How important is sound stage to you?

Jim Smith said:
IMO, if it was awful - regardless of the room - it was a poor set-up. I say this, having successfully voiced 800-1000 systems to all kinds of rooms (including a number of shows where we were awarded Best Sound of Show) in my career.
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It was definitely a poor set up but the gear was in the only position that it could be due to the odd shape of the room and the Wife.

It's a friend of mine that lived here in the Twin Cities and his system sounded great until he moved to New Mexico. No amount of tinkering will help his situation until he gets a new house, a new wife or a divorce.
 
Kingsrule said:
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What is real important to me is dimension. Height is the real test. Most systems are too short, some are too tall. The best are most realistic.
The elephant in the room here are the recordings. Who's to say they are all perfectly recorded regarding sound stage? For me I resort to "take an average" of what I listen to to determine if I have it or not.....for most YMMV.
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Agreed on the need for realistic height. Singers that sound like they are 4 feet tall sound funny to me.
 
Nikhil said:
This might be an interesting read for some.
https://www.stereophile.com/content/stereo-image

It's an article by a young John Atkinson on the Stereo Image from 1981.
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Very good article! Nice catch. (Re)Published last month it seems.

Nikhil said:
All I can say is that I don't take sound stage too seriously i.e. if the illusion works then that's great.
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I'm the opposite. Got this precisely because I take spatial rendering far more seriously than stereophiles.;)
The reconstruction i'm chasing is along the lines of what JA experienced here much later than 1981 http://www.onhifi.com/features/20010615.htm
Things have advanced (in certain circles) quite a bit since Blumlein and early Bell labs, luckily.

cheers,

AJ
 
For me the sound stage is a large part of the presentation that engages me.

We all have what we like in regards to "warm", not overly analytical, euphoric, quick, etc. but the sound stage is at least as important, maybe more so for me. I mean, I wouldn't accept a bad sonic character I didn't like, but I also couldn't live with a sound where I wasn't happy with the sound stage.
 
Jim, I'd like to be able to hear an example. I can't accept just moving something around will create a good sound stage where the electronics isn't capable of presenting. Or, maybe a better way to say it, I don't believe all electronics are created equal in regars to creating a good sound stage. I'm sure treatments and positioning would certainly help.

Jim Smith said:
For me, if I am aware of the soundstage as a technical entity, I have more work to do. :(
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I absolutely say you are right, the equipment's capabilities are crucial... but... fine tuning, and setup, has been proven to me, to make a bigger difference then most everything else... I absolutely say, buy Jim's book... it is cheap, and not every idea or discussion will apply to every situation, but many will. If you find one tip that improves your setup, it is well worth the meager price.
 
I am new. Figuring things out. For a long time I worked to make the speakers disappear. That was important. Then I worked to get the stage beyond their edges. That was a bonus. I just for a new DAC and took a good listen last week. Holly smokes. Epiphany over sound stage for me. Depth like I never heard. Precision layering of performers on the stage. More important it showed me on some tracks I'm not in the crowd, I'm on the stage looking out.

By the way, I thought the electronics had more to do with soundstage than the speakers. Not speaker placement, just the actual equipment. Right, wrong?
 
Kingrex said:
I am new. Figuring things out. For a long time I worked to make the speakers disappear. That was important. Then I worked to get the stage beyond their edges. That was a bonus. I just for a new DAC and took a good listen last week. Holly smokes. Epiphany over sound stage for me. Depth like I never heard. Precision layering of performers on the stage. More important it showed me on some tracks I'm not in the crowd, I'm on the stage looking out.

By the way, I thought the electronics had more to do with soundstage than the speakers. Not speaker placement, just the actual equipment. Right, wrong?[/QUOTE] NO right or wrong. it all depends on how it works for You. Also everyone's room and components and music taste are different.
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Kingrex said:
By the way, I thought the electronics had more to do with soundstage than the speakers. Not speaker placement, just the actual equipment. Right, wrong?
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Please read the linked Stereophile article on how stereo soundstage is electronically constructed, it's very comprehensive.
The speakers radiation characteristics/room interaction/your ears position are the dominant factors once the recording is set.
I'm not saying someone with hyper-active imagination can't get electronics to make a mini-monitor/horn have soundstage like an omni MBL in their mind, but outside in the really real world, not happening.
Sterephonic soundstage based on intensity/phase a fairly mature tech at this point, it's creators knew exactly what they were doing.
Playback OTOH, is left to the preferences of the listener. The speaker/room is the overwhelming determinant. If the electronics induce voltage inter-channel differences, then of course they could affect things slightly. The polar response of the speaker isn't one of those things.

cheers,

AJ
 
Hello folks I'm new and looking forward to getting to know all of you.
I think soundstage is pretty important because without it music will be a jumbled mess. When everything is dialed in the speakers will disappear and the performers will be in the room with you. I also think a system needs to be dynamic to be enjoyable. Tone and balance also play a part.
I've learned that speaker placement is critical once you have reached the level of equipment most of us have here.
Cheers DH
 
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