Ok, so we just got our living room all set up today with a 5-speaker surround system. I know the fantasy stereo buffs will jab at the speakers, receiver and positioning, but this system was put together quickly to appease the unpolished tastes of a woman in her mid 50's. If it were MY system, it would have been Klipsch all around, but my dad wouldn't spend $300 per speaker. Party pooper.
The real gem of this setup is the infrared main unit. It's basicly a system of modules that attach to the infrared detectors on each unit that are connected to a main infrared receiver. This allows you to hide your receiver/DVD/VHS/cable box from view, and have one target to aim your remote at.
Some more explanation after the pics:
Frontal view. Front speakers at the sides, center speaker above the TV. Sorry, my living room is just as tilted as I am.
Rear left.
Rear right and subwoofer.
View from the kitchen.
Receiver and DVD/CD player
It wasn't my idea to keep this.
About the subwoofer... I would have liked a better tactical spot to put it, such as directly behind the big couch, but to some people, visual is more important than audio. Pfft!
Right now, we don't have an HDTV/cable box for that TV, but when it gets here, it'll go on top of the VCR.
You may notice the infrared nodes on both the receiver and the VHS units (from the little wires hanging from the front). Why is there not one on the DVD player? Well, the signal actually reflects off the inside of the cupboard door from the receiver's node into the DVD player's infrared detector. This way, we won't have to attach one to the HDTV/cable box when it gets here.
The infrared main unit system is about $400, I think. I can post more details if you're interested.