What is the opposite of near field listening?

Paulwp, I disagree, very few times is recorded music as good as live, no matter where you are sitting. You can call it sound, performance, ambiance, feel, whatever, but at a good live performance, the room, the performance and the experience is the "sweet spot".

Jvia...used to agree with you, but after spending the past year or so assembling a ref system, I have to agree that MOST of the time my home seat is better than the cheap tix I buy at most live venues...until I move around after intermission! This includes the venerated Boston trio: Jordan Hall and Symphony Hall center balconies, and Sanders Hall middle orchestra.
I'm NOT saying that slightly imperfect seats are dissatisfying musically, but certainly tonal balance and REALLY non-correlated sounstaging anomolies prevail much more often in live venues than in well-recorded software properly presented in a great system in a well-damped room...in the sweet spot. I know: lots of conditions!
But I must say that I strive, and usually succeed in wrangling a fine seat the majority of the time live, but nearly ALL the time at home!
Again, it took two years of careful building to be able to state this unequivocally.
And it's worth it!

Distant city speaking. Sorry.

Tim

Tim, I like it!

Jim

moonbounce