Stereo in a Surround Sound World
Friday January 25, 2008
I enjoy watching a good movie and listening to multichannel music on my home theater system, but I’m more interested in and passionate about two-channel sound. Maybe it’s the fact that I grew up in a stereo world, but I think there are other, more significant reasons. A good two-channel system makes it easy to visualize the musical performance in the soundstage, to place the vocalists and instruments in space, and to feel as is I’m in the best seat in the house listening to my favorite musician. I can see the performance with my ears when I listen to a good stereo recording. In my opinion, a good stereo system does more to make music real and bring it to life because of the spatial characteristics and separation of sounds. Multichannel music and movies in surround sound get all of the attention these days, but stereo sound is alive and well judging by the breadth of high-quality two-channel components and speakers available today. And a good stereo system doesn’t have to cost a fortune – a moderately priced receiver or amp, a disc player or turntable and a good pair of stereo speakers placed properly can make a great two-channel system. If you have an opinion about stereo compared to multichannel sound, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think.
Comments
I actually prefer a good two-channel stereo experience more than surround sound. I’m a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to sound and I find a good stereo system offers a sound experience that is simply more accurate.
Thanks,
Nad Neslo
Hi Gary,
I agree with you about stereo sound putting the listener in the audience and hearing the vocals and instruments as they would be on stage. I’m very critical when it comes to listening to music. In fact, as a musician, songwriter and sound engineer of my own recording studio I only work in stereo. I grew up in a mono world, so the introduction of stereo was monumental. My home theater system is also set-up for stereo. Even though it has the capability to add surround sound 7.1, I see no reason to do so. I would rather listen to the clean, flat response that my custom designed speakers afford.
Take care,
Howard
I have a two channel set up that I also use to view movies. I have a inexpensive device called The Spatializer HTMS-2510 and most people who listen to the system ask where are the other speakers. Even without the unit the fidelity of my 2 channel rig blows away the gimmicky lo fi surround sound of their systems.
I have five systems in my home ranging from a pair of 3 inch full range speakers and a subwoofer to a 7.1 system with towers and dual 12 subwoofer. I have to say I enjoy listening to the stereo systems the best. There is somthing special to a holographic stereo sound system. When you get it right between the components and speakers it is true magic. I really can not be discribed it must be experenced.
I’M WITH YOU ALL THE WAY EXCEPT I BELIEVE IN “OVERKILL” WHEN IT COMES TO POWER, NOT THAT YOU ARE GOING TO BLOW THE WINDOWS OUT. IT’S VERY DISHEARTENING THAT YOU ACTUALLY HAVE TO SEARCH FOR LP’S THOUGH. I AM A VINYL FREAK. COME TO THINK OF IT, IT’S ALSO HARD TO FIND A GOOD STEREO STORE THAT CARRIES STATE OF THE ART TURNTABLES.
I am still listening to stereo output on my entertainment system and enjoy the sound, especially from audio CD’s. My receiver does have Dolby 5.1 surround sound capability, but I have never gotten around to purchasing surround sound speakers. Consequently, some concert DVD’s recorded for Dolby Surround Sound do not sound very good through my stereo system. Is this to be expected? If so, then it’s time to install a surround sound speaker system.
I enjoy both stereo and multi-channel music. I have a 5.1 set-up and enjoy both stereo CDs and multi-channel SACDs and DVD-As. I must say that some very well mixed multi-channel recordings can really blow me away, but so can a well recorded and mixed stereo CD. I am a bit of a sound snob – it has to be a good recording for me to enjoy it. For two channel listening, I recommend a pair of good quality speakers coupled with a quality subwoofer for a 2.1 set-up. Some recordings have low end information that only a quality subwoofer can bring out.
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