"Breathing" of the air

Is dimensionality different than air? If so, how? Old mono recordings of limited frequency bandwidth can have good dimensionality, especially on vocals.

Onhwy61, Re old mono recordings/dimensionality/voice.

Perhaps it is because a single live voice is, in a sense perhaps, a mono source and mono reproduction is a more natural source for replication. Now a chorus or orchestra needs a more 'natural' replication of the space it takes up in an environment, i.e. at least a since of width (and depth of course) not available in mono reproduction. I have never heard, but would like to some day, hear a SOTA mono recording played back over a dedicated mono system. Be interesting whether or not one could hear 'air'. My guess is that the mono recording would probably have no real sense of depth, even with a mono voice.

Now in a more serious vein, -from the popcorn gallery- to paraphrase Newbee: I like what he had to say about this topic. I also think air is either in the recording or it is not. I don't like phase to be screwed around with, because that could give you lots of unnatural "air". A transparent system, with good handling of transients, which by the way took ages for me to build up, will give me an idea of the "aura" around instruments, which I will hear in a live concert in spades and try to implement at home with varying success. In actual fact, it is so difficult to achieve, that many experts here, who've never been to a live event, wouldn't even know what I was talking about. But if you begin to get that right, most of the rest, what our happy crew here thinks important, generally falls into place as well: stable images, pin-point placement of voices and instruments, depth and width of soundfield, not fatiguing rendering of music, PRAT and proper timbre.

You people who don't hear air at a live concert (classical music - no electronic enhancement) are sitting in the wrong seats. Get to the 2nd or 3rd balcony in the very first row with no overhang above you, right in the middle...you will hear air. If the orchestra records, you will be right in line with the microphones.

To get back to my previous post:
You can put what I said the other way round: If you get all that mas o meno right, hopefully including the start, developing and decay of music at all frequencies as well, from pppp to ffff in the dynamic range mind you, you have a good chance to get that air I'm talking about with a good recording, but only with that and only if your system does not cheat too much on you as it generally does though.
So I'm sad, that I am not Count Esterhazy, who could afford a Haydn and his crew for his stereo. (Not to speak of his living quarters)