Yes Mitch, room accoustics are all important. Think of your equipment as the strings of a violin, and your room as the body. The trouble is you are now in an even higher price range. Someone with an SPL (sound pressure level) and an RTA (real time anylizer) will have to come and figure out your undesired surface reflections, etc... You will likely need accoustic wall treatments and maybe even a parametric equilizer. You could easily spend your budjet on accoustics.

I agree with DDeca, except that I might be inclined to buy the center speaker first. Don't forget to plan a good subwoofer for the future.

Nothing wrong with Onkyo's Integra line, but you might also look at the Yamaha, Denon and others in the same price range. At 1000 bucks or so, you have several decent options.