I'm ready drop $4000 for a HT setup. The room is a tad small 12x10 feet. For speakers I'd go with a set of fronts (L/R) and a center. I would like the receiver to support 2 zones with the second zone coming in later. I'll mostly use this for music. Given these, what would be your choice of setup.
Or alternatively just give up on the surround sound idea and go with a good stereo system with two speakers. If you buy a sensible amp, you'll be able to integrate it into any future surround scenario since it's likely to have better sound quality than the surround receiver.
I have a similarly small room which can't fit rear speakers so I've stuck with my stereo system and kept on upgrading that instead while I wait to afford a bigger room.
elitefan, that's a possibility. But as Frank says I'd like to stick to just the fronts and the center fow now. So, with this (contraint) in mind what'd give me best bang for the buck. I value sound quality and that too, if possibble, at low volumes as well. Later, once I finish converting my basement, I can nudge myself for a 5.1 or higher.