Thank you, Doug. Very appreciative of your insight (and rather prompt reply to my post too for that matter).
In my particular case, I wouldn't sit anywhere except dead center to the room, for aesthetic reasons (plus in my case I have a video setup which is part of the audio setup). Also in my case, my speakers weigh over 100 pounds each, so repositioning them even a half foot really does become a big deal.
And your point about toe in/out (or straight) is also true. In my case, I found that the intersection axis point of the speaker setup is best when it's about 4 inches behind my head. Hence my speaker arrangement is technically an isosceles triangle as opposed to an equilateral. The arrangement that I have follows Sandy Gross's setup tips, plus my own experimentation when I initially did the setup, as well as what certain other audiophiles do.
However, I have what I call a "secondary primary listening position" (I know, an oxymoron), where I can set up a bar stool chair (and the eggnog is flowing right now) basically a foot and a half behind my primary listening position. That puts the listener about 6 to 12 inches *behind* the speaker axis convergence point.
I've listened from both front and behind-axis convergence positions and prefer to be inside (front) of the axis as opposed to being outside (behind) of it. However, I do understand how this is strictly a matter of preference and not "better" or "worse" per se.
I'll add that in general, I think (and again this is only my thinking) that most audiophiles have a *near-field* listening situation, even though they think that they don't. And I know what "near field" means (based on dozens of google articles, other reading references, Paul McGowan, etc.). If one stays within the concept of the near field having to do with more speakers, and less of the room itself, I believe sitting inside the speaker axis convergence helps achieve that. Conversely, when a person sits outside of the speaker axis convergence point, I believe the sound now starts to become far-field, essentially inviting more room interaction. Besides that, near-field allows one to play at a louder SPL without disturbing others. The aforementioned is only my opinion. I have no scientific data to back any of that up. Just my own personal experience having listened to many (40?) different systems in many different rooms.
EDIT: I have to get out of the habit of making posts from my cell phone while on the road as opposed to sitting down at my desktop computer.
EDIT 2: I'm home and made this edit 6 PM EST on 12/21/22. Hopefully my last edit to this post!
