are missing the surround effects, then I would advise you to look at speakers that have a multichannel upgrade path.

Long story short: I had a surround system, sold it, planning to upgrade to some newer stuff. I do really like music, though. So I am now considering taking my entire budget (~5k) and putting it into the best pair of speakers I can afford and 2-channel electronics. Am I crazy for considering this? Have any of you ever gone from surround to 2-channel and actually been happy about the move?

That's not crazy at all. If your major passion is 2-channel, then focusing on that is a completely logical and intelligent way to go. Obviously it would make much less senseif you were an avid movie-watcher and were building an HT system, but since as you say you're really into music, by all means. I don't have a 2-channel only system, but music is also my critical passion in terms of listening, so I focused my major investments in the best possible front L/R, and it's not to say that surrounds and the like were an afterthought, but the system is geared toward what I care most about, and that's 2-channel music.

I agree with chris... if your passion is 2 channel then invest in a great 2 channel, I prefer movies so to me it would be crazy, but for you its definetly not.

word! if that's your thing do it!
You could even still get a good 7 channel amp and then get the rest of your speakers in like a year or 2

I went from Mid Fi 7.1 separates back to 2.1 and don't regret it for a minute. I recently unpacked my McIntosh C15 pre-amp and MC 162 amp that's been in storage for the past three years because 80% of the time I find myself listening to music. These components are much better quality than the previous setup and blow it away in terms of sound QUALITY. I may not have a center channel or surround effects, however I made a significant upgrade in my main speakers and that alone more than makes up for the switch back. I was using B&W CDM 1NTs which were great speakers however after picking up a pair of PSB Platinum M2s I found the soundstage was so huge, the dynamics and imaging are much better, and the "center" dialog floats in front of the TV. I do not miss 5.1 at all. Although I never had to deal with the WAF factor the Mrs. was happy to see the center and surrounds go. I've been primarily a two channel guy over the past 25 years so I guess it was only natural to go back to my roots.

Long story short: I had a surround system, sold it, planning to upgrade to some newer stuff. I do really like music, though. So I am now considering taking my entire budget (~5k) and putting it into the best pair of speakers I can afford and 2-channel electronics. Am I crazy for considering this? Have any of you ever gone from surround to 2-channel and actually been happy about the move?

Crazy like a fox.....it looks like u landed on your feet.

I'm in the process of planning a change from my surround system to a stereo rig...I've been toying with the idea for a few years, but what finally sold me was getting some room treatments in here. After treating the room, the sound improved so dramatically that I feel like a multi-channel configuration is holding me back from what I really want - the best quality audio I can get. Even since I owned Magnepans for a couple years, I've been a quality over quantity guy. I fell in love with all the detail and life-like effects I was hearing from the Maggies.

I'm already getting a nice, big soundstage, excellent imaging, and wonderful realism both with movies and music. I expect the addition of a true preamp and some other changes will improve things even further.

I don't feel Im missing anything by not having surrounds, but what I do NOT want to give up is the bass. The helpful people on AVS (and at SVS) have helped me understand how I'll be able to have great bass with a 2-channel system, so I'm more excited than ever.

Very diificult to have one system that does music and movies well. I finally ended up having two separate systems in different rooms.