In the (50s?) Betty Crocker had an issue with selling packet mix cake that Psychologists eventually solved. It became an early example of counter intuitive value systems that people have.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20171027-the-magic-cakes-that-come-from-a-packet
In blind tests, powdered egg tasted better, but the buyers claimed that it tasted worse when the item was on the shelf, and the product was not selling.
The truth? The 'experience' with the product was that buyers (mainly women) felt that it was too easy, and 'appeared' to be too little work to their families if they just poured water in a dry mix. It didn't 'show' that they cared.
So Betty Crocker removed the powdered egg. The buyer was now to add their own 'Fresh' egg.
It sold in record numbers.
and dbxWe need a preference score system for substances.
rilly, doh.It's not a deflection: it's the truth.
This is an entertainment hobby. That's all it is.
I really don't care if somebody wants to spend 100x the money on cables that I spend on my cheapish Blue Jeans cables.
I feel no need to convert others.
I don't view objectivism as evangelism.
roflmaoIs there a grown up table?
well described, lol.look, a recommendation is typically for those who *haven’t yet* done something, not, in this case, Washingtonians with a standing order from the local dispensary.
If we are suggesting a *first time* investment in this new sound..tweak, I..er..audiophiles should not be embarrassed to have a child-like sensitivity to the..dr...er....new component.
The legal stuff isn’t the ditchweed of boomer childhood. It doesn’t take much to completely fascinate the user with the incredible wash of details in sound...and not much more to put him to bed for the night.
i say think of it as EQ. One should start with a wee bit.
well described, lol.
High potency has been the norm for the last 20 years, at least.
And getting higher, happily - my local has Sugar Kush fatties at 30.3%. Bliss!
....But it took me 20 years to brake all my certitudes. Today I’m watching myself with a kind smile and the only thing I’m sure about is that I’m not sure anymore about anything except that Bach, Vivaldi and Led Zeppelin badly rock !
This thread makes me alternately amused and sad: https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/my-long-list-of-amplifiers-and-my-personal-review-of-each
Yeah, really bugs the crap out of me when people talk about the sound from cables, amps, DACs, etc. like they're regarding wine. I have seen zero actual evidence to suggest that an amp can improve things like soundstage. Even less evidence that cables can improve audio, they can only degrade it. The day I replaced all my MIT and Monster Cable crap with bluejeanscable.com stuff was one of the happiest of my life.This thread makes me alternately amused and sad: https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/my-long-list-of-amplifiers-and-my-personal-review-of-each
Yeah, really bugs the crap out of me when people talk about the sound from cables, amps, DACs, etc. like they're regarding wine. I have seen zero actual evidence to suggest that an amp can improve things like soundstage. .
Coloration of the sound at the hardware level in order to trick the brain into thinking soundstage has improved when it actually hasn't
The goal of "audio", of the "recording industry, is to move as many units as possible. The notion that the intent is "to as faithfully as possible reproduce what was intended by the artist when recorded", the concept of "the Absolute Sound", is bogus, a marketing tool. The people making the music are [usually] listening to a variety of different monitors when working on a final mix, trying to find out what works on the sort of gear that most people will hear it on. A "well recorded song" sold a lot of copies. This isn't an art gallery, it's a supermarket, where the lighting is designed to make the products and produce look as appetizing as possible, even if it means lighting the store with high-UV bulbs to make the colors "pop". The kinds of recordings designed to demonstrate "The Absolute Sound" are the kinds of recordings destined for the cut-out bins, or the internet equivalent of the same. To give an obvious example, along with all sorts of compression and other effects not found in nature, Fleetwood Mac's "Rumours" has the treble jacked up to at least "11". Nothing will "realistically" reproduce Mick Fleetwood's drum kit, it's a pure studio artifact. Listen to the Quincy Jones productions of Michael Jackson, a million miles away from reality and selling like hotcakes. Just about any monster hit is the audio equivalent of junk food, highly processed and available everywhere.Well, what's the goal of audio? I think it's to as faithfully as possible reproduce what was intended by the artist when recorded. So anything done at the hardware level that changes that and can't be controlled by the listener is bad, IMO. Equipment should be transparent, in my opinion.
A well recorded song doesn't need the soundstage improved by electronics via coloration/distortion. Just like if I went to an art gallery and someone had tinted a Rothko to make it seem warmer, I would be pissed, whereas once you get a reproduction home, do whatever you want to it, with the understanding that the result is a derivative of the original and thus not the original.