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Mono VS Stereo

Hello,

For the last few years I stopped listening to my system in stereo mode and now only listen in mono. As soon as I started listening in mono my listening enjoyment went up about 300%. No longer did I become fatigued by the (Man made) stereo (Effects) created by the engineers in the studio. I grew to hate following these effects from the left speaker to the right speaker and back again with some recordings. When you attend a live performance be it Rock, Jazz, synphony or whatever, the sound comes at you in mono not stereo (Unless of course the sound man has other ideas. But as far as the band and the actual instruments are concerned there is no such thing as "Playing" in stereo. Give it a try, listen to your records or CD's in mono ( I hope you all have a mono selector on your preamps) it will be hard going back to stereo listening plus the soundstage and the way the "Band" comes across will be really cool.
nocaster

Showing 2 responses by gregm

gregm
3,411 posts
 
I too like mono sound. However, not to detract from your sonic joys, but do try repositioning your spkrs, as Shadorne suggests or even a bit further away (¬5'); the experience will be better for both mono & stereo material.
Keep in mind that "mono" is often sound re-channelled through the right (stereo) channel. It could be you're enjoying an artefact -- albeit a welcome one!
As ELdartford notes there are few mono cartridges around, some of them being just modded stereos. But it's worth trying out, I think, especially on mono recordings.
gregm
3,411 posts
 
I still think there is a (superbly enjoyable) artefact involved -- so mark your speakers' original positions before repositioning. Just to be on the safe side...
OTOH, if you'll allow me the comment "big money on small speakers (Guarneri)" is hardly "off the beaten track"; those are easily among the best spkrs that manufacturer has offered!
(I would love some of that espresso...)
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