Buying a Surround Sound System

Like...$1000, or $1500? For that kind of money, I could get a Bose home theater system...is that a good idea? Or is my best bet for good audio quality to buy seperates?

What kind of A/V receiver should I look into getting?

comes from separates. I guess you didn't know Bose is nearly a dirty word in this forum. I seriously auditioned Bose several years ago & chose another brand over it. That is typical among a lot of regular posters here. It is a matter of better performance & better value. Bose is especially good at marketing, but the Bose speakers are downright primitive - cheaply made.

A sort of recommended proportioning has been established, with a goal of 25% for the receiver & 75% for the speakers because that is where the sound difference is. Occasionally, a high end advocate has posted here with the opposite opinion, but he is referring to hyper-expensive pre amplifiers/ processors in a very non-typical, big bucks system.

Receiver, brands to consider? Start off with perhaps looking at an Onkyo 606. Up to date & feature laden at a fine value. C/NET does hold up Denon for a bit better sound & especially greater reliability; but that comes at a somewhat higher price. Remember the goal of maximizing budget for the speakers.

I can not find that last mega thread on bose, but Do not get one, they are a waste of money!!!!!!!

http://www.intellexual.net/bose.html

receivers-

Yamaha
Denon
Panasonic
Onkyo (I don't like them but there cheap & reliable)

You do not have to buy everything at one time, $1500 you can get a nice receiver, fronts speaker & a center speaker, then later get a sub + the back/surround speakers. Just makesure to keep with the same brand speakers when you pick up the backs & surround speakers, the sub can be a diffrent brand.
It is better to spend the extra money & having a good system last 10 years+, then buying a cheap system & having to replace it all over agian in a year or two.

20X20 is a good sized room & it will cost more then $500 to fill that room with 'real' sound, not noise. If you do want 'good audio quality' look at spend $2k+ for everything (7.1 set-up)

$600+ for reciever
$300+ Sub
$300+ center speaker
$250+ per pair front/back/surrounds ($750)

good speakers will last 15+ years, a good reciever will last about 5+ years.

If I was going to buy an HTIB, what would be the best one on the market for my situation?

It sounds like the custom system would cost a little bit much, most likely $2000+...I'd rather not spend that much...

Is there an HTIB system that will do the job well enough that costs around $500-1000?

a advised that the C/NET reviews right here basically have branded Onkyo as the best bang for the buck.

Sure, we can recommend in good faith, but we're not here to knock you over the head.

Almost everyone on here will recommend going with an Onkyo HTIB system. Check this one out:

http://onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=HT-S5100&class=Systems&p=i

7.1 speakers, 1080p HDMI video pass-through (3 inputs), pretty solid output power, Audyssey Auto room calibration, iPod dock included...all for $599.

You could get that now and not blow your budget. The only thing I'd consider also adding to that is a better subwoofer from eD, HSU, or SVS. But if the included subwoofer from that package is good enough for what you want then just keep it.

That system is way better than any Bose system and costs alot less.

Also, check this one out:

http://onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=HT-S6100&class=Systems&p=i

For $200 more than the one above you get TrueHD/DTS-HD decoding, 1 more HDMI input, and slimmer speaker design.