I would suggest that anyone looking for a decent, halfway-concealable sound system look into the various Home Theater In A Box systems available. The satellite speakers are very small, and their lack of size is compensated for by their subwoofers. The systems come with a 6-channel (Dolby 5.1) receiver which can accept all kinds of inputs. Most receivers have a built-in DVD player, which will play your CD's, too. You can get quite a good system for $400. Sony, Kenwood, Onkyo, several others all make fine systems in this price range - and once you've found a place to park the sub, the other speakers take up very little space. Most systems even come with pre-cut speaker wires to make hookup easy.
Michael
You got burned.
It happens.