How important is it for you to attain a holographic image?

I  believe the achievement of the "holographic" image you refer to is fully a function of the manor in which the music was recorded. There is a passage at the very end of season two Game of Thrones program where all of a sudden a crow calls out from high to the right of my room and sounds as if it flies right in front of my face. The first time I heard this I about jumped out of my chair. It is an amazing effect. But that's what it is, an effect. Most music is recorded in a studio with close mikes and then reverb and other signal processing is added. This can effect the holographic image you mention. In a live situation where acoustic instruments are played in a concert hall venue, the image is based on how the venue is recorded since a sense of space is naturally present vs. say a studio setting.

I guess my point is that a decent system should reproduce whatever effect  is inherent in the recording. A good example of imaging in my mind vs. "holography" is found on the track "Down to the Waterline" on the debut release from Dire Straits. Knopfler's guitar is positioned far left of the rest of the instruments which creates a very impactful effect. This is an example of a recording technique vs. room acoustics which, as stated, more naturally lends itself to the "holographic" effect mentioned.

Falconquest,

As I stated and, indeed “meant to say,” the holographic effect is a real thing.
As you state, it “...is fully a function of the manor in which the music was recorded.”  

Re Carver,
I grew up listening to my Dad's set up, which consisted of the Kef 105.2 speakers, driven by Carver's M-400t Magnetic Field Power Amplifier Cube, and the Carver C-1 Sonic Holography preamplifier.

It was incredible sound and certainly introduced me to the magic of imaging.

Though I found over time playing with the sonic holography that I often turned it off, as it sounded just a bit more artificial to me, and slightly altered the tone of the speakers (which imaged amazingly on their own).

I’m not clear on the nuances of sound stage vs holographic vs imaging. So based on that here is my uneducated experience in the matter:

Recent live rock show, small venue, speakers all over the place. No real sound stage or holography that I could perceive.

I hear people describe listening to their system and saying they can hear the distinct position of every musician. I can’t say I’ve had that experience with my system very often. At first that disappointed me. It doesn’t anymore.

With my system the sound stage has a shape. It is no higher than 8 feet. It sounds slightly wider than the room. Drums andback up singers often sound like they are at or slightly behind the speakers. Singers and lead instruments usually are out in front and between the speakers but usually not dead in the middle. This projects out into mid-room but not right up to my listening position which is of necessity a little farther from the speakers than I'd like. Sometimes there are sounds that sound like they are behind me but not regularly. All of this varies tremendously with the recording. With all 'good' recordings I hear separation between instruments regardless of where they seem to be in the room (my room).

It can all be re-shaped to some extent by speaker placement.

But at no time and with almost no recording does it sound like individual sounds are coming directly ’from’ or out of one of the speakers. The sound may be distinctly left of right but does not sound like it is piped out of the speaker.

That’s all I really need. When I sit and concentrate on where something is within the sound stage I find that I’m not enjoying the music. So I don’t do it since that is the opposite of the reason that I listen to music.

n80, I totally agree with you. Everything you said regarding the size of the soundstage and placement of singers and instruments is identical to what I hear with my systems, although my systems components are totally different than your system. I also agree it all varies with the recording. Like you, I enjoy the music and don't concentrate where things are within the soundstage.