Speaker Placement

You can forget about all the theories of toe in, toe out, blah blah blah...get a hold of Track 3 - Out of Phase (speaker set-up) of the XLO Test CD. Track 3 allows you to find the absolute best locations for both speakers. No more guessing by moving a little, listen a little. Hint: most speakers are set much too far apart.

My 2 channel system is not trying to duplicate a pair of headphones sitting on my head, it is trying to duplicate an orchestra/band/choir performing in front of me.

We all hear the same just as we all see or smell the same things. If Ham is grilling for breakfast it is going to smell like ham to all of us etc

I am not a fan of live music & one reason is because it IS NOT in stereo. It is basically as boring as mono music or listening in a car. MO is that these things are pretty much a waste of time.

If an engineer is trying to create the image of a live audience, it would seem to me as a waste of time as well to even bother making a stereo mix.

We don't all hear the same. Some can not hear very well at all. Others can't hear the upper registers or lowers. Some hear more in one ear than the other. Some only hear with one ear. If you mean we all can detect sounds, yes, most everyone can do that, but we don't hear the same.

That's like trying to say we all see alike. A friend of mine lost an eye in an accident which had me covering one of mine to see just what it's like to see the world with one eye. Try driving like that. It takes some getting used to, but it's not the same.

01-11-13: Roscoe50
We all hear the same just as we all see or smell the same things. If Ham is grilling for breakfast it is going to smell like ham to all of us etc

Wrong on all accounts. The mechanics of hearing,seeing and smelling are the same for humans but the perception of those senses are different for everyone.