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Speaker Imaging - Do you hear a line, or do you hear an arc??

Hi Everyone,

I am not trolling, I genuinely am interested in your experiences.


When listening to a system you feel images well, how do you perceive the sound stage? Do you perceive it as a rectangular space on which the speakers sit, or does it sound like an arc, going further back towards the middle?


Please give examples with music and speakers if you have the time.


Thanks,
Erik
erik_squires
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,318 posts
 

Here's a closely related question.

A fair number of LPs/CDs contain a photo of the group/orchestra playing while being recorded.

When listening to the recording, have you been able to correlated what you hear with what you see?  Does what you see affect, consciously or subliminally, what you hear?

dmhopwood
6 posts
 
I definitely experience a 3D arc soundstage from a lot of recordings, with some elements of the recordings projecting as far as 15ft behind the speakers. Something I have noticed with a lot of recordings is that the vocals are placed further back than the instruments. It sounds impressive but not always as I think it should sound. This could simply be a common ‘style’ of recording, but I think it might be less apparent if my listening position was further away from the speakers. Unfortunately, the constraints of my room means my listening position can only be 7ft away from the speakers. 
ieales's avatar
ieales
1,201 posts
 
with a lot of recordings … the vocals are placed further back than the instruments
On pop records this is probably incorrect except for solo guitar, sax, etc.
On live opera, correct.
Post removed 
ieales's avatar
ieales
1,201 posts
 
A fair number of LPs/CDs contain a photo of the group/orchestra playing while being recorded.
When listening to the recording, have you been able to correlated what you hear with what you see?
Only valid if the recording is mic'd stereo. If the session has several microphones, all bets are off there is any correlation, but some multi-mic sessions could be correctly panned and mixed to reflect player positions.

Mic-per-chair orchestra recordings don't usually image well and suffer the additional defect of 'strolling' wherein the perspective changes when a player or section is featured.
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