wall to wall rug or linolium floor with area rug?

I also prefer a large area rug with speakers resting on tile. It's a livlier environment. Too much absorbtion takes out the sonic sparkle.

I find the WATT can be a little hot at the top end. If you like that, a more reverberant environment is better. For a smoother presentation, use wall-to-wall carpeting.

When we removed our wall to wall carpeting in favor of having hardwood floors with an area rug, the sound quality went out the window. Fortunately, this is no longer our primary listening room. In this room, we have a classic M&K satellite/sub system and imaging, smoothness and low frequency extension all became markedly worse. I would definitely recommend wall to wall carpeting from a sound standpoint.

As you might expect, this is very situation--and listener--specific. The most important thing is the main reflection point(s) between speakers and listening position. For that, an area rug (with a pad underneath) will work as well as wall-to-wall. But there are plenty of other reflections around, and how much of that you want to damp is your decision alone. Suggestion: Try it with no rug at all, and then borrow an area rug. The latter will almost certainly sound better, but noticing the differences might help you decide how much further you want to go. Also, needless to say, it's better to start experimenting with the things that are easily reversible/returnable, which wall-to-wall carpeting isn't.