Some days everything just sounds better

[CapMan]

Do you ever have those times when listening just seems right? Nothing different in the room, same music, but some how it all just gels and it’s wonderful.

Some days the opposite is true also!

Maybe it’s about my mental state, fatigue, sinuses! I often find early mornings most enjoyable on a weekend rather than evenings.

Maybe it’s just me in which case feel free to bypass this thread. But if you also find this happens I’d love to hear your rationale!

Over in Naim-forum-land the perceived wisdom seemed to be that noise in the mains network due to heavy usage at certain times made the sound degrade

 

[Killingbeans]

Maybe it’s about my mental state, fatigue, sinuses!

This. I think most ASR users would agree.

Over in Naim-forum-land the perceived wisdom seemed to be that noise in the mains network due to heavy usage at certain times made the sound degrade

Not this. Again, I think most ASR users would agree

 

[Zgrado1970]

Definitely sinuses or mental state. Claritin is the most effective audio tweak I have found. Try listening to your rig after your ears clear after taking a swim.

 

[CapMan]

Not this. Again, I think most ASR users would agree

I know - it’s crazy thinking !

 

[Enstip]

I entirely agree. I put it down to tiredness since I tend to always listen late in the day when I’m not distracted. I need to do some experimenting with earlier sessions.

 

[Mart68]

Me too. Listen on Saturday - wonderful, Sunday not so great. Sometimes the other way round. Sometimes great both days.

I'm the variable.

 

[Vacceo]

You don't listen with your ears, you listen with your brain. If you're feeling tired, hungry, anxious... That affects your perception of sound.

On the other hand, sometimes there is a lot less ambient noise, so that helps too.

 

[Tassin]

Maybe it’s about my mental state

Not maybe, but definitely.

Friday evening, a work week has come to a satisfactory end and all is done and dusted. All tension has flown away and then ... listening to music can be so much more enjoyable.

Conversely, even likeable music can annoy me if I'm not in a good mood.

Anyone who attributes this to so-called cleaner power denies or ignores the psychology of listening to music.

 

[JimmyKing]

I got COVID for Christmas & I've been treble sensitive since. I also get mild tinnitus when stressed. I believe that wellness in general plays a significant part in your sensory perception. Noise on your mains network, less so. I wouldn't be surprised if you're generally feeling good when everything sounds good.

 

[Killingbeans]

I know - it’s crazy thinking !

Not completely crazy. It makes sense from a layman's perspective, and the reasoning behind it is a great deal less hurtful to the ego.

Most people have no idea what a power supply actually does, and combined with belief of their auditory system being infallible, it makes the notion of "dirty mains" as the culprit of all discrepancy a perfectly sensible assumption.

 

[CapMan]

Definitely sinuses or mental state. Claritin is the most effective audio tweak I have found. Try listening to your rig after your ears clear after taking a swim.

If I’m at all ‘bunged up’ in the head, nose and ears it feels like any dynamic compression is exaggerated and the highs go from clear and detailed to tiring.

 

[CapMan]

I entirely agree. I put it down to tiredness since I tend to always listen late in the day when I’m not distracted. I need to do some experimenting with earlier sessions.

Try first thing at a weekend when you’re fresh from a good nights sleep!

 

[Sal1950]

Over in Naim-forum-land the perceived wisdom seemed to be that noise in the mains network due to heavy usage at certain times made the sound degrade

Complete hogwash.
The power cord is the real devil in the mains power issue.

 

[CapMan]

Complete hogwash.
The power cord is the real devil in the mains power issue.

Good job they have a solution for it lol

Naim Audio Power Line l Hifi Mains Cable | Naim Audio

The Naim Audio Power Line is a hifi mains cable that will help to maxmise the musicality of your Naim Audio products. Find out more online.

www.naimaudio.com

 

[Sal1950]

Good job they have a solution for it lol

Naim Audio Power Line l Hifi Mains Cable | Naim Audio

The Naim Audio Power Line is a hifi mains cable that will help to maxmise the musicality of your Naim Audio products. Find out more online.

www.naimaudio.com

The lunatic is on the grass.
The lunatic is on the grass.
Remembering games and daisy chains and laughs.
Got to keep the loonies on the path.

 

[Dunring]

There's some things I notice like when the barometer swings before a storm, sometimes I just pinch my nose and hold my breath like pressurizing your ears on a plane helps. A study said distilled water (with no minerals or impurities) with a dropper is the best way to clean your ears, so sometimes that does it. I setup my end game stack for a low noise floor, and always have enough power to equalize in low or medium gain (Topping A30Pro/D30Pro). Also a diffusion plastic panel on the AC vent so it makes less noise when it kicks on. Things like holiday stress and distractions play a big part too. When I'm not waiting for a package delivery to knock on the door I enjoy music a lot more.

 

[Purité Audio]

Naim are marketeers par excellence, the more ridiculous the more fervent their devotees.
Men!
Keith

 

[BlackTalon]

If I'm going to listen to Cheeseburger n Paradise I try to fast for at least 8 hours first. Then I can really hear detail in that song I don't otherwise hear. For instance, if you listen closely enough you will learn the pickle is kosher. Merely switching to Odin cables was not resolving enough to learn that info -- I needed to get my brain more in the game.

 

[dasdoing]

door open vs door close makes a visual impact here on my measurements. I can imagine changing air pressure be audible....just a guess

 

[anmpr1]

You don't listen with your ears, you listen with your brain. If you're feeling tired, hungry, anxious... That affects your perception of sound.

On the other hand, sometimes there is a lot less ambient noise, so that helps too.

Listening to music is a holistic experience and involves a synesthesia. It is as much psychological as physiological. It is an emotional, spiritual thing in addition to being strictly acoustic. This is why the DBT works as a good control, because it tends to focus one's perception on the actual sound, doing away with most extraneous influences.

I've mentioned this before, but a thoughtful anecdote comes from Les Paul, who said that in many respects we listen with our eyes. This, after he played a club one night using a prototype electric guitar he'd been working on (a rectangular block of raw wood with pickups). It didn't look to listeners like what they called a guitar, and the audience subsequently complained about it. Next night he added two 'wings' to the block of wood, so it looked more like a trad guitar, and wowed the audience. Nothing sonically had changed--only the visual aspect.

With hi-fi, it's not only the eyes, but the pocketbook. Everyone knows that the twenty thousand dollar preamp sounds better than the thousand dollar one. Right?