Jon, why do you say this?
"are most likely distortions"
This is bugs me about the HEA reviewer, maybe store, maybe designer. Why have you not been taught about the soundstage? Why have HEA at all if you don’t know what a soundstage is, or if you think it is distortion?
After 60 years nobody has taught you guys about soundstages, how they’re made, what size they are and how you can tell if they are distorting or not? See to me that’s malpractice. I’m not trying to get on anyone’s case here, but after all this time in the hobby of stereo you guys don’t know what a soundstage is. That’s like inconceivable to me.
There’s no way I would be in a hobby of soundstages and not grasped what one is. This isn’t about opinions, a soundstage is a real spatial effect. 100’s of thousands of studios, artist and engineers have been creating them since the beginning of stereo itself, even back in the mono days there was an imagine, a very predictable image.
This is one reason HEA ain’t gonna make it. HEA refuses to advance. And if you guys don’t have anybody teaching you this stuff your never going to get past your system "distorting". Sorry that may be tough love, but this hobby is just waiting to grow and I’m afraid a lot of you are going to let it pass you by.
Michael Green
www.michaelgreenaudio.net