How can you not have multichannel system

perhaps the issue is not 2 channel vs multi channel, but rather two speakers vs more than 2 speakers.

i have heard a stereo system featuring 4 pair of quad 57 which creates a very natural, timbrally realistic presentation.pace, i would bet that 4 pair of say apogee duetta signatures, or other decent panel speakers is preferable to one pair.

any fans of 4 pair of speakers ? anyone set up 4 pair of speakers ?

i agree 100 percent with tvad, namely, to try to create some semblance of reality, consistent with your budget, room and cleverness.

Your comment is incorrect and suggests you have not heard certain multichannel sacd recordings. Blood on the Tracks was released in the mid 70's; Live at the Fillmore East released in the early 70's. Both released in stereo format only. Yet, both were re-released this decade as multi-channel sacd discs. Listening to the front and surround channels one hears 4 discrete channels. Obviously, the original sound engineers could not foresee the successful creation of multi-channel recordings as represented by sacd and dvd-audio. The latter were not processed from the stereo releases. To achieve those 4 or 5 discrete channels sound engineers had to gather all the tracks originally put down by the musicians and then re-mixed to create those extra multichannels (meaning more than the then stereo final mix). How can you say that is an illusion when the engineers recombined the original 4 or more tracks to create 4 or 5 discrete channels instead of two. Are you saying the surround channels contain music not originally recorded and somehow are mutations of the stereo release. If so, your comprehension of how multichannel discs of older music are made is sorely lacking. That multichannel sacd disc of Blood on the Tracks is more of a faithful reproduction of the music than anything else you can hear on any other recorded medium of the same. It is no different than using a video card with 128kbs and comparing it to a video card employing 512kbs. Obviously, you are going to see many more colors, and shadings of those colors on the monitor using the latter video card. Based on your analysis, the colors on the 512kb card are illusionary.

Sorry Mrtennis, but you lose 40 love, or 3 sets to none with your doubles partner, tvad, on knowledge of multichannel setups and music. Furthermore, what you described with four speakers in a stereo system is a two channel preamp split to send the same stereo signal to four channels. That same result can be duplicated by a multichannel preamp sending the stereo signal to the surround channels and call it simply 5 channel music, or, as some manufacturers have named it, party mix. The stereo channels are redistributed in toto to the surround channels with no effort to extract ambient sound.

Your video analogy is absurd unless you have eyes in the back of your head.
I can understand the live event being issued in multi-channel as the effect of crowd noise surrounding the listener is true to the event. Remixing "Blood On The Tracks" is another matter. If you prefer the mix that's fine but the original intent of the engineers who mastered the tapes is absent. The event is reinterpreted by a new mix master. If that's your preference, fine.
I have never heard this interpretation so I can't judge. Does this mix put you in Bob Dylan's chair, surrounded by the accompanying musicians? Or what exactly is the listener's perspective in the mix?