How Important is being close to the music in your System?

RogerD

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May 23, 2010
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Just wondering about how audiophiles feel about the ability of a system to place the listener in a certain row in the audience. Is closer better i.e. the 3rd row or the 10th. What perspective does the considered best systems place the listener and if closer is a goal why do you feel that way.
 

C.A.P

Well-Known Member
Apr 23, 2010
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hmm.. Depends on the recording.. I really never get a seat placement but rather a realism and separation of depth and size of the aural space in the recording.. Classical recordings may give you a seat placement but I look for centered vocals and space and size to a recording.. Bad recordings sound bad on a $1 system and as bad on a $1million dollar system.. Recorded pop are mic sensitive especially live recordings .. Good live will make you feel like your in the venue !
 

RBFC

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Apr 20, 2010
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To an extent, I believe many audiophiles tend to have favorite labels, engineers, etc (i.e. Wilkinson/Kingsway, etc.) that simply "speak" to them in terms of the experience they prefer. I'd bet that no matter what other great recorded presentations they might experience, they will typically default to their favorites when wanting the ultimate listening session. I'm sure these comments will raise some questions!

Lee
 

astrotoy

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May 24, 2010
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I go almost exclusively classical concerts (including opera and ballet). About 70 a year. We tend to sit center or left center (piano side) about row 6 to 10, depending on the hall. In really good halls, we can sit further back, with no ill effects, but in not so good halls, sitting further back can be a disaster sonically. We are very safe where we normally sit, although these are almost always among the priciest tickets. Sonics are always very clear, whether it is a solo piano, chamber music, concerto or orchestral performance. Opera and ballet get us close enough to see what is going on and hear very clearly.

Larry

PS. You can read about my recent visit to London and the 15 concerts we attended there in May and June, including some comments on the acoustics of the different halls and where we sat. http://zero-distortion.org/music-notes/
 

BlueFox

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Nov 8, 2013
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I vary the seating between 7'-9' from the speakers. Variety is the spice of life. :)
 

RogerD

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May 23, 2010
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Well I contend that the way the recording is engineered is secondary. The system is actually the deciding factor on how close to the music the listener will perceive a vocalist,trio,quartet,or orchestra. Maybe that's a minority view,but I find the closer the better. Now most classical recordings are mic'd further away,but that is because of the dynamic range.

Btw Larry that is a great list of recordings.
 

bonzo75

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Feb 26, 2014
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I go almost exclusively classical concerts (including opera and ballet). About 70 a year. We tend to sit center or left center (piano side) about row 6 to 10, depending on the hall. In really good halls, we can sit further back, with no ill effects, but in not so good halls, sitting further back can be a disaster sonically. We are very safe where we normally sit, although these are almost always among the priciest tickets. Sonics are always very clear, whether it is a solo piano, chamber music, concerto or orchestral performance. Opera and ballet get us close enough to see what is going on and hear very clearly.

Larry

PS. You can read about my recent visit to London and the 15 concerts we attended there in May and June, including some comments on the acoustics of the different halls and where we sat. http://zero-distortion.org/music-notes/

The two that we attended together at Barbican, I noticed I sat slightly behind you.

Yesterday I went to a Cecilia Batoli Philip Jaroussky concert at Wigmore Hall (it had been sold out for ages, but on that day I told them I am an audiophile and they gave me a front section seat). Today I attended Mahler 3 at Barbican, and normally I sit just back of center, but today had to sit slightly to the right of centre, a bit front. My preference for chamber and arias has usually been more immersive and close up, and for orchestral just back of center. How they translate into systems - SET+horns for the more richer, closer, continuous flow of music sound, and SS+Apogees (which someone else might substitute with a big Cone+subs system) for my Barbican orchestral preference.

I summarized that dilemma here http://zero-distortion.org/apogee_duetta_scintilla/

One thing for sure though, the Guns n Roses reunion show that I attended last Saturday at the Olympic Stadium is best done by two subwoofers in a live and boomy room.
 

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