Component contributions to “sound stage”

Soundstage is recorded on the source. So look for components that reproduce the source most accurately.

This is true but misleading...

There is a recorded album acoustic trade off choices by a recording engineer,yes, and  to convey it without too much loss by a dac and amplifier is one important thing yes, but to translate this reproduced set of bits and electrical impulses in your room ask for a speakers /room tuning and controls...

And the impact of speakers/room controls in the soundstage and imaging creation comes from the huge impact of the pressure distribution zones of the room , the position of speakers/listeners, the timing of waves, the reverberation control, the balance between reflection-absorbtion-diffusion , etc...

Acoustics rules the gear and his experience from design to listening not the reverse...

Soundstage and imaging are acoustics concept not gear design concept...

For me personally 

1 Speakers (speaker placement)

1a acoustic treatment

2 amp and preamp had about the same influence 

3 upgraded to discreet DAC

Everthing else was minor compared to these.

Source, amp, cable all contribute to soundstage.

But most important one is speaker.

I had gone through lot of speaker through my 45 years of audio history.

But line array speaker like Scaena seems to give more realstic soundstage.

Wison speakers are also famous for sharp focus, deep and wide soundstage,, but can sound when overdone.

Thomas

Speakers  placement     

Acoustic treatment

Synergistic Research FEQ Carbon  Frequency Equalizer

I have a CD that is produced specifically to test the placement of your speakers.  Sorry I can't give you the name as I'm not at home for a couple months.  This recording consists of a dozen tracks with explanations of what instruments you are hearing and exactly where you should be hearing them.  It's proof positive that the sound stage is in the recording.  Sure your equipment can play a part in the enhancement of the sound, but you can't reproduce something that's not there to begin with.  Since the recording is designed to maximise speaker placement, it would stand to reason this is the place to start?