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Master Thread: Are measurements Everything or Nothing?

"...as if I could care less?"
The "as if" there negates the incorrectness. As in long form - "you act as if I could care less. You're wrong, I couldn't"
 
I know that there are linguists who say get over it, just accept it’s part of the language now.

To this, I say over my dead body. The anti-logic of that wording never ceases to fry my neurons.
This is how I feel with "literally" because apparently, no one ever use it to really say "literally" anymore.
 
The phrase is, "I really couldn't care less." :facepalm:
What irks me is otherwise articulate and competent technicians on U-Toob who say things like "That [insert failed gizmo here] needs replaced."

Oy vey... :facepalm:
That seems to be a common construction in one particular region of the US (WVa, Ohio, western PA). I hate it almost as much as I hate the regional tendency to use glottal stops instead of central consonants (e.g., "I wanted to go there but I cou'int" or "That's much beh'er!").
This is how I feel with "literally" because apparently, no one ever use it to really say "literally" anymore.

I used to worry about all this stuff, but have since decided it is literally like King Canute who thinks the tide needs stopped, but the waves are just going to bah'er him to pieces. Today I could care less.
 
I used to worry about all this stuff, but have since decided it is literally like King Canute who thinks the tide needs stopped, but the waves are just going to bah'er him to pieces. Today I could care less.
Hah! even grammar correction gets pissed off:

Screenshot 2025-01-04 at 17.21.29.png
 
The second sentence is not sufficient to justify the first.
Straw man. The second sentence is additional to the first, and not meant to justify it. You seem to have misconstrued my post.
 
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That seems to be a common construction in one particular region of the US (WVa, Ohio, western PA). I hate it almost as much as I hate the regional tendency to use glottal stops instead of central consonants (e.g., "I wanted to go there but I cou'int" or "That's much beh'er!").

Yes, for some reason that often makes me
“ bump” when listening to people.

Ok, one more for the therapy session:

For some reason one thing that drives me kind of nuts: the ever spreading tendency of what I believe is called “s-backing”

This is where people pronounce words like street as “shtreet” or strong as “schtrong
string as “shtring”….

When I was young, this was mostly the providence of rappers (at least that’s the only place I remember hearing it), but for some reason it has spread like wildfire, especially in the last 15 years or so, it seems almost like most Americans are speaking like that. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a skateboarder, college student, tech professional, Newscaster, political commentator…. It’s absolutely everywhere now. And it just sounds bizarre to me.

And the funny thing is is that when I point this out to people they say “ what? I’ve never noticed anybody doing that.” It feels like I’m in the twilight zone.

Once you notice it… you may be cursed in hearing it everywhere.
 
That seems to be a common construction in one particular region of the US (WVa, Ohio, western PA). I hate it almost as much as I hate the regional tendency to use glottal stops instead of central consonants (e.g., "I wanted to go there but I cou'int" or "That's much beh'er!").
It seems to have spread -- one of the "offending" U-Toobers is in Wichita KS. :)

Another bugaboo: replacing the hard "t" consonant in "important" a softer "d".
 
This is where people pronounce words like street as “shtreet” or strong as “schtrong
string as “shtring”….
Did you never hear Sean Connery speak? He's been doing it for decades. :)

 
Did you never hear Sean Connery speak? He's been doing it for decades. :)


Yes!!! (of course people find it charming in his accent)

Now think about everybody speaking like Sean Connery and nobody notices this shift
:)
 
Got it, so mid-fi receivers through mid - fi speakers sound the same, but when using more hi-fi amps and speakers there were differences. That's what I expected and experienced. Thanks.
You misrepresent the experiments @Doodski described. The 'more hifi' amps and speakers were only different in that they allowed more SPL. Below the power limits of the mid-fi amps.... there were no differences.
 
That's what I expected and experienced.

Since you don't seem to be interested in reading about biases, let me say this:

To a great degree, whatever you expect, that is what you will experience. This is not true of there are very obvious and overriding characteristics under consideration, but otherwise, it's the rule for how biases work.
 
Since you don't seem to be interested in reading about biases, let me say this:

To a great degree, whatever you expect, that is what you will experience. This is not true of there are very obvious and overriding characteristics under consideration, but otherwise, it's the rule for how biases work.
Also if we are expecting differences then we will be actively listening for them. And so more likely to perceive them, even if there are in fact none.

And those perceived - but in reality non-existent - differences can sometimes be counter to what we consciously expected them to be.

The protest of 'I wasn't expecting it to be an improvement therefore it cannot be bias and must be real' doesn't hold water.
 
The magazine American Scientist, Volume 113 Number 1, January-February 2025 has an article titled: The Science of Hi-Fi Audio by John G. Beerends and Richard Van Everdingen, eight pages.
 
The magazine American Scientist, Volume 113 Number 1, January-February 2025 has an article titled: The Science of Hi-Fi Audio by John G. Beerends and Richard Van Everdingen, eight pages.

Link to info

"QUICK TAKE​

  • The goal of high-fidelity audio is to capture the feeling of a live musical event. Doing so requires more than just reproducing sound accurately, without audible distortion or noise.
  • Perceptual measurement techniques provide an effective way to evaluate sound quality for speech. But the techniques cannot fully capture subjective impressions of music.
  • A sense of immersion is crucial for a satisfying musical experience. Most commercial systems fail in that regard; the authors propose a new solution, using both direct and diffuse sound."
 
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Link to info

"QUICK TAKE​

  • The goal of high-fidelity audio is to capture the feeling of a live musical event. Doing so requires more than just reproducing sound accurately, without audible distortion or noise.
  • Perceptual measurement techniques provide an effective way to evaluate sound quality for speech. But the techniques cannot fully capture subjective impressions of music.
  • A sense of immersion is crucial for a satisfying musical experience. Most commercial systems fail in that regard; the authors propose a new solution, using both direct and diffuse sound."
The article is behind a paywall of course but the summary seems problematic.

If they believe the goal of high fidelity audio is to recreate the feel of a live event, they may just be doomed to a lifetime of disappointment.

And they want immersive at the same time? Come join me in the cheap seats. No chance.

Given an incorrect premise I doubt they have come up with great results, but well see.
 
If your trying to recreate the sound of a live orchestra from the audiance you will want the sound coming from all directions. 95% of the audiance is beyond the critical distance. By average they hear almost 9db more reverb than direct sound.

https://www.ioa.org.uk/system/files...ions_in_a_symphony_orchestra_a_case_study.pdf

Why anyone wants to recreate this mush (try finding a dummy head recording from the middle of the audiance) is beyond me.
 
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