MultiChannel too complicated for most...

Tbg...With excellent imaging speakers and with precise placement of them in an acoustically treated room a 2-channel system can create the sensation of three-dimensional space. But this is, in the end, only a psychoacoustical trick, and is easily disrupted by moving the listener's location. On the other hand, a good multichannel system, especially with the 2+2+2 speaker configuration creates a real (not in your head) three dimensional sound field. You can walk around in it.

Tbg and Jmcgrogan,

I agree that multi-channel music often leaves a lot to be desired. Concert DVD's are often a mixed bag. However many of todays compressed CD's leave a lot to be desired too...so not all recordings are great, even in stereo.

IMHO, the first problem is NOT multi-channel as a concept but poor quality unbalanced systems (either a full set of very cheap multi-channel speakers or a hodge podge of speakers with some completely inappropriate rear speakers and sub compared to fantastic main speakers - no wonder multi-channel sounds no better or even worse than stereo). I believe the second problem is producer's budget and studios. Stereo mixing and mastering is easy or "cookie cutter" after 50 years of music recording; engineers are still mostly inept/inexperienced at surround sound and trained to master an entire stereo CD in a few hours for very little pay. Producers are used to this approach and are rarely willing to spend the necessary money to produce a decent surround sound for a music DVD.

How did I come to these conclusions? Simple, I just listen to any big budget movie sound track and it is comletely obvious that high quality surround sound done with a proper budget (often taking weeks/months of audio engineering) can be absolutely amazing! If you don't have a decent surround system then just go to a high end movie theater and you can appreciate the quality potential of surround sound. (BTW: Movie DVD recording standards are very DIFFERENT than CD's - CD's get abused and compressed to sound loud as there are NO recording level standards for a CD whereas movie soundtracks preserve dynamic range and realism as there are standards for recording levels like THX etc.)

I am convinced that a surround system with matched speakers of similar quality to the mains can sound awesome on a good mix. Far better and more realistic than stereo.

Unfortunately most peope are not prepared to invest properly in surround speakers and therefore criticise the format as being inferior. Why do I feel justified in making thes ecomments? Because I use a pair of ATC SCM 20's driven by a Bryston 4B for rear surround speakers - a $6,000+ rear surround speaker setup that many would find quite acceptable as MAIN speakers.

"You suggest that 2-channel is like standing in an open doorway rather than in the theater. I find that much mc is like being in the center of the orchester and having a blanket over your head. You may know the music is all around you but it has no realism."

Wow--we sure do listen to different music AND you've never heard my system. MC reproduction of MC Classical recordings sounds so much more natural and real than 2-channel reproduction that I too would never go back to 2-channel. I hear lots of real music--lots of highly skilled, real people playing in good spaces--and that's always what I compare reproduced music to. I have NEVER heard a 2-channel system sound even close to as good as my MC system when playing Classical music.

Complicated? I simply don't care.
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In fact, well done pseudo MC (derived rear channels, ala Hafler) with good amplification and speakers, is very convincing for classical music and especially 'real' sounding on organ music.
My venerable Lafayette 4-ch decoder (SQ and derived) is the basis of my MC. Just don't crank up the rear channels so that you can hear them, about 15db lower in volume seems to be just right for most discs, that aren't SQ encoded, of course.
Salut, Bob

Impepinnovavations, SQ and pseudo mc, wow! Those are wrong words to say in my opinion. Probably 20 years ago I invested heavily in trying to generate rear channel sounds using Haflers, Lafayette, and Audio Plus, I think it was called. Not once did I achieve anything that I would listen to despite two instances with professional efforts made to tailor the settings for their best results.

If mc is not discrete on the disc, I am not going to listen to it or make any new effort to introduce it into my system. My disinterest comes from what I have heard with discrete channels on the disc. Until I hear a convincing demonstration on music I value, I won't spend a cent to get mc.