Another soundstage question

what stands do you have ?

I have the Sound Anchors. I agree with newbee's comments in regards to the higher music volumes tend amplify the size of the soundstage. As a side note, I had a pair of Magnepan MMGs on Sound Anchors and while I never warmed up to their tonality, narrow sweet spot, etc., I must say they threw a tall and wide soundstage but only if I could keep my head in a wisegrip.  

I heard that Sound Anchors is coming out with a "wisegrip". ;) lol

It seems to me that, while high resolution componentry can help better portray accurate RELATIVE height between instruments/performers (it does IME), the best (only?) way to accurately reproduce realistic height of vocalists while maintaining accurate relative height to instruments is to use speakers that are tall enough and designed to do so. Perhaps one reason for the new craze re: "tower speakers".

If you raise the height of a floor-standing speaker to increase the height of vocals to near-realistic proportion, don’t you also raise the perceived height of the lower-placed instruments above realistic perceived height if the RELATIVE height remains constant? Not to mention the changes in tonal balance that usually result from moving low-frequency drivers farther from the floor. Time- aligned speakers like Thiels (I know) and your Vandersteens (I would think) don’t take well to changes in relative height of the drivers to the listeners ears as their dispersion characteristics are part of the time-aligned design. Better room treatment to dispose of the overly-wrought midbass frequencies that mask detail and resolution will be a better solution IMO as will moving your Vandy's to a more near-field listening position away from the rear wall.

It is certainly possible to better optimize all of these attributes through experimentation by raising speakers with stands, but long term listening will likely reveal the compromises described above.

Dave

Kalali, I just re-read your OP. If there is anything that really sticks out re speaker set up that I think might influence the height issue for you, is the distance your speakers are from the wall/bay behind them. I really don't know your rooms dimensions but if possible I'd start with the speakers about 5ft from the wall behind them and adjusting your listening position accordingly, maintaining the equilateral triangle, toe in according to ear, and see what happens. To get the feeling of height (if this information is on the disc, which more than often it is not) is IMO the  holy grail  of audio. I used a test LP/CD called 'Depth of Image' by Opus3 which is just outstanding for obtaining the best soundstage possible. I spent years chasing this effect (and lots of money foolishly)!

To increase vertical soundstage, rake angle of the speakers should be addressed. Tilting the speakers can create a higher and more realistic soundstage.