Why is 2 Channel better than multi-channel?

Brainwater...Try to listen to Tacet DVD-A D107..Mozart Flute Quartets. You can't match this sound with any 2 channel system. Don't judge multichannel by inappropriately or poorly mastered discs.

Eldartford , I look forward to that opportunity and will make efforts . I agree wholeheartedly with you in that a poorly mastered multichannel disc cannot be salvaged by any means for the most part . The thrust of my observations about the difficulty in achieving coherency in multichannel sound presentation was just that : its difficulty. I am a firm believer in multichannel and by evidence of my investment in my "theatre " / multichannel setup , I am in this to win. Its just that Slappy is damn near correct in what he is saying. Note the word near. I keep stumbling into this scenario whereby frustration in the results keeps many from appreciating what a properly set up multichannel system can be like. I am a certified soundfield coherency freak and my relentless pursuit of perfection leaves me thirsty which in turn keeps me studying and experimenting. There is and has been a dearth of knowlege and readily available articles that articulate a definitive and widely agreed upon formula to once and for all settle the question of how to get sonic bliss in a multichannel configuration. Widescreen Review was one of the first to insist on ditching bi or dipolar surrounds in favor of 5 identical , equidistant { from listening position } full range speakers in the room. Equal speaker legnths were part of that equation I seem to remember as well as equal amplification . . These articles have been long forgotten by many as the magazine has been obsessed with video for a couple of years now but they did indeed lead the charge in advocating this setup. Its a near unrealistic goal as most simply cannot do much of it ; but we should try. I would not give up multichannel and done properly , can and does out perform 2 channel with good software. I like G Holts articles too by the way. Eldartford , what are some other good recordings in multichannel you like?

this one is harder to answer than one would think. It has been my experience that I prefer multi channel, but when I have company over the preferance is for 2-channel. Folks are more visual than audio and too many speakers make for more discussion of the system than of the movie...which might mean that we got it all wrong.

Brainwater...A fair question that I am not prepared to answer without some thought. It would be nice to share a list with rankings from 1 to 10.

IMHO every Tacet disc ranks near 10. I have some others (DVD-A and SACD)in the 6 to 8 range but I don't remember them off the top of my head. There are a few near 1. Oh well... it's a new thing and it may take a while to get it right.

I am also a "soundfield freak". My ability to hear the highest frequencies has surely diminished with age, but the ability to sense spatial effects is as good as ever, so it becomes more and more important.

As long as the mass market goes and buys HT-in-a-box setups audiophile recordings in MC will not be very accessible. Joe Best Buy likes to turn his head around when his cube shaped speakers play behind his head and say "Wow this sure sounds better than my old Techincs table!" For the very few who are able to afford good identical speakers all around and a room that has good acoustical treatments and size there will always be some great recordings available in SACD or DVD-A but those people don't buy enough to fuel a charge for high quality MC audio discs, especially when those that don't know better are still willing to spend and extra $5 over the cost of a regular CD to have a poorly-mixed MC recording. Give me VINYL! Acousticsounds.com can get virtually any album worth listening to and with a high quality turntable, a good amp, a good pre, and 2 good speakers you have the best sound you ever need. I don't want to be in the middle of the musicians, I want to sit in front of them and hear them play; unfortunately people like me are the minority so MC recordings that use the surrounds for ambiance are few and far between.