3D imaging

Excellent explanation. That explains why my choices in speakers seem to work so well in my small listening room.(9x13x8) This room has only one purpose,so I have no restraints as far as set up goes. Obviously with a small room,I have to make certain compromises,but I think I have done a pretty reasonable job of speaker choice and placement. My biggest compromise is distance from side walls, not much I can do about that,however I do have treatments at the first reflection points,which helps. I guess my next question will be a little more involved. How do downstream electronics help or hinder 3D imaging?

Rocray -

Of course, to preserve the location data you need good room acoustics. I strongly recommend GIK accoustics. Great advice and very cost effective products.

I do have rudimentary treatments,however a room treatment overhaul is just over the horizon. Thanks for the recommendation E. I have heard nothing but great things about GIK.

My biggest compromise is distance from side walls, not much I can do about that,however I do have treatments at the first reflection points,which helps. I guess my next question will be a little more involved. How do downstream electronics help or hinder 3D imaging?

Distance from side walls is but one room factor, only mentioned because you were asking about speakers. The answer to how electronics help or hinder imaging is short and sweet and controversial as hell: no one knows.

Oh, there are theories galore, just none that hold water. 

But to segue back to the room segue, damping first reflections with what is basically a few bucks worth of OC703 is an old school Stone Age imaging tweak. Next generation room and speaker treatments like Synergistic Research High Frequency Transducers are far more sophisticated and effective.

HFTs work on the principle of dither. Professionally used in video for years now, dither is a very particular sort of noise that when added to a signal actually improves the perception of clarity and resolution. Each HFT is only about 1/4" in diameter, and shaped like a tiny little speaker horn. Exactly how the darn things work is a Ted Denney trade secret, but they do indeed work. The improvement in sound stage width, depth, layering, focus, and palpable presence is remarkable. 

I've got a lot of experience with room treatments. You simply cannot do with conventional absorber/diffusor panels and tubes anything even remotely on the level of HFT. They help, but not like this. Do a set for each speaker, plus a couple more for the walls and ceiling, realize you only thought your speakers disappeared. With HFT they are GONE! Heck, your room is gone! 

Actually crossovers do matter, steep slopes screw up phase and that means poor impulse response all inside the 3-5 ms “ rule “
actually electronics do matter, negative feedback also screws up time and phase and can lead to TIM, wonder what the T stands for ?
time alignment of the drivers matter
pistonic drivers matter, an out of phase cone is destroying the image information as well as screwing up frequency response
low reflection cabinets, treatment inside the cabinet AND a low reflection driver magnet are available in certain products
managing the grill edge can reduce the baffle step effect and so can managing driver directivity- not all drivers radiate off axis at same level, so reflections can be down in amplitude reducing reflections
cabinets matter
:-)
oh and how a driver stores and releases energy can be seen in the impulse and waterfall plots, pay particular attention to those mid ranges wired out of phase, panels with edge clamp issues, speakers that start negative, waterfalls that never end....
vast is a relative thing, I am just a student...