2, 6, 9, 14, no matter how many speakers are in your system, making sure they're set up correctly is vital to good sound.

I'm going to assume you're not using the speakers in your TV. If you are, I can't help you. Making sure you have the best sound with increasing numbers of speakers is fairly easy. These tips will help you get the best from your system, but are not absolutes. If you can't (or don't want) to follow them, it's not a big deal.

2 Speakers: If you've upgraded your audio to two speakers, awesome. This is a big step in the right direction. A few things to consider when you're looking at placement. The farther apart you can place the speakers, the "bigger" the sound will seem.

Ideally, don't place the speakers on a shelf or in a cabinet. This can alter the sound coming from the speakers. Cup your hands in front of your mouth and talk. This is what the cabinet is doing to all the sound from your speakers.

Placing speakers close to a wall or on a large flat surface will boost the bass, but it will likely sound muddy and boomy. The best case is placing the speakers on stands.

Picture yourself at the center of a compass, with North (0 degrees) where the TV is. Each speaker should roughly be +45 and -45 degrees. Experiment with "toeing in" where the speakers face directly at the listening position and straight on. Different speakers sound better facing towards or slightly from you.

5.1: Now we're talking. Surround sound plus a subwoofer. For the love of the FSM please don't just put all the speakers in a row along the top of your TV. This, noob, is a waste. You're not getting surround sound, and in fact the speakers that are supplying the surround sound channels are going to mess with the sound from the front speakers. If you don't or can't run the speaker wire to the back of the room, either disconnect them (creating a perfectly fine 3.1 system) or invest in one of the many "wireless" surround speaker packages (see below).

As far as placement goes, ideally the two main front speakers will be the same as in a 2 channel system plus the center channel is as close to the center of the TV as possible. The rear speakers, if we use the same compass example as before, are between 120-140 and 220-240. Or, if you prefer, spread your arms back I'm-king-of-the-world style, and they should go about where your fingers are pointing.

Subwoofer placement is pretty easy. Technically it can go anywhere you want. The best bang-for-the-watt placement is in a corner. You'll get upwards of 6dB more output in a corner (3 db just near one wall). It will be less accurate, but it will be louder.

The best sub placement for the most accurate sound is actually midpoint along a wall, but you'll need at least two subs. One sub in the middle of the front or back wall and another in the middle of the left or right wall. Or four subs, one for the middle of each wall. Yes, it can get this crazy.

Generally, the corner is just fine. Don't turn your sub above about 100 Hz unless your owner's manual tells you otherwise. Much higher than that and you'll start to be able to localize where the sound is coming from, which can be weird.

7.1: If you've gone all out for a 7.1 system, set up the main 5 like above, and then put the back speakers somewhere directly behind you. You can't tell much directionality when something is behind you, so placement for back speakers isn't as crucial.

"Wireless" speakers: Keep one thing in mind when you see the term "wireless" speakers. They're not wireless. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Each rear speaker is plugged into a receiver/amp unit which is plugged into the wall. The only wireless-as in less wires-aspect is that you don't have to run speaker wires from the front of the room to the back.

Lastly, make sure you go through the setup in your receiver. Setting distances (delays) makes a big difference. Generally as long as you have a subwoofer you should set every speaker to "Small" regardless of their size. This way the sub does what it was designed to do (bass) and alleviates your speakers and receiver/amp from doing heavy lifting. As in, you'll be able to play louder.