What to judiciously invest in next to improve SQ?

[zambie]

The best money I ever spent was on 'Get Better Sound' by Jim Smith. It's only US$35.- and it gives you some great insight into how to get the best out of your system without changing any equipment. I would go as far as to say that unless you have set up your equipment the best it can be in the room you're not going to get anywhere near as much improvement out of whatever it is you acquire.

If you have money burning in your pockets and you can't do room treatment; speakers first, then the source.

Thanks Pim - it's good to have someone to keep things grounded - thank you for the advice since the time I joined. I couldn't agree more that probably the biggest thing that's being compromised is my current room setup. I have a 13' x 25' that hosts both my living space as well as dining space - and am  not able to leverage either of the 13' walls to place the speakers against. I've ofcourse brought the speakers 1.5' in so that it's got a bit of space to breathe. That leaves about 11.5' with my couch against the back wall - with my speakers approximately 10' apart from each other. Does create some issues for sure. I am going to take a look at the book you mentioned ... Agreed - I have some big room setup issues to overcome!