Hi Troy,
You are getting some great advice here on how to get the most from your system. My 2 cents about the acoustic damping involves some experimenting. The front and rear acoustical panels are almost for sure going to be a good thing. With the side panels I would suggest some experimenting as damping the first reflections can be a step backwards. This said, every room is a new experiment and you will want to make your decision based on the empirical results. I would suggest starting with no side wall acoustical panels and then try one set in each of your locations. From there add the second set locations and then the third.
