Still on the topic of audio and ALSA, one of the quirks I had with Linux was how to enable 5.1 (or more speakers) to work perfectly with my music. After troubleshooting and configuring your system audio, here's an FAQ entry on how to set-up and achieve stereo sound on a surround sound system configuration. If this does not work, try this tip from Linuxtricks.net.
Imagine how awesome those eardrum-blasting grenade blasts would sound in full 5.1 or 7.1 system glory… :)