Speakers, Amps, and Ceilings

[plasma2002]

What's the easiest or best way to go from a line-level output (say, a computer line out) to a single speaker? Obviously, I would need to build a small amp, but I've never really studied the subject, and when Googling, it's easy to get overwhelmed with it all.

Here's the specific scenario I'm trying to accomplish: I've been putting ceiling speakers in each room of my house. I've now gotten to the point where I want more than left and right channels, and now want to be able to send audio to each speaker independently. I have figured that I will need to put additional sound cards into my computer, but where do I go after that?

Obviously, I could just add to what I'm using right now; a home theater amplifier that is powering all the speakers... but buying 5 or so of those doesnt really sound too nice on my wallet. Thats how I got to the point of thinking if it would be economical to build small amps for each speaker. Your thoughts?

[Thermite Man]

Make sure you do not overload the amp. You will need to figure out how many ohms the speakers are and how many ohms the amp can put out. If you have too many speakers on it they will either burn out the amps or go into self protect every time you turn them on. also you will need a separate channel of amplification for each discrete channel, ie: Left Center Right Rear-Right Rear-Left and sub(if you have one) So you will need 6 total channels of amplification.