Such videos are an expression of the creator's learning in process. At least this is how things often seem to me. I have read a number of non-fiction books by respected authors that left me with the same impression (and even some fiction). Technical blogs explaining computer topics are more often written by someone who has just learned the thing than by an old hand to whom it is old hat. Sometimes the creators/authors are open about this but often not. Our culture rewards
authority more than innocence or ignorance.
In defense of SINAD
I think ASR's use of SINAD does little harm and on net more good than harm. If people are to become expert enough to understand all the measurements and how they relate to their individual applications and purposes for audio equipment then they have to learn. A lot. Their choice to learn is strictly their own. All we can do is help if they so choose. I think ASR is a splendid resource for those with the potential and inclination to learn.
And SINAD is one of our best lures to reel people towards learning, it seems to me. Threads like this one are almost always active on ASR. I think they reflects how ASR's use of SINAD is a force for good. They document the learning.
These evergreen arguments over SINAD are especially dear to me because they are an example of the uneasy relationship between objective data and problem solving, e.g. What headphones should I buy? that are deeply and unavoidably subjective. It's dear to me because I recall well how nearly 35 years ago I was disabused of the notion of engineering as ideally a scientific activity. Engineering, i.e. practical problem solving, e.g. Should I add a sub to my desktop audio?, involves questions too diverse and interrelated to develop objective answers. Being good at it requires more than expertise the objective domain.
I used to retail wine in an bottle shop. I was expert on the products and considered myself well experienced in how to use them in relation to diverse human purposes (to drink, decorate, seduce, educate, reminisce etc.). The Wine Spectator was indeed quite annoying to me. If someone departed with their WS90+ bottle having rejected my sophisticated council then the commercial purposes are met and the customer will likely be satisfied too. The harm was to my vanity.
When I got over myself I had to acknowledge that WS and its anti-intellectual scores is on net better than nothing. It's a gateway for those who will move on to learn more and it's not devoid of truth.
And so it is with SINAD. It is 1) a hook and lure towards learning with its inherent provocative questions: What am I, and what do I
mean to you? and 2) not often badly misleading.
So when I read
things like this
I'm inclined to think: Good! Confusing the laity is on net probably better than not. Disorientation is the first step in learning:
From a condition of unconscious incompetence
1. become conscious of your incompetence
2. become competent and conscious of it
3. forget about that competence while directing your conscious attention to other issues.
Those at step 2 or on their way there are the ones making the videos,
@amirm . They want to share what they learned.