Just came across this thread, the audition having been at my place. As for listening distance:
In reply to:
"I have to admit, I thought the speakers were a bit too much for the room; I wanted to sit even further away from them. I believe we were about 6 feed back. I would have like to be 8 to 12 feet, but that is just personal preference. "
I think we mostly sat on the coffee table, which is about seven feet back from the speakers. The couch is about eleven feet away and probably would have been a better spot to listen from, though not as good for all the CD switching.
The surround sound was from the initial battle scene in Master and Commander. If you had a bit more time, I would have played the car crash scene from Adaptation (talk about scaring the crap out of someone!), and perhaps the helicopter scene from the Matrix (can really feel those LFE's from the sub!).
