Let me tell you guys something: EBay is your friend.  That being said, there are some guidelines, boundaries if you will, that must be set before venturing into the world of online auctions.  I can't tell you how many hours I have spent sifting through thousands of items looking for a great deal, all the while tempted to just 'go ahead and do it' and break the bank on some awesome plasma or something.  Restraint is an absolute, because the second you bid on an item, there is the distinct possibility that you will have to buy it. 

Another dangerous facet of EBay is the bidding war.  Words don't do justice to the excitement of being on <5sec remaining for the auction, refreshing your browser like crazy and hoping the asshole on the other end hesitates for a split second or has a bad connection.  Victory never tasted so sweet!  And defeat, so bitter.  It shames me to admit how close to tears I have come over a freaking receiver.  And therein lies the danger; you want to win so bad, you sometimes don't stop to see how much you are actually bidding.  At the end, raising your fist victoriously, you realize you just spent $50 plus shipping on a shitty fleece vest.  Dumbass.

So it was with hopeful trepidation that I began my search for some new speakers.  I knew that at some point I would need a center channel and two front speakers to build a good home theater.  What is life without 5.1 surround sound?  After doing some research, I found a few brands that looked promising.  There are so many freaking manufacturers out there it is almost impossible to say which is the best.  But it is VERY easy to figure out which ones are out of your price range, and in my case it helped narrow the field considerably.  I eventually found a good deal on a set of Cerwin-Vegas; a center and two fronts.  The fronts are actually bookshelf speakers, and in an ideal world would serve as the surround channels.  In my world, however, they have to go up front, because they 'aren't as ugly'.  I will tell you what is ugly: having two kickass speakers that would blow you eyebrows off, but having to use them as surrounds.  It borders on hilarious, if you ask me. 

So after a week or two of waiting, I had all five speakers assembled and ready to go.  There was only problem.  My receiver did not support surround sound, and only had the old-school A/B channels, so when I plugged both the surrounds and the center channel in, nothing happened!!  Holy crap!  I can feel the anger rising just thinking about that day.  Well, you know what this meant.  I just HAD to go out and get a better receiver now to take advantage of all those speakers...

Before I start on the steps I am taking to acquire my system, I would like to explain my housing situation.  I live in an apartment, which means no drilling of walls, running of cables through the attic, and (supposedly) no tearing up of carpet.  This limits how awesome a surround sound system can be, as cables will be all over everywhere, and no speakers can be mounted.  At least, these things shouldn't happen if I want my deposit back.  More on that in the future...

The main living area is roughly ten by fifteen feet, rectangular, with a fireplace along the south wall (long wall).  The east wall is actually a window looking out onto the patio, and it causes a significant glare on the tv.  The couch is along the north wall, and the tv is in the southwest corner.  Here is a picture: