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In Reply to: RE: Can audio component sales personnel play tricks on customers? posted by PAR on May 15, 2017 at 09:57:26
Have I ever experienced trickery? Well I recall years ago when the salesman at one store I knew used to stand in front of the amplifier he wanted to sell, facing the customer. He would put his hand behind is back and surreptitiously turn up the bass control. The comparative amp that he didn't want to sell went through the same process but with the bass being turned down.Haha, that's a good one ;)
I remember few years ago I was auditioning some equipment at a high end audio store, and the store owner was trying to get me to buy into some weird thingys called "Acoustic System Resonators" (http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue43/resonators.htm). These were retailing for $2,800.00 for their top 'platinum' model -- basically a small wooden plank with a tiny metal bowl screwed on the top. The resonators are placed on the room walls, following the instructions that come with the product. Looks like ultra high end snake oil, right?
So the guy plays some tracks without those resonators in the room. Then he stops the playback, brings the resonators into the room, and places them around the walls. Plays the same track again, and BAM! -- everything just blossoms into vivid, amazing music!
I'm pretty sure there was some trickery to it. I just cannot fathom how would it be possible that these tiny metal bawls affect the sound to such a degree.
Edits: 05/15/17Follow Ups:
You can't trust non-blind A/B comparisons. Here's what led me to that conclusion.
Remember the VPI "Magic Bricks"? Early 1980's. Blocks of mu-metal in attractive wood cases, intended to be placed on your electronics and suck up stray magnetic fields to improve the sound. I bought a pair and started listening to them at home. With them (on top of my Kenwood L07M amps at the time), I thought things sounded better, clearer, better defined, than without them. But to A/B them, I had to get up, walk across the room, move them, go back to my chair, listen again... So I moved my amps right next to my chair - I could just lean down and lift the bricks on or off the amps. I heard the same change in the sound. Terrific! Then I tried hearing the change without moving them. I just told myself I heard the change. And ya know what? I heard it!
TLDR - it was all in my head. The bricks went back (I got a refund). And I have been very skeptical of non-blind A/B comparisons ever since. 'Cuz the mind plays games :-)
TLDR - it was all in my head. The bricks went back (I got a refund). And I have been very skeptical of non-blind A/B comparisons ever since. 'Cuz the mind plays games :-)Can't argue with that. But in my case, it was the opposite -- I was SUPPOSED to easily hear the difference (the change) between Red book and hi-res, but I couldn't hear any differences. I was psyching myself into hearing them, rooting for the hi-res, but had to admit it to myself that Red book sounds pretty much the same as hi-res playback (providing, of course, that we're listening to the indention mastering, only rendered in different resolutions).
Edits: 05/15/17
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