Depth of sound stage--I need help


I have a 14x18 listening room with Audio Physic Tempo EXs on the short wall set up per Cardas speaker placement guidelines. I am running Quicksilver Silver 60 mono amps(older version) with a VTL 2.5 preamp, and a Sony SACD 333ES changer. I have Silver Audio interconnects an DH-Labs Q-10 speaker cable. On the power end I am using a Monster Cable HTS1000 surge protector and Synergystic Research AC Master couplers on the amps and preamp. I have a very wide sound stage and for the most part the system (albiet modest) sounds pretty good. What I am missing is that 3D sense of the artist being right there with you. It is not nearly as "lifelike" as some of the systems I have heard (Most notably SET Cary gear). Where do I look for improvement--My room, the source, amp, preamp, cables? Or is the bottom line that I have just fallen for what people call the Cary "majik"? Please advise.

Thanks,

Greg
gcarbone
Hi Greg,

Is the equipment rack located on the wall behind the speakers? If so, you'll need to move the speakers farther into the room than the guidelines indicate. The presence of those large reflective surfaces behind/between the speakers will seriously foreshorten the soundstage. Once this is done, you may need to move the speakers a bit closer together so that your listening position is not on the short dimension of the triangle.

Best of luck,
Joe
Well It is a combination of all things within your system. I own a krell amp which is better than front row seats but the Levinson I sold was like being in the 15th row. Its all based on where you want to perceive the images. That will dictate to you what equipment you buy. I would try treating your room and moving your speakers closer together and closer to you by towing them in you will acheive a more pin point image. Good Luck
3d is hard to get, regardless of your equipment. i believe it is obtained only using equipment which is transparent and properly set up in an acoustically ideal room, something few of us have. i have found that with point source speakers it is volume related as you need the volume to get the heighth associated with 3d. with line sources or panels you can get it at lower levels. cardas is a good place to start as it helps on the bass end but its not the only way so play with it. for example, in my room which is similar to yours i crossed the axis of my speakers in front of me and moved them closer to the side walls. the walls reinforce the bass to compliment the resonances in my room and the angle of the axis eliminates sidewall reflections. my listening position is about equally forward of the walls behind the chair and speaker. this works fine for speakers which the mfg recommends that they be listend to off axis, i.e. pointed straight ahead. i dont think cary has the corner on equipment which will give you 3d. its all about synergy and i would focus on your room first. don't over look live end-dead end theories or acoustically deadening walls which are reflective. good luck.
My room is 14X22. My speakers/equipment cause the stereo image ans soundstage to form well behind the speakers. This is known as a "laidback" system and I like it.

I also have my speakers on a short wall and 54" from the wall behind them. Well, this gives me a very wide but shallow soundstage. If I move the speakers further out into the room, I get greater depth but having the speakers 7-8 feet from the back wall is too much for practical reasons. So, I'm content with my wide shallow soundstage. If your system is laid back too much that may well be the cause of your shallow soundstage.

How far out from the back wall are your speakers? And where does the stereo image form? Good Luck, Craig.
Are you primarily concerned with the depth of the sound stage or pinpoint imaging? They are very different concerns.
I own a large Krell setup driving the biggest B&W's. My imaging is "to die for", yet my soundstage is often not particularly deep. That tends to be the way Krell reproduces the soundstage.
I go frequently to the symphony, sit in the 10th row center, and I can tell you that most of the time the soundstage is NOT deep. ... And that is in real life! Some equipment overdo the depth "thing", which although impressive, is not necessarily reality.
I hope you find what you are looking for.
Richard