Soundstage...How to determine what's right?

Opus 3 has some 'test CD's' that fit your description of needs. My favorite has been 'Depth of Image' which I have on LP and CD but I think they are now sold over the internet in a series of CD's. Check them out.

The are, for the most part, cuts from a lot of records made of different types of music, classic, jazz, large bands, solo instruments and voices, small groups etc. They are simply miked and each cut has a description of what you should be able to hear from a well set up system. If you find they don't sound as described, trust me, its your problem. They can create a holographic image. They also stress proper timbre and if a 'recorder' doesn't sound like one (and they are hard to record and playback well) its your problem, etc.

As to what you need in your room to maximize imaging -

1) Speakers that are capable of resolving output especially in the highs, without being inherrently bright. Speakers noted for pin point imaging and phasing are usually best if you want to maximize depth of image.

2) Proper set up, including compensation for room induced acoustical problems, is CRITICAL.

2) Electronics which are reasonably 'open', not dull or bright. Transparent to the source.

3) Good recordings made using simple miking techniques are best for maximum imaging but there are some excellent mult miked recording, which can sound pretty darned good when made by a very skilled recording engineer.

High quality imaging isn't a walk in the park. It takes a lot of work and patience to get it to the stage where it is holographic, as like 'I felt I could walk in amoungst the musicians' type of imaging. Not many people ever get there.

Hope that helps a bit.

I have the Chesky Ultimate Demonstration Disc as well as the Sheffield disc. I like the Shieffield disc for its 'walk about' cut, and its 'out of phase' cut but other than that it didn't impress me. It does have 'burn in' tracks some might like to use.

I didn't find the Chesky disc all that useful, especially compared to the Opus 3 disc's, which are much more varied and easier to 'understand'. But I did get the Opus 3's first and was thoroughly familar with them when I got the Chesky. And, I've got to admit that perhaps my system just wasn't up to the level where I could appreciate the benefits of the Chesky, a label I have been more disappointed by than impressed. FWIW - YMMV.

Rodman99999, This is probably not the time or place for a discussion of recording abberations such as you have described, so I'll keep it short. From what you have discribed the recording with the super wide sound stage had a lot of out of phase info added into the mix. It's just NOT possible for a stereo system to produce sound, on the plane of the speakers, outside the speakers when the sound from both speakers is in phase AND your speakers are set up properly. Thats my story and I'm going to stick with it! :-)

Rodman99999, Note in my test disc recommendation I mentioned the value of the 'out of phase' cut on the Sheffield disc. Unlike other disc's with barking dogs (Ralph on Stereophiles 1st one) used in and out of phase (typically mono signals I believe) this cut is a stereo signal out of phase and a well set up set of speakers can produce sound 'coming from all about the room'. This is so great because you may 'think' that you have already correctly set up your speakers and listening position based on in phase stereo signals (like recorded music). In one set up which sounded just great(!) I thought, when I played the out of phase signals there was a strong shift in the out of phase info to the left wall just forward of the speaker. Moving my chair an inch or so to the right changed the out of phase presentation to equal amounts of sound outside the left and right speakers both behind the plane and in front of the speakers and to a small degree in the area behind the listening position.

That cut as well as the 'walk about' has been very helpful. This may not be a test disc very usable for the original poster but I think it is very helpful if you're really bent on getting the 'best' set up possible.