@whart
Hey... another Audiogoner with a Marshall half-stack in his listening room!
I also go with the short speaker cables from monoblocks and long interconnects to my racks that are on the right side of the room. Galen Carol, a TX audiophile dealer always recommended such a setup. I think having open space between the speakers helps with soundstage depth and imaging; my amps are nearly hidden behind my Apogee Duettas (my system is pictured in the Virtual Systems section).