Unemployed + major audio geek = loooooong posts! 
Just another option to consider --> if you want
surround sound but:
1) don't want to skimp on quality;
2) don't need lots of bass right now;
3) don't sit totally off-center from your monitor;
.......all you need is four speakers. Two front mains and two surrounds.
I had my system set up this way for several years and liked it. In fact, I still don't use a center yet and won't until I can afford a fully matching 5.1 loudspeaker system, since centers are notorious for not blending in perfectly IMO mostly because of their very different physical placement & this still goes for centers that are identical to the other speakers.
Anyway......I'm not sure how small your space is but just to start somewhere I'll assume this is a bedroom with @11FTX14FT dimensions (hey that's the same size as mine!
). To produce some full sounding - though not
rumbling bass - the fronts will need at least a 6.5" woofer since the subwoofer/LFE channel will be diverted to these speakers (after the receiver is programmed properly). This size of speaker is also easier to blend with a sub later on.
Ideally the rear channels should be identical to the fronts, but if you can't manage that because of space or mounting restrictions, go one size smaller from the same manufacturer and speaker series.
After programming the receiver for "no center", unless they are really bottom-feeder quality the front mains will generate a phantom center image which will enable voices/sound effects/etc to emanate from the center of the monitor's screen,
as long as the speakers are aligned horizontally with the screen.
Four such "decent" speakers - mains with 6.5" woofers in the front and surrounds with a 5.25" or 4" midwoofer - will start at around $400, from companies like JBL, Cerwin-Vega, Infinity, Klipsch, Athena, MTX* and lots more.
Just for the heck of it, this is a 4 channel surround system that DOES have rumbly bass for this room as long as the receiver is at least around the $300 range (these speakers are quite efficient so don't need a lot of power):
floorstanders with 10" woofers +
bookshelfs with 6.5" woofers. Based on what I've read this new series from Cerwin is a lot more refined than their previous gear i.e. their "frat boy" loud-but-a-bit-unrefined models. And not as much $$ involved as expected since these are considered to be "really big" speakers nowadays i.e. not as marketable as those black cubes.
Receivers? For the small room listed above I think something in the $150-$200 will have plenty of power, for example it can obliterate any conversation between two people in that room (despite what the marketing departments say, this only requires @20 watts per channel in such a space - why do you think they no longer include power meters like they used to?).
As far as brands are concerned, to make this easier, I'll just list the ones I
don't like: Sony, Harmon/Kardon, Insignia. Receivers do have subtle differences in sound, but I wouldn't obsess over this. Just look for the features you like.
*
shameless plug for some efficient speakers with a politically-INcorrect sound (kind of bright with very punchy bass - great for rock/pop/hip-hop): MTX floostanders + surrounds.
