Soundstage, Imaging, Detail & Presence??

Forget those terms, and RUN while you still can !

Why? Because over the years,for me, those terms had become like a vacuum, sucking me into ANALYZING the sound instead of ENJOYING the artists reproduced through my system.

While the usual audio terms do define specific things, and are used and promoted greatly by the ''reviewers'' in audio rags, which have a tendency to describe $ 3,000 speaker cables and $ 20,000 amplifiers as ''affordable'' and as if they were actual people,(they are not, our families and friends are) I think there is only ONE term that should be used most of the time with anything regarding our audio systems.

That would be the word ''Enjoyment''

As in, am I enyoying this or not ?

Think about it...

Have to agree...these are largely rhetoric perpetuated by audio mags...remember when PRAT was a buzzword not too long ago? When equipment and terminology become more important than quality music its game over....

As much as I agree with Soniqmike and Phasecorrect that the sound is soooo much more important than those terms, I can still appreciate the op wanting to be able to sit in on discussions of the strengths and weaknesses of different equipment where these terms are mandatory.

Ngjockey...sometimes I get caught up in the 'comment' side of this, that I fail to 'carefully' read...then analyze the intent and deep meanings of the well written posts.
Its not that his post is Zen-like, its simply that what he says, captures the essence of this topic.
When I ascribed my adjectives to this, I meant it as part of the 'total listening experience' in which we try to, (if you're a good audiophile) close our eyes and 'pretend' that we're 'there', not 'here'.
Studio recordings, if well done, place the singer (Renee Olstead) in the, at least, close center, out a bit in front...by using volume and the old 50/50% in each speaker, allowing our ears/brain to do the rest.
Then to lesser degrees, % of volume and such, others are placed in the sound stage. It's fun, but to use Ngjocky's words which are elegant and simple (and perfect for this) 'artificial and imaginary'.
This past Sunday, I was invited to a concert that a friend was conducting, a 40 piece 'BAND'...no strings.
During it, of course, I closed my eyes, pretending it was home stereo, (how 'bout that for full circle irony).
What was missing was pretty amazing.
Very little of the instrument specificity, (that may be something we simply 'apply' in orchestral works)in terms of location.
The MAIN thing missing (at home) is dynamic contrast. The zero to 115+db (and more) was startling. That, and the scaling of the various instruments and how different they are in that dynamic contrasting...piccalos are really, really dynamic, at least, they 'cut through', (no doubt a function of their place on the pitch scale and the human hearing 'curve') all the other instruments. Nature's way of allowing the piccalo to say, 'Here I am', even if I am a fraction the size of a Tuba!

All in all, it was a reminder of what Ngjockey said, AND how important it is to hear, (for me at least) accoustic music played. Moreover, it may, may have been a really good commercial for Horn Speakers--at least the dynamics made it a reminder.

Good listening,
Larry