for me, yes, it's a better route if you just wanna stick to 5.1/7.1 as ddrc88 is limited to 8 channels. it exists in the era before atmos/dtsX. you can have 2 units of ddrc88 but it's more like a band-aid solution currently. too late to join the party.

biamp. not point going back single wire, i didnt try 1HF 1LF

bro,
can share more on the minidsp.. is the minidsp 2X4 or 2X4HD or which model should go? need the UMIK-1 ?
will it difficult for beginner to tune ourself by use the REW?

Thank you very much.

I'm actually downloading from YouTube as MP3 and play from USB stick is great as well.

Thanks for comment. BTW, what will be the right format for high quality music or song other than from physical audio CD ?

Thankd very much for the pointers. I have already ask my electrician to pull as many outlet as possible since that what you guys advice. Also ask him to use minimum 4mm wires, is that right?

Over the weekend I went to few places to audition some speakers and setups. So far I do like KEF Q series speakers and seem to be in my budget. Any opinion on them?
Other speaker I try are Q acoustics 3000 series (I think that's the name?) and some Tannoy speakers, forgot what they are called. Have not went and audition svs sub yet.

About snake oil, I don't know. I'm still so new to this and I cannot tell what is snake oil and what isn't. I went to one shop, the sales there told me in all his years most of his customers are very happy after making an upgrade on their power cable and power socket. He said something like the power socket, the plug used and the cable is all the blood line of audio. As long as I get that right, any speaker I use would sound its best. It's like no bottlenecking the speaker or something, at least that is what I understood from him.

Yes 4mm is fine, the important thing is that you tell the electrician to at least use pure copper and not the cheap shit like CCA.
Which KEF Q did you listen to? The older Q or the recent Qx50 series? I think they're alright speakers though. But always keep in mind that how speakers sound in a demo room could often sound different in your room due to room acoustics.
As for this:
Well, there you go. Told you there's a lot of dishonesty in this industry and it's not surprising that you even got an advice like that. There is no fault in buying expensive cables if all you are into is how they look, they're jewelry just like watches. A RM200 watch isn't going to tell time any better than a RM20k watch. But if you're buying cables solely based on "improving sound", then my opinion is that you're going to end up looking like an idiot IMO.

Don't even bother with any fancy cables for now even if you're into the looks of it. You're off to a good start, so continue along.

Wow! That's a bit harsh but opened a can of worm for me. But I think I agree with your analogy of the watches, didn't think about it that way.

I will tell electrician to use pure copper. Will check before he pull the wires.

The KEF I listened to are the Q550 tower I believe, they also have the matching center. Not sure what the model number is for that one. I quite like it, sound like the soundstage sweet spot is very wide. Allows me to sit anywhere on the sofa but dialog still sound like from the middle of the screen. I really like that.

Do you have any other recommendation? I will try and audition as much as possible before deciding. The room acoustic thing is also something that is making me confuse and nervous. Keep thinking what if I buy good speaker then sound bad in my room? Would that not be money wasted? 
Which KEF model you use?

When you keep say use proper electric, does that mean have to spend thousands for those power cable? You say one thing, then ssjben say another. I dont know who to listen to? 
Ouch!! That is a very harsh video to watch but he make a lot of sense. So it mean cable is not as important as people think after all?

So do you think I should replace the power cable right away if I buy a new pre pro and external amp now? Mean don't use the stock cable they give? I just want to get the power right first so I dont have to keep thinking about it when watching movie or listening to music. I will have anxiety attack.

Oh R11. That is high end model of KEF right?
Ya I know it is a choice to use expensive cable or not. But I'm in a dillema now because either I put more money into better speaker or set aside some to upgrade the stock cables from day 1. I just don't want to be watching or listening to stuff not knowing that I'm "bottlenecking" my system because of power.

100% for movies, but I see the PB-4000 is crazy big, deeper than my TV console and it's space behind. It will stand out, doesn't blend in aesthetically. But like you mentioned, the bass. Decisions, decisions.

Woo, that's the next atas level. Okay, will try to go that route one day.

Oh so small room mean must use bass trap? Why? And what is room mode?
I think I prefer to DIY most of the system myself. At least get to learn something along the way, eventhough is very confusing. Sometime I think just get high end soundbar enough edi... 

Oh damn. Even more headache now. I don't even know how or what it means to measure the room. Use what to measure and how can I interpret the results?      

Damn this HT project is quite complicated.

Ok so today I went and purchased 2x KEF LS50 + 1x KEF R2C as the LCR. This was what I auditioned at the hoe huat shop and I really like this combination. I hope I didn't make the wrong choice! 

As for receiver, I think I will be getting Denon X4700h as that what was recommended to me today too. It is within my budget and seem to be suited for the number of speakers I want to put in my room. The 4700h is good right?

The SVS sub, you think I should go for the port model instead? I think I should be able to fit 2x PB2000 in my budget.

Yeah, the evo 4.2 is a new thing for me with the amt tweeters and dome midrange but my worry is because I haven't heard either of them before.
I have an AVR and power amp so not worried about power and I also have a large living room but more concerned about which will be better for me. Other than movies i also listen to flac files from my NAS.

Oh, the unable to demo was the shop one. Used one haven't ask to demo yet. If demo also still can't compare with Evo 4.2.

I don't really understand this part, while I get that due to the room affecting the sound what we hear at a shop floor will not be the same as in our home. But how to decide and buy something without listening to it at all? How do you actually choose the speakers then, based on the recommendation of others? Reviews?

Any external amplifier to recommend?
I think I will be doing 50/50 movies and music. I like both. Yes the PB2000 pro is in my budget, but I am thinking should I get like sealed double SB3000 since both added up together is quite similar in price.
Will that be too much for my small room? Is only 11ft x 14ft x 9ft.
They no have R series bookshelf or tower. I asked, they said that one need to pre order and they don't keep it at the showroom.

Oh thanks, learned something new again. Didn't know power is relate to distance of seating position and room size. It never occur to me. I think me as laymen just always look at the box 200w x 7 = 1400w means very powerful already. To think back, that does sound very stupid. 

Can clarify what you mean by own liking? What made you like the speakers, is it aesthetics?

I think you are long enough in this hobby with lots of experience which allows you to make choices this way. I kind of understand your logic now. But for a relative newbie like me, still not sure of what I want due to lack of experience listening to many speakers. So far I only know that I like certain Monitor Audio, Tannoy, Wharfedales but don't like Klipsch, Polk Audio and Focal. This is based on my limited experience so I still like to listen to the sound signature before deciding to buy if possible. The only reason I dared to pre-book the Evo 4.2 was because I like Wharfedales in general and I think its a safe choice in that sense.