Musicians in your living room vs. you in the recording hall?


When it comes to imaging, soundstage and mimicking a recorded presentation, which do you prefer?
Do you want to hear musicians in your living room, or do you want to be transported to the space where the musicians were?
erik_squires
No simple answer for me.  Small jazz & blues groups, solo guitar, piano or vocals - I prefer them in my living room.  Who wouldn't want to welcome Ella Fitzgerald and Joe Pass for a performance at home?
Orchestral, loud rock or big band - I prefer the big venue presentation.

If I had to pick: transported to the hall.

But depending on the recording, even in a "transported to the hall" set up, it can sound like musicians brought in to your room (e.g. dry, up-front recording).

The problem with seeking the transported-to-hall version is it tends to place an emphasis on soundstaging/imaging, especially creating the character of an expanded, deep space.  All too often set ups that seem to achieve this do so at the expense of a somewhat more wispy presentation.  All those far away instruments seem to lack palpability and impact.  (Cue everyone here "not in MY set up!"...)


I'm always trying to balance the two: soundstaging with guts and palpability.


I want what is in the recording.   If its a live recording then take me there. 

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viridian wrote:

Neither, I go to quite a few live concerts, both classical and popular. I don’t hear imaging and soundstaging in the concert hall, so I certainly don’t want it in my listening room.



I'm always amazed when someone writes that.

If we are talking amplified music, well then ok.   And if imaging/soundstag isn't someone's bag, I get that too.


But this notion that unamplified instruments and voices don't image/soundstage, including orchestras, is really strange to me.  I totally get imaging/soundstaging from live music, orchestras included. 



This week I stopped to listen to several different busker groups playing on the street.  Every time I closed my eyes and whether I was near or far, they imaged like a lazer, totally easily to place, I could point right at them.


We developed directionality in our hearing for a reason, and it really works! (At least mine does, at the concert hall).