My QS8s are about 10" forward of the listening position, and they sound great, and I get "Ducking, dodging, and giggling at the cooless of surround.".
Is there a wall somewhere behind your listening position? If not, the rearward firing tweeters may just be shooting the sound back into nowhere. Without a wall back there, the top & bottom firing drivers might be doing some of the same. The QSs need reflecting surfaces to get the sound to where you are. None of the drivers point directly at you. In order for the sound waves to get to your ears, they have to reflect off of something first.
Can you temporarily hang them about 1' in front of your listening position, and 6-7' high to see if it works better for you? I think it will help.
