When speakers almost sound like the instruments

Have to agree here with Chayro. I too, like Foster 9, bought a Joule Electra LA 150 Mk2, and it transformed my system (had a CJ PV-5 previously).Deeper and wider soundstage, much better bass,and just enjoyed my system much more after inserting the Joule into the chain.

In my experence the larger speakers sound most like real instruments. The body/dynamics of many instruments just are not large enough on small speakers. The laws physics of make most speakers sound like miniture recreations of the event. This is fine but real life instruments have resonances and tonal charteristics much better served by larger transducers. I have just added Tannoy Westminsters Royals to my system and they sound the most true to life I have experenced. They may not be your cup of tea but try to audition some horn type speakers preferably with tube electronics. It is at least a learning experence worth a few minutes of your time. Hope this is of help if I understood your posted question.

Mark
Tubeking

Mark, it's interesting, there was a minority theory out of Europe a few years back that said that accurate reproduction of an instrument had to do with the surface loudness of the instrument as it relates to the surface loudness of the loudspeaker reproducing it.

In simpler words, the sound board of a piano is very large so the propogating surface of sound is large and a point on that sound board will have lower surface loudness. A comparable speaker would have a large driver and a large cabinet, or motor board. Now a violin has a small radiating surface and so it has greater surface loudness. So a small speaker in a cabinet with a small motor board is called for.

It's an intrigueing theory, and I have no real take on how accurate it is, I play everything through large, horn, speakers. But I love the theory behind the hobby and this one seems to stick in my mind.

I have a very similar experience to Foster, the OP. I have had a pair of Mirage OMD-15s for over 4 years. These are the little brothers of the OMD-28s, with a similar array of drivers and the Omniguide, but with downsized drivers and cabinet. I have also had a pair of Mirage bipolar M5si's for 16 years. For a long time I was fiddling with the things that most intuitively bring about more control of the speakers, such as high current amplification, and bi-amping or bi-wiring (I've done both with both pairs). But one day an audiobuddy stopped by with a handbuilt tube line stage and it simply kicked the system into a whole other dimension of palpability, imaging, clarity, and truth of timbre.

I bought the line stage on the spot and I consider it the source of my audio happiness. Also, I like the Mirage OMD series because their radiating pattern is so similar to that of voices and instruments. When the speakers energize a room the same way performers would, you get an improvement in the reality of timbre. Part of what gives an instrument its distinct sound is how it interacts with the room and omni speakers give you that.