I think the terms holographic, realistic, and three dimensional are varying degrees of the same idea, with holographic being the best. Perhaps I have at last reached the level of being holographic, but it only is occasionally that I could be fooled into believing that the performer is in my room.
I am sure that there are many ingredients in achieving this, such as good room acoustics, phase coherent speakers (a rare characteric), good sources including recordings and pickup, and finally exceptional electronics. Room acoustics takes time and flexibility in a big room. I find that I cannot long endure digital corrections, but YMMV. I have owned several omni-directional speakers, but would merely point to the original Boas speakers as the falicy of this. Yes they spread sound all over the room, but there is no realism to it.
I would love to have a real point source, full-range speaker with 100db efficiency and 20-20k Hz frequency response. Short of that I still use a fairly efficient 92 db, 2 way, and excellent frequency response speaker, the Acapella LaCampanellas. I know they are far short of perfect but have a very simple crossover and are phase coherent.
I have very good sources, with the digital now being the Exemplar Music Server, which is the best digital I have heard yet. My Shindo Labs turntable is also the best I have heard, granted that it and the digital are much improved being on the Halcyonics active isolation bases.
Cabling of all sorts also are invaluable.
But it is electronics that have given me my closest approximation of being holographic. For 30 years I briefly toyed with solid state amps and preamps. Once in a while I found satisfaction with solid state, especially in phono and line stages, but only once in an amp-the 47 Labs first 25 watt amp and then only for a while. Tubes ruled.
Then I reconnected to an old friend from 30 years ago and found he was back into the audio business, making line stages and amps. I tried one of his line stages, the H-Cat P-12. It had better base than any of my tube line stages, the ARC SP-10, an Exemplar parafeed, and the Cat. The Exemplar was its closest rival full-range but did not have the three dimensional sound stage of the H-Cat. A final "production" version proved better yet and I sold the others except the Exemplar. During the next five years, I use the H-Cat with an Exemplar 300B amp, the Reimyo PAT-300, and the Exemplar Statement solid state amp. It shocked me, I must say. I tried it on a money back guarantee. With time its power and ungrained sound convinced me, and of course, it did not go back. Always I had what I thought was the state-of-the-art sound staging, in terms of wide width and layered depth. As better versions of the H-Cat P-12 came along, this all improved, but the now one year old P-12R X7 H-Cat marked an new level of realism that I have never heard here or elsewhere. I thought I had achieve audiophile narvana.
Then five weeks ago I finally got the H-Cat amp. I hoped that this amp would give me the sweetness of the Riemyo midrange and the extension on top and bottom of the Exemplar. Although Roger Paul had assured me that it completed the Doppler control started with the line stage and would shock me with it holographic image. He was right, but it took four weeks for it to reach its present level.
I am sorry that it has taken so long to explain why I think so many things contribute to a holographic image. I think it is very fragile, indeed. I dearly wish I could have people hear what I am hearing rather than trying to verbalize it.
But the long answer to the posting is, yes, electronics are quite important to a holographic imaging. But the best imaging is not to be found with tube gear. Presently my only tubes are in my dac.
