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plauged by off center image, am I insane?

It distracts me to no end when the image is off center. I'm not talking about early stereo recordings where spacing was spread out unnaturally, but when there is a fairly simple arrangement with vocal that you expect to be dead center in front of you. Some recordings are dead center, and then some are a just a little bit off center. Almost always to the right.

I also notice that whenever there is a featured soloist, if they aren’t centered they are displaced to the right.

I attribute this to the recording, not my system since some are dead center and some are not. I was wondering if I am the only one who has experienced this. I am pretty sure my speakers are set up properly and I’m not partially deaf in one ear.

Do you think it is me, or my system, or the recordings? Maybe the guy who mixed the recording was careless or has a hearing problem.
herman
fedreams
107 posts
 
Are the speakers evenly placed? You might want to try and toe in the speakers a bit to the listening position. It will probably tighten up the sweet spot but you will have less off center soloist. Another thing may be the room reflection at certain frequencies. Is the tendency to be off center more with male or female singers? Hope this helped. Good luck.
herman OP
2,215 posts
 
I ran a test CD and it is centered. It doesn't bother me on instrumental music. Like I said, what bugs me is a fairly simple arrangement with vocal that you expect to be dead center in front of you and the vocal is slightly off center.

Good point about turning off the lights. That works but I can't darken my room during the day. I may notice it more than some because I have a small window centered on the wall behind my system that gives a visual reference for the center.

I just got an old Scott integarted with a balance control that takes care of it. A slight tweak on the control and I'm locked in.
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drubin
3,267 posts
 
Maybe some engineers don't mix a solo vocal dead center on purpose. But a consistent skew to one side could suggest some uneveness in your system in your room, perhaps just at certain key frequencies, which might not be evident to you in test CD's balance test.

I see the value in a very precise, remote-controlled balance function.
tbg
5,263 posts
 
The H-Cat line stage with its precise imaging must be very carefully matched by the manufacturer as there is no balance control. I think everyone is correct that some recording of vocalists are not recorded with the singer centered. If a test cd or a mono record sound centered, conclude that an off-center singer was indeed recorded that way. I have several where the singer is centered on some cuts and off to the left on others. With the imaging of the H-Cat it does not bother you as you merely conclude that the singer walked to the left for some reason.
eldartford
4,262 posts
 
There is no law to say that a soloist must be recorded equally in left and right channels, so that they image dead center. If your system images well it can put a sound source anywhere between the speakers, and sometimes outside them. The cure for vague imaging is to use a center speaker. Soloists that are recorded dead center will be nailed by the center speaker (regardless of listener position), and off center sources will image nicely between the center and right speakers.
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