Having said all that, if I really just had my heart set on building a system using only two speakers, I would, as who cares what anyone else thinks, right? But I wouldn't kid myself that sound quality would somehow be optimal just because it is a really old and well known configuration.
Amen, that's the super short of it.
My quirk is that I don't watch TV. I almost hate saying it because for so many years that was a sort of virtue signal - TV being some crass "idiot box" that people who had "better things to do" didn't watch, the individual diverting from the herd. I'm actually embarrassed by the fact I don't watch TV (or very, very little of it) because I know this is a true golden age of television in terms of quality. I'm missing out on tons of it.
Very true Matt, I have always got a kick out of the many folks that post "I don't watch TV" as if it's some kind of badge of honor proving they have better taste or are better educated or just plain superior to the rest of the world around them. Yes there's tons of crap on TV, just like there's tons of crappy books written and BS technical "white papers" released. On the other hand you can catch all sort of educational programs, great musical programs on both PBS and other channels, and documentary's like HBO's Chernobyl series. Like the internet, TV is a universe full of the good and the bad.
I feel that perhaps anything above 5.1 might be a gimmick but i mean i play games and such and miss hearing things like a car moving from top left to my rear left speaker. Makes the whole room feel like its in the game or something, same can be said for movies.
I don't game, but in no way is the Atmos type of overhead immersive experience a "gimmick". While difficult for many to properly install it does add a whole new dimension to the sound experience from good source material. In reality sound is 3D with sources coming from not only around us but overhead too. I've also heard that some of the new games written in Atmos sound can be very exciting to experience.
something I have appreciated since that old vinyl Pink Floyd album and Radio Shack decoder I had ca. 1976 or so, and I have been slowly building my SACD collection. (Most of the good stuff Kal recommends is unobtanium, thus "sneaky devil".)
I first got into multich with a Marantz 2440 quad adapter/amp as a add-on to my 2270 receiver around 1976. Using sources such as vinyl with SQ, QS, and CD4 decoders. Lots of great quad stuff was being released back then. Things have really greatly improved today, sad some of the market has become a bit greedy with asking prices on a lot used recordings going thru the roof along with the prices of used Oppo disc players.
If I want to experience joy and the sound of birds all around, I go outdoors.
Be careful, sooner or later they'll crap on your head.
I have friends "all-in" on stereo who deride my multichannel system -- until they hear it.
I had to laugh at the post urging you not to "cheap out" on your center channel, obviously he didn't know you.
I've had to make some compromises with my system due to both budget and room size but when we start talking about systems at your level the fact is that there's nothing even the most expensive 2 channel rig can do that your multich wouldn't totally blow out of the water. SOTA stereo is available to you with a push of a button, disabling the rest of the channels if that's what you'd prefer at the moment.
I've always liked the idea, but it never seemed worth it when 99%+ of the content is stereo.
How good is the upmixing nowdays, and are there any options besides bloated AVRs?
Very, very good. As Ron states, he and myself upsample near 100% of the time. And then there's none other than the highly respected audio engineer Floyd Toole who feels the same. I believe we're all using mostly Auro 3D for upmixing currently but yea there are other options besides the 3 or 4 currently included with most AVR's. There are a number of stand-alone upmixers out there, off the top of my head only SpecWeb 2.2 comes immediately to mind. The limited experience I have with it showed it to be a very well done program.
Do take a minute to read what Floyd had to say on upmixing here.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...standards-setup-thoughts-etc.3295/post-236411
My final thoughts here on the subject are that I do have a hard time understanding how the OP and others who supposedly are here because they have an interest high quality sound reproduction can dismiss an interest and denigrate it in any form of it outside their limited 2 channel music world? Sound is sound, and I want the best I can accomplish from all sources of entertainment media. But that's just me and I understand that, but why then start a post to put us down? The intolerance of others towards our expanded interest is confusing. I believe it's highly possible they push back under the fear that other forms of high fidelity systems puts theirs at risk of being revealed as inferior.
