The long / Narrow room - system configuration

My room is the same size. Ceiling slopes slightly from one and to the other (8' to 10').

Using 25' single ended IC's is fine (and actually the preferred way to do it IMO), but they should be a good shotgun design like MIT, Straightwire, etc. And always, always point all IC arrows to the preamp, not in the direction of current flow. Lift all grounds on your AC plugs except the preamp, and you shouldn't have any moise problems at all.

As for room setup, you're doing what most folks do (getting back as far as possible from the speakers) but which you shouldn't/can't in a room that narrow. You didn't say what kind of speakers you have, but pull them at least 4 ft off the rear wall and +/_ 3 ft from the side wall with almost no toe-in (yes, I know -- they'll be close together.) Then place your listening chair (your ears actually) about 8 - 10 feet from the speakers.

This is called "nearfield listening" and is the only setup possible in a room like ours, if you expect to get a life-like soundstage.

I agree with Nsgarch. He described my setup pretty closely, and my room dimensions are similar to yours. I've tried many other arangements but this one results in the best imaging and soundstage (deep, wide, precise). I have my rack on the long wall and run 3M IC's to the monoblocks (3M is a little of a stretch - 4M would probably be better if I was inclined to get new ones) which sit near the speakers. This allows short speaker cables (4-6ft).

I've found this arangement to be pretty much optimal with all of the speaker's I've tried - including Totems, GMA Europas, Von Schweikerts, and others. Some like to be closer together than others, but their all 4-5 ft out from the wall.

i have a same size room.....if you are going to run long interconnects then they should be a true xlr configuration..

it isnt that much to experiment, the only drawback is moving the gear.

No a rack in between speakers will not be a problem.

I find that the room position effects are much more important than the cable effects. As for which position is best, I prefer to sit facing a short wall, with the speakers well out from that wall. So, my advice is keep your system as it is. Whatever improvement you will get from shorter ICs will be outweighed by the harm from the new speaker position. Some damping at the points of first reflection on the side walls, and floor and ceiling, can help too.