Center image on left side and don't know why


Hi,

What should be the center image in my soundstage is on the left side. I've tried everything, swapped amps, speakers, cables, changed locations from long wall to short wall, and even had my ears cleaned, nothing works. It's really frustrating. Any other ideas?

Thanks for your help,

Pete
petewhitley
That's another problem I was thinking of but forgot to mention: Many speakers have a "head-in-a-vice" sweet spot, move your head an inch or more one way or the other and the magic is gone, the soundstage collapses. Such is the problem with the majority of time-phase aligned speakers, the sweet spot is the only sweet spot, sit anywhere else in the room and the sound is just mediocer at best, any other person listening is not getting 1/4 of the magic, although there are a few speakers that can offer a sweet spot as big as a sofa and the music will still be stunning even in a different room entirely....btw, did I mention how much I like Von Schweikerts? :o)
Using a Mono track is a good idea. Even use a test cd that does right, left and center checks. Also, make sure your sitting chair is not angled (toed into one speaker).

Just incase its not in your head.

-Dave

P.S - when you figure it out please let us know.
Well..i had the same problem...unit I noticed the balance control on my intergrated...and to be honest...not all recordings have "dead center" imaging...some more than others...but the recording really dictates soundstage location...that being said...a mono test is a good idea...good luck
get the original test CD 1 from Chesky it has a image test track like described above it will tell you immediately what's right or wrong.
I noticed a similar problem with image when I first started getting into high end audio 20 years ago. I tried many things until I noticed the problem occured on all systems, including those in dealer showrooms. I tried moving the speaker to compensate for the offset image, but something about that approach does not seem right.

To make a long story short, I finally concluded that I have a slight hearing loss in my right ear. I can adjust the balance control to about 2 o'clock and the image centers fine. I did a fair amount of hunting in my younger days, and suspect this may have contributed to the loss in my right ear.

I am convinced that others people have a similar problem and do not know it. A high end system is so resolving that small losses are noticeable. Whenever someone comes to hear my system, I frequently start by playing something with a good center image (female vocal) and ask them to point to the singer. It does not happen often, but I have had people point to one side or the other. So I adjust the balance for them so they can hear what a true image sounds like.

Good luck.