Hi Fi Sounds Fake - Pick the Fake You Prefer

[watchnerd]

Probably been seen before but I found this interesting about different preferences in speakers.

I have a theory about "showing off" systems. I call it Zen and the Art of Keeping Your Yap Shut. Think about it: what's the first thing that pops into your head when someone tells you how great their system sounds? "Yeah, right!"
You know the score: just when you think you've never heard your hi-fi rig sounding better, you invite some friends over to show it off. And as sure as Michael Bolton wears a truss, they hate it.

"The bass could be a little less boomy," says the guy with the minimonitors at home.

"Heavens, it is a bit hard on top, old salt," sniffs the chap with the vintage Quads.

"Ugh! Listen to that boxiness!" yelps the guy with the Maggies.

It's all about MY-fi. The minimonitor freak doesn't ever hear any real bass, so full-range systems sound too thick to his ears. The squire with the old Quads hears life through a feather pillow, so anything on the bright side of dull's going to irk him. And the Magnepan fan? Those people don't think reality sounds as good as their beloved panel speakers.

https://www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/792proac/index.html

First published in 1992!

How little this industry has changed....

 

[tomtoo]

A perfect microphone, capable of recording and reproducing an exact copy of the performance from any position you choose or indeed all of them. You are referring to technology limitations, not those imposed by the laws of physics

I see that different. Let's imagine you have the magic perfect microphone and also the perfect speaker. Now record, you record the Room also. Now play it back. You play it back im your room. So your room alters automaticly the Signal. So even you had the perfect recording and perfect speaker your ear will get a altered signal. Thats physics. So i would say physics tells what ever you do you can't get the original . But we enjoy a good illusion, at the end everybody has to decide what parts of the illusion he likes most to give him the best impression of reality

 

[direstraitsfan98]

Zero Fidelity is in a strange part of the audiophile community who is completely ignorant to the harm his snake oil peddling does. He thinks he’s doing good but he’s not... I highly dislike how he throws around the term “full range” so often to describe bookshelf speakers with 4” woofers...

I don’t even know how he finds an audience on YouTube, his unscripted monologues are painful and obnoxious to listen to. I guess some people like that kind of content. It isn’t for me though.

Then again there isn’t a single person on YouTube who’s subjective opinions I care about other then my own. I’ve learned it’s completely irrelevant to listen to other people do video reviews on products in the context of it being about their systems and their gears. Their room isn’t you’re and you can’t and won’t have the same experience unless your room is the same. Nothing beats hearing the gear yourself and in your own room.

 

[tomtoo]

And it's even much more complicated. What you hear is not only the soundpreasure on a microphone. It's the soundpreasure of two microphones with a higly sophisticated preprozessor after them.

 

[tomtoo]

"...often to describe bookshelf speakers with 4” woofers... "

Yes they have always a hard time to give me the illusion i stay in front of a Drummer.

 

[krabapple]

This applies: "All models are wrong, but some are useful." - George Box

What we can achieve at home is at best an imperfect model of the original event(s). But I think we can all agree, we often find them useful.

 

[Rja4000]

Absolutely can happen. I've had some superb recordings of some Jazz performances that were much better sounding at home than they were in the ballroom on the night. The atmosphere doesn't translate of course, but the memories of the event serve to actually enhance the already better sound and the overall enjoyment can be greater.

Not all of course work that way.

Of course it happens!
Actually, it has all reasons to sound better!

It's way more complicated to sound good in a Live concert room than in your home.

If the multi track recording is good, the mixer will have plenty of time to correct small errors, mute unwanted take parts, even redo some part of takes or pick from another recording, align track timings if needed, take all required time to mix at best he can, add effects at taste (without the limitation of live, like the risk of feedback), and, finally, have someone mastering the finished music correctly.

It has to be better sounding.

 

[Loonabae]

Zero Fidelity is in a strange part of the audiophile community who is completely ignorant to the harm his snake oil peddling does. He thinks he’s doing good but he’s not... I highly dislike how he throws around the term “full range” so often to describe bookshelf speakers with 4” woofers...

I don’t even know how he finds an audience on YouTube, his unscripted monologues are painful and obnoxious to listen to. I guess some people like that kind of content. It isn’t for me though.

Then again there isn’t a single person on YouTube who’s subjective opinions I care about other then my own. I’ve learned it’s completely irrelevant to listen to other people do video reviews on products in the context of it being about their systems and their gears. Their room isn’t you’re and you can’t and won’t have the same experience unless your room is the same. Nothing beats hearing the gear yourself and in your own room.

Because its aiming at a group that never fact check anything and really ignorant about anything audio gear focused, So any error from the channel is ignored. Subjective reviews are funny it's a crap shoot of there value and find them annoying when the reviewer ends thinking there opinions are fact and get immature about it.

When i used to watch few videos/text impressions about the ER4XR some would go on about BA driver limits and would rage at anyone who didn't hear there cons???.