What you really want is the soundstage height to be in line with so to speak the rest of the soundstage dimensions, I.e., the width and depth. In other words the soundstage should approximate a sphere and should ideally represent the venue space of the recording, with great depth, width and height. Not only that but as the system improves you should notice an ever expanding sphere that is the soundstage. As the resolution gets better the subtle soundstage queues such as echo and reverberant decay become more apparent, as well as transparency, coherence, air, etc. If you have to resort to toe-in or tilt-up you’re a long long way from Tipperary. Get the soundstage right and the parameters like tone and detail will follow.
Another soundstage question
There are a couple of soundstage related threads running on the amp/preamp section and they reminded me of a question I’ve been meaning to ask without hijacking those threads. The speakers are Vandersteen 2Ci and the system along with their placement is giving me a real deep and relatively wide soundstage - but not much further to the sides, but I’d like the height of the soundstage be little higher. The speakers are on the sides of a bay window, about 10’ apart and with heavy drapes pulled on either side and about 2.5’ behind the speakers. Much lighter curtains cover the bay windows for privacy. In my seating position that is about 10’ away from each speaker the top of the soundstage is just about the top of the speakers, sort of like I’m sitting at the same level as the musicians. The depth is realistic but I think the height needs to higher to give a better feel for the height of the singer standing in the middle and the rest of the band scattered at different levels within the stage. So having said all this, is the soundstage height mostly a function of the electronics driving the speakers or its the size/shape of the speakers, e.g., speaker height, tilt, etc., the listening placement, or a combination of all of the above. Thanks.