Ok, I'm upgrading my setup to a better quality two channel setup. Here is a photo of the old setup: http://keeganuhlphotography.com/bucket/140803_0001.jpg

I have Totem Dreamcatchers + SVS 12" sealed sub on the way to replace the stuff you see in this photo. I know speakers against the wall is a no-no, but it was a temporary fix. So, I have a couple questions about this setup.

As you can see, I have limited space under the projector screen (29"), and right in front of it is a walkway, so the speakers can't be more than a few inches off the back wall or they get bumped all the time (but the Totems are 2" less deep than the old Klipsch you see in the photo, so that will help). These are the drawbacks of living in small apartment.

Hence, I'm trying to get the most out of an imperfect situation. So, a couple questions.

1. The bookshelf brackets holding up the old speakers are probably a bad idea? I know a good stand will be better, but are there concrete reasons (besides distance from the back wall) that the bookshelf brackets are a bad idea?

2. I read that the Dreamcatchers have good off-axis performance. I know there are drawbacks to laying speakers on their sides instead of vertical, but perhaps it would be passable? There are two reasons in my mind to do this:

A) Laying on its side, the entire speaker is as high as possible (optimal listening distance is about 1/3" up the projector screen, so I'm trying to get them as high as I can). But perhaps this matters less for the woofer of the speaker, and the tweeter is at the top anyway, so a vertical position should be more or less the same in terms of perceived height of sound?

B) Given only 29" below the projector, there are two options for speaker stands:

i) Speakers sit vertically on 16-18" speaker stands (Totems are 11" high). It seems 16"-18" stands are hard to find, and may be useless later when I move to a better physical setup.

ii) If I lay the speakers on their sides (only 5"), there are many options for 24" speaker stands, and I'd probably get more use out of the stands down the line as well.

Any recommendations or thoughts would be excellent. Again, I understand its an imperfect situation, and I'm interested in working within it to get the best results. Thanks!!