Calling home audio/theater buffs. Need a surround system. Suggestions?

[Odesseiron]

Hey all. I'm looking to upgrade my home theater system. I had recently updated part of my home theater with my receiver. I bought a mid range Pioneer model. The exact model number escapes me at the moment but it was very well reviewed. It is capable of 7.1, has hdmi 3 etc.

My speakers on the other hand are relics. I got them as part of a Sony home theater system literally 10 years ago. They're honestly trash. The receiver helped q bit, but man what trash. I want to upgrade to a 7.1 that's a lot better sounding. I doubt that will be hard to do. I've got about $700 to work with, but looking to spend less if possible. I've been checking out Polk, Kilpsch, and a few others. I'm having a bit of a hard time finding one that's 7.1 and good quality. Looking to you my faithful bg'ers for advice.

It's for a somewhat small room and I will take them with me when I move. They need to he satellite speakers with a not too huge sub. I cant help but feel im missing a couple brands I'm not remembering.

Also if anyone has any recommendations on something to help absorb the subwoofer vibrations so I dont totally piss off my neighbor. That would be appreciated as well.

Thanks.

[Odesseiron]

Title should read surround system, damned cell phone!

[Mikelee0351]

I've always found that Polk products perform pretty well for their price. They have nice full ranges and you could easily stay in your price point with one of their sets.

[Auspice]

JBL and Polk are good reasonably priced speakers. I've had some 12" JBL floor speakers for over 5 years and absolutely adore them.

[SephYuyX]

Study up.
http://www.avsforum.com/

[kareface]

I'd say for starters, don't do a 7.1 off the bat. Most content doesn't have dedicated back channels for 7.1 and matrixing can turn out really bad with some sounds shifting between speakers really taking away from the experience. Also, 7.1 will sound like crap unless you have a solid 5 feet behind the listening position to place the speakers. If your couch is right against the wall, don't even bother with the 2 back channels.

For speakers, I'd do this order: Right and left, Center (if you watch a lot of movies), Sub, surrounds. Get the best right and left speakers you can afford. When I'm listening to music I keep it in stereo for almost every song. If you use the setup for a ton of movies, next look at getting a nice center. Finally check out a nice sub. A sub is an investment, you'll never need to buy another one if you get a good one (assuming your room doesn't change size). Receivers and speakers can come and go, because there's always something better. A good sub is something that makes a huge difference and will likely never be replaced by a 'better' sub. The sub however will cost at least $350, likely more.

Subs:
http://www.hsuresearch.com/subwoofers.html
http://www.epiksubwoofers.com/products.html
http://www.svsubwoofers.com/subwoofers.htm

I personally love Rythmik but they are pricy:
http://www.rythmikaudio.com/products.html


Speakers (polk is good, if you can take a look below):
http://www.axiomaudio.com
http://www.miragespeakers.com/na-en/
http://www.monitoraudiousa.com/products
http://www.psbspeakers.com/
http://paradigm.com/

There's a range of speakers and prices there, there's no accounting for taste tho.