Speaker positioning and center image depth

@curiousjim When I listen, I typically enjoy the 80-85db range, sometimes louder when I want to rock out, and sometimes lower when I’m relaxing at night. When I demo for others, I tend to start at the 75-80db range and hand the remote to customers or friends and encourage them not to be shy with the volume. Some prefer to turn it up after, and some turn it down to hear what the system sounds like at lower volumes.

I tend to find that in my own room if I turn up the volume too much, like into the 100s, the soundstage depth gets compromised. Many times, in most systems slightly lower volumes are best for demonstrating the depth of the stage.

I also think the best dealers and audiophiles who let others demo are ones that do not try to put on tracks for others and hover around them, but rather show the person how to maneuver libraries and controls and give the listener some freedom and space to get acquainted. 

One reason that I like acoustic suspension speakers rather than those with ports is that the interaction with the room is much easier to manage. A port makes the speaker placement more critical to achieve good imaging.

Too much speaker depth and you could fall in and disappear. Hey man...stranger things have happened...also, if you can't deal with ports (seriously...what percentage of speakers have ports?) and actually think they're hard to deal with you really should choose another hobby.

Your question is not an easy one to answer. It's much more complex than speakers. Recording, mixing, cables (@Jason Bourne - no need for comment) and everything in the chain that affects the delivery of spatial information to our brain.

However, for starters, you are correct that placement (and listening position) are fundamental values to work with, to approach your goal. However, you may find that you are happy with the soundstage presentation, only to find that something has been traded off. 

Speakers all have a different sonic signature and you will find some that need very little dialling in, other than fine tuning of the basic manufacturer recommendations. Some speakers will never deliver your requirements, in your listening environment. These are things that make our hobby such fun and can cause us immense frustration too. As always, several days auditioning in your listening environment is essential for success. The initial "wow" factor can turn out to be a false improvement after a few days.

Agree with observations. Certain rooms work better than others, certain treatments are better than others and the combination of both room and treatments. The interaction between components also play an important role in sound stage imaging, not just the speakers. You own tastes will be different to that of others. So many variables to consider. Cardas has a good site to explore sound stage derivation and there are a few others that provide similar advice such as creating a grid in your room and within the grid moving your speakers about to find the magic sweet spot. It does exist but it does take time to find it!