will
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6 feet out does seem pretty clear of the walls. Sounds like a difficult setup indeed, and intuition needs attention!
My 944s are not a perfect reference as I have modified them so the mid-bass and low bass are less resonant and dominant in the balance, revealing more upper-mid to high information. This did wake up the image though. As far as my experiments have shown, this area in balance determines subtle definition throughout, (including bass definition) and thus imaging potential. When the mid to upper info is missing or masked too much, it seems the image just can't come out fully.
It is good to hear the DS has increased your depth. I found this also, if the source brings out more fine detail musically, it improves the image while being more engaging. Along with room considerations, I think this illustrates the solution.
This room is very wide, and not too difficult in that way. The speakers are close to symmetrical given that the room opens in various ways on the right side being a small T rather than a capital L. The image of the modded 944s (with low EQ cut) was deep, wide and saturated, player placement and space around them clear. I could not identify the speakers as having sound coming from them. With big space recordings, the image was as much as 30 feet wide and as deep as 15-20 for the actual players, and boundless for ambience. Singers or horn players were clear in location and height, only moving when they moved in relation to their mic. Deep bass, now moderated to fit this space was felt in the body with natural sound.
The HR-1s, also needed to be modified similarly for me, in this room. They did change my sound...more refined, but not so much the imaging. This could be well be this room and arrangement though.
The modded MG944s in another room, the sound is warmer and image a little dreamy, but wide, deep, and saturated also. Sometimes when I hear this drum or that rattle or bell it shocks me it is so of itself in space. I am running a Rega Apollo to a Blue Torii with a ZSTAGE there, and no EQ to the modded 944s. The bass is strong, but quite good with that amp, and a bit domineering with the MKIII, but it images well there too. That room is not treated except by the chance of design, and darker than this one, but nice. Both rooms have ICs and speaker cables that do not smear or bring out excessive bass, and vibration is managed.
I think it must be very difficult to design great audio gear since no matter what, most rooms are untreated, a crap shoot....But then, treated rooms are treated with chosen design and tools (of many), and space limitations, and finally to each person's taste....better, but also varying a great deal in the ultimate sound.
Thank goodness for the transparent and revealing front end stuff, but speakers, they seem an extraordinary challenge to me when in fact, no room is either perfect or uniform to others. Like a lot of us, seems all that has turned me into an experimenter in all areas of the sound.
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