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Audio System Performance (a rant)

Posted by Goober58 on December 5, 2012 at 08:49:34

In a quest to chose the "best" each audiophile needs to decide what it is is meant by the best. There appears to be two objective camps battling it out.

First the measurement crowd. Not really sure what they stand for but one has to conclude they would think better measurements mean better audio system performance. Taking that stand it matters not how a recording sounds as long as it is played back faithful to the media be it digital bits or grooves cut into vinyl is how they define Audio System Performance.

Second the live reference crowd - who for the most part would deny the undeniable objective nature of their position. Given perfect recordings of a particular quality one should be able to recreate the live performance at playback. So how a systems sounds given particular recordings becomes their definition of Audio System Performance - how the systems sound with other recordings is the cost of doing things this way.

Both these methods seem honorable but flawed for someone like me. And further if someone didn't want to listen to recordings judged good enough to define high fi performance the measurement method would be far preferable. Put the two together and even if we could establish the best specifications for our designers to work to in order to achieve the best results for recordings of some particular quality only those interested in such recordings would be well served.

In my experience the best system, and I submit the best performing system, is achieved by using a wide diversity of common recordings representing the range of musical interests of the equipment buyer as evaluated in the listening room of the equipment buyer. The greater the diversity of the recordings used in the evaluation, and thus component selection, the more chance of successful playback (ie. enjoyment of the music) of new music. I doubt very much this system will sound as good as the "best" system with ideal recordings (but given great recordings it will sound great) or will it measure the best.

Everyone's got a different purpose in this hobby. But it seems to me the neither camp serves the purpose of someone who wants to listen to and enjoy the almost limitless body of recorded works - in fact I think both camps limit an audiophiles ability to do that.

And FWIW I don't care if someone sell $20 worth of cable for $2000 or $100 for bottles of rocks. It's a free world if someone else wants to spend their own money on it more power to them and more power to those that sell it. Get a life - I can't believe some people try to characterize the whole of audio like that. Silly as it sounds at least those guys probably got some clue about the importance of component matching at the physical/electrical level, too bad most of the other side banters the term "synergy" about but most are unable to define it 1/2 way reasonably when asked.

Synergy - choosing equipment with similar strengths. Preferably strengths that align with the preferences of listener. Ie. getting the best of whats most important to the guy spending the money.

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