Importance of Soundstage/Imaging

No can do. They are all important. Doing them all along with coherence in particular can be a challenge. This is where I think the OHM Walsh speakers I tend to prefer excel. They pretty much have it all (when set up well).

I have Dynaudio monitors also. Not quite as coherent but good bass extension for smaller monitors.

I also have Triangle monitors. Excellent coherence! Size is similar to the DYns but bass extension is not as good. They only cost $500 a pair though back in the nineties, a steal.

I also have tiny Realistic Minimus 7s. Even smaller with less bass extension and dynamics, but pretty good all around otherwise.

Each of these have a slightly different timbre. OHMs are most "neutral", perhaps a touch of warmth. Dyns are warmer and can be a touch brighter as well depending on setup. Triangles might be a touch towards the "cold" side. Minimus 7s are somewhere in the realm of the much larger OHMs but with a lot less bass.

I was thinking a speaker should possess the attribute "fun to listen to."

John

1 - coherence
2 - openness
3 - dynamics
4 - timber
5 - bass
6 - detail
7 - air
8 - imaging

Might be why my speakers are 20+ years old.

IMHO, timbre comes first, the rest are all a distant second. If a piano sounds like a synthesizer, who cares how it images or how much bass, air, dynamics or detail it has?

Jmcgrogan2

you are absolutely correct.