Why don't more recordings have soundstage outside of speakers

This has a lot to do with speaker and system setup not all about the recording. Speaker placement and room treatment have more to do with this. At least that’s been my experience. However recordings can be made to exaggerate this. Like Q sound on roger water Amused to Death recording. 

Try Amused to Death by Roger Waters. Every song on that recording is in Q sound. If you system is setup right you’ll hear thing to you far right and left and behind you. 

Same recording...different speakers, even from the same manufacturer will yield a different soundstage in the room. Much has to do with how the crossover is voiced, the size and shape of the enclosure, and the size and type of the drivers being employed.

Case in point. JBL display at CES a couple years ago had 4367 (15" two way with horn/waveguide) $15,000/pair, next to the newly introduced L100 Classic(12" threeway, 5" mid, 1" tweeter)$4,000/pair. Both being driven by Mark Levinson amp, they simply switched cables between speakers.

The recording was Eric Clapton, don't remember the album, but it did have "Tears from Heaven". The L100 Classic presented an image that was in front of the speakers...in the room, if you will. Very nicely balanced from top to bottom. When switched to the 4367, the music retreated into the box with virtually no dimensionality whatsoever. Very disappointing for $15,000...though the bass response stomped all over the L100. Not enough to make me ever want them.

I am not a recording engineer so I don't know the different classification of sound mixing.  For example, at the beginning of Pink Floy Welcome to the Machine, there is some type of sound affect coming way from the right side and if you're speakers are good, it sounds as if its from to the right of the listening spot.  But this is a bit of extreme.  I don't think I am looking for something like this.

I also have recordings which the sound would bounce from the left to the right wall but that is not natural.  But anyway, I mean I go to a lot of audio show listening to some mega buck systems, but rarely do I hear recordings that are clearly outside of the speakers.

I understand you could voice your speakers to accentuate this affect, I found that if a speaker that can do soundstage well such as exaggerating the wide of a soundstage, the sound balance may be off from neutral.  I would much rather have the affects come from the recordings.

My speakers are relatively good but average good speakers....They sold around 1000 bucks 20 years ago....my system actual value is 500 bucks....😊



Mission Cyrus 781...On my desk with amplifier Sansui AU 7700 and a low cost french design Nos Dac ...This is good gear but nothing miraculous here which will explain my S.Q. by itself...


Then i eliminated the speaker exceptional design factor..... It is easy to buy speakers on par or better than mine....I already own for 40 years Tannoy Gold which were better high quality speakers but never sound better than my Mission because i was knowing nothing about audio at these times save plug and play....






Most of my recording has a soundstage variation and a depth imaging variation for sure.... BUT NOW the majority of my classical and jazz albums own a DETPH IMAGING out of the speakers front-back or /and sounsdstage outside of the speakers to a varying degree.... Very few have a sound between the speakers only....( i own around or a bit less than 10,000 albums)

And this fact is true for my 2 listening positions....Nearfield (3 feet) or regular position (8feet) my room is 13 feet square with a very bad position for the speakers with one in the corner of a wall a few inches of it....Then positioning is not ideal....😁


Then WHY this is so about my S.Q.?

3 reasons :

Controls of vibrations, control of electrical noise floor,
And the main one is material passive appropriate treatment (homemade) and ESPECIALLY the main reason is acoustic active control of all the room with an Helmholtz resonators grid, i called that a mechanical equalizer (homemade)....

Then in a word, with relatively any good speakers if you use ACOUSTIC basic science you will have almost all the time like me a depth imaging and most of the times an orchestra filling the room in varying degree according to the genius of the recording engineeer....

But the files i own with sound only between speakers 2-d are around 10 %....In classical and jazz....Then it is not your audio system nor speakers the problem probably, save if one of the piece of gear is a very bad design.....It is lack of acoustic control...

And acoustic control is NOT material passive treatment by the way...Passive material treatment with a right balance between diffusive absorbing and reflecting surface is necessary but it is only the HALF of the acoustic story....

Acoustic control of room is the most underestimated factor in all audio...

Why?

Because it takes a dedicated room, The Helmholtz resonators grid must be SPECIFICALLY fine tuned and tailor made for each specifics Speakers/room....Then no sellers of acoustic panels had any interest, after or before selling you costly panels, to prevent and inform you that their panels is not enough....

And anyway people boast about their costly miraculous design gear not about acoustic....

And many attribute to their electronic design the reason which is not false but only HALF truth.... The missing part of this truth is the more important one : ACOUSTIC.....

Especially for low cost system acoustic is the main lever to upgrade astonishingly your system.....Those who own costly system live anyeway with the impression that their system already so good dont need acoustic control.... This is false but how can you convince someone with 6 figures speakers than it will be better with acoustic control ?

A costly system without acoustic control is like formula one car on ordinary tire..... Go on the internet and listen some costly system, some are way better than others and acoustic is always the secret passed a certain price point....