Hate to ask......

To Kjg and some of the others, a center channel works best if you have your mains spread out quite a bit and you are seated a bit away from the screen. There is NO advantage to using a center channel if the mains are only 6' - 10' apart ( depending on their size ) and your sitting on top of the screen. Given a situation like that, it is probably a disadvantage so long as your mains are "decent".

In a wider room and sitting back a reasonable distance from the screen, mains that are spaced a good distance apart add even more "ambience" or "spacial cues" to sound effects and imaging. After all, a plane that buzzes from left to center to right in an 8' distance sounds a LOT different than one that motors across a 13' - 15' distance and slowly blends from left to center to right. Of course, not everyone has the room to accomodate such a system or speakers big enough to work well in a situation like that.

Something else that comes into play in a major way in situations like this is the dispersion patterns for the mains and center. Most people don't even think about the height or angle of the center speaker or take the time to properly aim it. Like anything else, "garbage in equals garbage out". It takes effort and planning to get ANYTHING to work at full potential. Sean
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Don't hate it. I have 3 systems. One is HT. I just can't imagine paying big bucks for a sound system to watch movies. Being all digital, and sometimes not very good digital, is it really high end most of the time?? My HT system sounds pretty good and I got it for a song buying mostly store demos.

FYI- My modest HT system is: (4) B&W 302 on Target Stands; CC-3 center; REL Q100E Subwoofer; Toshiba DVD Player; Onkyo AC3/DTS Receiver; Panasonic 32" TV; Audio Power Pack II and Monster conditioners. Synergy S30 Rack. Homebrew cables.

Ken,
I think Kelly was referring to the TV between the mains, not the center.
Sean,
Don't you think the mains can be too far apart? I would find it very unnatural to have sounds on the left side of the room (in the program) apparently coming from the next county over. Granted, most people have them too close to the TV, and too far recessed. But it's a huge improvement just to pull them out a couple feet and put the center on a stand in front of the TV. You really have to have a center channel to anchor the dialog for anyone not sitting in the sweet spot.

I needed a new 2 channel system last fall, but thought lets see how I could combine it with a HT set-up. I ended up with an Antheum AVM2 preamp driving Paradigm referance active 40s for mains, center, bipolar surrounds and Servo 15 sub. Everything is connected with XLR balanced lines. I could not be happier with it for both HT and 2 channel sound. The AVM2 even lets you create different enviroments if you like: theater, club, church, hall, statium, etc. or none.

Another thumbs-up for HT. I have both a two channel (~40k retail) and HT system (~20k retail) sharing a dedicated room. The HT system can be broken down and neatly stowed in about 15 minutes, leaving my main two channel speakers with space to breath. I'm using a front projection system, so no problem with a large direct view or RPTV between the speakers. This year I separated my 2 in 1 system based on a Meridian 561 pre/pro. Some of the rationale behind this was to keep the HT system balanced (same cables, speakers, amplification, etc.), and to allow focused upgrades to the two channel system. I derive a lot of pleasure from both systems, but find that the HT system attracts greater participation from both family, and friends. Music reproduction w/my HT system is nothing to scoff at, and I can easily see why many folks choose to stop here.