The Road To Audio Hell

[Macca]

PQ of Audionote speaks:

https://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazi.../audiohell.htm

What do we all think of this? For me some sense mixed with some nonsense.

The quiz is interesting. If you answer three or more in the affirmative you're on the road to hell. Apparently. What are your answers? Here's mine:


1. Do you try to arrange instantaneous A/B comparisons of brief segments of music to maximize your memory retention?

No, that's too much like hard work. But it's a good idea since although we think we remember what that cowbell at 4.59 sounded like before we swapped whatever it is we're comparing, we don't really.

2. Do you bring the same group of "reference" test recordings to each audition in an effort to sort out specific performance capabilities and to prevent any disorientation of confusion which could result from using music with which you are unfamiliar?

I use recordings which I know will sound bad if the system has problems. So 'Yes', I suppose.

3. Do you avoid using music of which you are particularly fond so that you can properly attend to objective analysis rather than be distracted by the music's pleasures and passions?

No.



4. Do you believe that the true function of an audio system is to re-create music; and that therefore you can only accurately evaluate audio playback if you have an extensive knowledge of live music performance?

No.

5. Do you believe that if your evaluation addresses such matters as frequency range, signal/noise ratio, stage size and depth, instrumental separation and balance, timbre, and textual clarity that whatever other purely musical considerations there may be will take care of themselves?

Yes, mostly.

6. Has it been your experience that some speakers are especially suitable for rock, others for classical, and perhaps others for intimate jazz? How do you explain this phenomenon? Is this more or less inevitable?

Yes. My explanation is that many loudspeakers are not very good at all.


7. When you ask yourself; "What should be the correct reference, live music or the recording session?" Do you conclude that it is one or the other? Are you comfortable with you answer to this question?

The correct reference isn't either of them. For playback there is only signal integrity, or lack of it by degrees. There is no reference to another 'event'.

[Pieoftheday]

For me,this is the sort of thing that almost ruined my enjoyment of music . Over thinking. Like the cable debate

[Barry]

For me,this is the sort of thing that almost ruined my enjoyment of music . Over thinking. Like the cable debate

My thoughts exactly - and one of the reasons I stopped reading the audio press.

[Pigmy Pony]

Not many hobbies can stand up to logical thought. Hifi certainly isn't one of them. As they say in the building trade, and probably apt here: Don't turn the light on and ruin a good job

[AJSki2fly]

I would say the that a few years back I was at least half way down the road to audio hell.

I wanted to hear certain recordings as I thought I remembered hearing them previously and what I thought was right. How could that be a good way of going on, everything I had previously heard could have been perfect or completely wrong and I would have never know one way or another. Which is more or less what the writer of the article is saying.

In recent years I moved away from the comparison/evaluation approach as much as possible when listening to new gear or making changes, although I must admit I did still use some favourite recordings which I was familiar with, so still a quarter of the way onto the road to hell. However I did start throwing in random recordings I did not know or had not listened to for many years to see if I enjoyed them, and took much longer listening to the system before deciding.

Nowadays I am more interested in enjoying what I am listening to and its impact on me. I think I have been very lucky over that last 4 years changing components having ended up with a system that gives me enjoyment and portrays the emotion of musical content as I would like, and I have noticed that this goes across most all genres, so I am reasonably confident it works well across a brand spectrum. How good this is varies with recordings, some are better than others, is this down to my system inadequacies or poor recordings, I have know way of truly knowing, however I have replaced some favourite recordings recently that I was dissatisfied with a few have sounded better, or I think so, but for some I can hear no difference.

[Wakefield Turntables]

Of FFS! My system's main functions are to educate me on new music and enjoy what I already own.