From having the QS8s at ear level (on the Bridgman pattented soup can design), to having them 3 feet above ear level I can say without a doubt that they sound better at ear level.
The problem with that is if you have a setup with lots of couches etc, really only the sweet spot will have a good surround experience...for example, those sitting in the lazy boys wouldn't even hear the surround content in my room, it would be too low...
I understand the 3 ft above ear level thing, but I did like the ear level much better. I'll have to do some more listening on my own to judge for sure. All I have really done is played movies, and some music, but not really listening intently to the music (using Neo6).
I don't plan on changing the position of the QS8s at all. I know that they perform extreamly well where they are simply because on Master and Commander, you actually feel like you're in the ship, with all the footsteps around you, the wood splinters, extreamly detailed surround effects. Which is why I am thinking the source is more important than anything.
As well, I watched Kingdom of Heaven last week, the siege on Jerusalem was freakin' awsome, lots of surround content, so I think it depends more on the source than the placement. For music thats a different story.
