I had a 5.1 system, but I have gone to a 2.1 channel system on my A/V side for simplicity - the new house does not lend itself to surround sound.
BUT - I still get some amazing sound effects across the room - like dogs barking at the sides. Not as good as a n.1 system, but then I found it's more the LFE's that I really wanted - not the bullets whizzing from behind my head.
But it's not that different from 2 channel - in that a poorly engineered n.1 soundtrack just sounds really bad and gimmicky, whereas a well engineered n.1 soundtrack can sound pretty amazing.
I guess as I got older I found I was looking for quality sound and not special effects.
There are some very good DVD's, like Hell freeze over the make the most of n.1 - but I still like my vinyl version better :-)
Regards - Steve
BUT - I still get some amazing sound effects across the room - like dogs barking at the sides. Not as good as a n.1 system, but then I found it's more the LFE's that I really wanted - not the bullets whizzing from behind my head.
But it's not that different from 2 channel - in that a poorly engineered n.1 soundtrack just sounds really bad and gimmicky, whereas a well engineered n.1 soundtrack can sound pretty amazing.
I guess as I got older I found I was looking for quality sound and not special effects.
There are some very good DVD's, like Hell freeze over the make the most of n.1 - but I still like my vinyl version better :-)
Regards - Steve