Maybe had fallen on hard times rather than tight….?
Last seen IIRC as George Fredrik Fiske
I know who he is!
Debates of new years past here with the mono question! Personally even with music that should be better with mono, logically, I prefer it in stereo. To me it sounds more real but in past debates it was equally argued that live music does not come across as stereo
My question wasn’t really should it be mono! More would the addition of a center speaker, in addition to the stereo pair help center the listener
Just think of all the extra boxes the box monsters on the forum could invest in to drive that center speaker, at least 3😁
iirc Meridian did this decades ago.
Also David Hafler? Apparently Brian Eno is a fan.
IIRC a Haffler circuit is when you wire a third speaker [from positive terminals?] to create ambient sounds (i.e. anything that no common to both channels) - but it’s usually positioned behind the listener?
I’ve seen it done both ways, but it was over 40 years ago, so the memory is dim.
Possibly, the idea of a centre image is even older, the Decca tree microphone arrangement from the 1950s. Having just done a search it also refers to ambient information.
One of the things I particularly value with my simple system is the very stable and focussed stereo image I get with my active speakers, far more than with any system I have previously owned. In the case of a solo violin the image of the soloist is certainly no wider than a real instrument, but with the right recording there is a good sense of the acoustic environment filling the rest of the space.
There is an issue for the recording engineer, though, with something like a piano. At a concert I am usually sitting sufficiently far back that the piano only fills a small part of the width. But most piano recordings, particularly modern ones, fill the whole space between the speakers. I do enjoy the sound that gives but it’s a studio, not a concert hall, experience.
Roger
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However, if all is set up correctly (including speaker and listening positions), a mono signal gives a sound focused precisely in the centre between the stereo speakers, so a centre speaker is not necessary, just good (and correct phase) balancing of sounds that should be in the centre.
I’ve always found Naim amps especially with my Dynaudio Contour s3.4 speakers to have quite a narrow soundstage my speakers are 3.5 to 4 meters apart and the sound comes from a point dead center between the two and spreads out just to the inside edges of the speakers.
If the sound stage spreads out to the inside edge of the speakers, then from the acoustic engineering perspective, that’s almost perfect.
I’ve definitely found my forever speakers they are a little large for my living room but the slight bass boom caused by this has been tamed with some Gaia II footers.
Shame he no longer frequents this place. I remember suggesting SBLs which he the bought and was delighted with them. I don’t recall him going mono but that would definitely be in character. He certainly knew his classical….
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Agreed, I enjoyed his contributions, made for lively debate
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That’s interesting Xanthe. Back in my hifi mag reading days I remember systems that imaged outside of the speakers were highly regarded. I occasionally hear this here on certain recordings and can’t say it bothers me. However, my SBLs tend to give a strong central image and effectively disappear as individual speakers. Everyday is a school day it seems!
I have a 1968 recording of Carlos Montoya playing Suite Flamenca. Single player, single guitar. Played in mono, sound good. Played in stereo and it comes alive! Don’t know why, don’t care why, just give me stereo every time.
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