I live in an open loft which is approx 1250 sq ft on the first level, where the HT system is. the area which is my "living room" is approx 25'x16' with 16' ceilings. keep in mind this is still an open area, no partitions. I'm looking for a 5.1 setup that will work well with my NAD T742 (50 watts/channel) and be used 95% for movies, just a little music here and there. because this is a condo situation, having the most booming and powerful system is not important. I have neighbors directly on one side of me and below. I will be sitting about 12' from the tv. is a VP100 going to be enough (I hate not being able to hear dialog without "cranking it up"). will I need to step up to QS8's if surrounds are side mounted much higher (at about 10') from the listener? would M2's match well if I did go with VP150 and QS8's? thanks for any advice!

forgot to mention, my previous 5.1 speaker setup was a polk RM series II with M1 surrounds. just to give you an idea what I can measure against..

For a more compact system but with best sound for HT and a bit of music, either the M2/M22 or M3 would be good choices. The M2 and M22 would match a bit better with the VP150 and QS8s but i doubt the slight tonal difference would be that critical. The M3s carry a bit more bass.

The distance that you hang your surrounds is not of any consequence as long as all the speakers are calibrated within the receiver settings so their volume levels match up during playback.

You may want to consider even a small sub as an addition to this setup. HT applications with bookshelf speakers could really use more in the low end. Even the EP175 or EP125 should suit you fine. If it is too loud for your condo, you can turn down its gain on the back (volume knob) to the level that works for you.

thanks for the advice. yes, I had planned on getting a sub also, forgot to mention that! would I be crazy to save a little money and go with an EP125 if the rest of the setup was M2's, VP150, QS8's?

Instead of going with the EP125 I'd look at one of the HSU or SVS cylinder models. You should be able to get better sub performance per dollar from them.

The M2, VP150, QS8 setup is what I'm using in a large cathedral room area opening into the dining room and hallways and its very pleasing.

do you find the need to tune down the center and surrounds as to not overpower the fronts? out of curiosity, what power receiver are you using and how far are you from the VP150 and QS8's?