Hate to ask......

It's pretty much all been said in the above posts. Nice post Kelly, I agree. But I take Swampwalker's approach to the issue. I enjoy TV movies and have a sort of minimalist and half-assed HT set up in our family room. But two channel is where I have chosen to put my main efforts-- and bucks.

My wife does not like the noise of exploding bombs, gun shots etc at realistic levels in the family room. And when you set volume for realistic dialog, then explosions are going to be pretty overwhelming-- well to my wife anyway. But my music listening room is sacrosanct. Cheers. Craig.

Tireguy:

You can also put my name in the hat as one of those who DON'T hate home theater. Anything contradicting that couldn't be further from the truth. Each system has purpose in my life. My home theater is used to enhance the my enjoyment of movies, concerts (if any are recorded on either DVD or VHS), and sporting events. But it would be the last thing I would use if I want to listen to music. For that, I have a separate high-end, two channel stereo system in another room. It seems that I can get a natural sounding soundstage and image from a two channel system without instruments leaking into the rear channels (as would be the case if I were to listen to music on my home theater system). I also get a better sense of palpability (don't ask me what that is, I don't know what that is exactly. That was just a term I have picked up from the great Sam Tellig of Stereophile a few years ago) when I am listening to music on a two channel stereo system. But now, if I watch a movie and get the soundtrack from my stereo system, then I am going to be missing a lot of what's going on, and I am going to feel isolated from being part of the action, if you know what I am trying to say. Or to put it another way, if you are going to a formal gathering, are you going to drive same Honda Accord or Toyota Camry to this gathering that you drive to work everyday, or are you going to go for something for something such as an Acura RL or a Lexus LS-430 (if you don't rent a limo first off)?? An interesting analogy, but you get my point. Different systems are used for different purposes.

I happen to love MY home theater VERY MUCH, thank you... :)

--Charles--

albert: and i thought i was compulsive! i'd call your system(s) seperate but equal. BTW, wouldn't it take a lot less effort and save more space to have a projector and pull-down screen. ( i suspect that you have thought of or tried this and have rejected it for valid reasons.) good listening AND watching! -kelly

Kelly, Correct about the quality of the pull down screen. The two problems I have concerning it are money and ambient room light. Being a photographer I love natural light. I had a huge hole cut my living room ceiling about ten years ago. It measures about 14 X 18 feet and is topped with multiple clear Plexiglas skylights. The view out to the blue sky and the big trees hanging over it makes working and listening in the room a pleasure.

With the summer daylight this far South, it is not nightfall until after 9:00 PM at night, I have probably outsmarted myself in getting a projector, unless I buy some expensive mechanized light blocking shades.

The family can still watch in this room with the rear projector Pioneer and see the image quite well, even during the day. I had at one time considered having both types of televisions, but there is always something needing my energy and money that keeps me from it.

One point that hasn't been mentioned is the effect of having extra (idle) speakers sitting in the room when trying to enjoy 2-channel sound. I saw a web page once (from a local audio shop) that described the following phenomenon:

Play a 2-channel recording at your standard listening level, and go around to each of your surround speakers and sub. Look at the movement of their cones, or touch the cones and feel the resonance (there will be some). Now, turn on the surrounds and sub only and play them at a volume where their movement/resonance levels match those that you observed in the 2-channel mode. That is the approximately the level of "noise" your extra speakers are creating. Just as rooms have resonances that degrade sound, extra speakers (DESIGNED to make noise!) merely sitting in the room will have the same effect.

I love my combo HT/Music system, but I also know that the extra speakers and the television that sits in between the L/R speakers (distorting their imaging qualities) come with a price. It's one that I'm willing to live with, and one that I've found to be worth it, but the cost exists nonetheless.