You are there-they are here

Your system is there to provide suspension of belief and fool the senses.

I agree with Al and Kal, I want my system to be able to portray both depending upon the material I am enjoying at any given time. Yes, one system can do both, if properly set-up and your room is capable of allowing that suspension of belief to occur. How to do that is the subject of many other threads, search them out.

Demar,
I've found that in my system the type of presentation depends on the recording itself.
Regards,

Definitely check out the thread Al referenced. I would definitely emphasize the word illusion in your post, though, especially with respect to they are here. Simply not going to happen if you listen to large ensemble music. And I would agree with Charles that this is also very recording dependent.

No matter what your preference is, oftentimes the recording will dictate the presentation, but of course, the overall power response of your speakers and the way they interact with your room will always have a strong influence. I personally prefer the "you are there" experience most of the time, as I feel I can get a better perspective of the total picture.

I prefer a "you are there" presentation. I like a deep, 3-dimensional soundstage presentation. I like to think of it as a 'mid-hall' perspective. I do not care for the forward, 'front row seat' type of sound.
That said, I don't know how much the speakers themselves have to do with this sound. Speakers pretty much output what they are fed. Feed them 'you are here' sound and you will hear 'you are here' sound. The same can be said for 'they are here' sound. FWIW, my current speakers are Soliloquy 6.3i's.