best position of components in relation to spkers?

I have had equipment in-between the speakers for years. I have had the stuff away from the speakers along a wall with stuff keeping a direct path from speakers to equipment. Then back to between, then to the immediate right of right speaker, now currently 15 ft back.
So I have found that i did enjoy the system better with the stuff far away from the speakers.
I cannot say exactly what it is that is better, except the sound makes me happier and I listen more.
So I find the added cost of long cables ($800. for Kimber Hero 7 meters) (my amp is still between the speakers, but i could move it away...)
The added cost of long cables is well worth the bother of distancing the electronics from the speakers.
Distance is even more important for a turntable.

I have had the best sound with my equipment on the side wall. While using mono amplifiers behing the speakers with short (1 meter) speaker cables and 25' interconnects.

I agree with Elizabeth, it just sounds better. The music is more involving with an across the board improvement.

This is especially true with turntables which I have found to sound their best 2/3 to 3/4of the way down the side wall from the speakers.

I agree with keeping the equipment from being positioned between the speakers. I have used the side wall in the past and in my new apartment I have the sources and preamp in another room and drilled a hole in the wall to run the interconnects to the amp in the listening room.

I have found the best position to be with the equipment behind me. This also allows for similar sound treatment on both side walls.

RL&C as well as dielectric absorbance constants are what govern our selection of connection wire (wifi is a whole new paradigm). These parameters are listed and measured per distance. The lowest total numbers are what we seek which demands the shortest lengths. The shortest distance is a straight line between two speakers with electronics' connectors on that line. Good for the electronics, bad for the illution of imaging and sound staging in the accoustic domain. Imaging and soundstaging are a byproduct of low level resolution BOTH electrical and accoustic. Having electronic componants between speaker drivers is destructive because they upset the propagated sound and thus upset and contaminate low level accoustic display. It is simply a case of componants' accoustic reflections. It becomes obvious that componants with big and flat faceplates perpendicular to the listening position are to be avoided. My solution to this dilema is a simple one indeed. All that is needed is a way to minimise or eliminate reflections from componant front panels. Accoustic foam or just a terrycloth bath towel over face plates is all that is needed to reduce this accoustic harmonic distortion. I use black to remove VISUAL contamination, but that's another topic.

May powdered sugar fall gently upon your ears this evening.

Lester