I have a fairly basic streo setup consisiting of a phillips DVD/CD player/ Sherwood reciever and a pair of Eltrex speakers.

When I am listening to Music I find the sound is fine, however when I am watching movies through the stereo I have to cut potential Surround effects so that I can hear the dialogue. I feel that a centre speaker will eliminate this problem, but am constantly considering the purchase of a pair of rear speakers.

I know that ultimately I should have both but want to keep the system reasonably well contained in the room.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

You need to look at the setup of your system. Your Sherwood Receiver should be configured so that it knows that you only have a pair of "front" speakers and no centre/rear/sub.

If you are going to add more speakers to your set-up for movie viewing in the future, save up until you can add the centre and rears at the same time, rather than add a centre first and then add rears later. Adding the speakers together will increase your chance of using the same speaker brand/type throughout your system (recommended) and also may get you a better deal as you'll be buying three speakers together.

In the meantime there's nothing wrong with listening to movies with only two speakers, as long as your Sherwood is set up correctly as mentioned above.

can you tell me how to set a surround sound speakers to my tv

Can you be a bit more specific?

Hi
Just put in a Plazma screen on the wall and am now looking to buy surround sound system.
The more I look the more baffled I become.
Could you possibly guide me what I should be looking for in the price range of £300/£350

What are the main points to look for spec. wise.
Thanks
Brian

That's not a particularly huge budget when it comes to surround sound, and so your choices will be limited. If you want an "all in one" type system where you have a head unit consisting on a DVD player and surround sound processor and all 6 speakers (Front L&R, Rear L&R, Centre, and subwoofer) then consider either the DCS-363 (approx £270) or the DCS-370 (approx £350) both from Pioneer.

However, I think you should seriously consider going down the separates route instead, and buy something like the Kef KHT1005 (approx £280) and combine this with something like the Denon AVR-1507 AV Receiver (approx £225). Going down the separates route will give you the best performance and flexibility to upgrade in the future, although it will mean a larger outlay.

Good Luck.