Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelJHuman 
Agreed to some extent. But if a system which is supposed to sound "better", and had every advantage, and does not sound better, I think we can come to some conclusions. |
Well, that test certainly didn't support the idea that a "premium" system "sounds better," but there's no definition of what "better" even means. It's possible, for instance, that a particular user could first prove that he could hear a difference between systems
then state that he actually preferred the shoddy one. There's no accounting for taste, and it really doesn't matter which system a user thinks "sounds better" -- that's his choice. What
does matter is whether he can hear differences at all, and, anecdotal statements aside, there's little to no evidence that listeners can distinguish among electronics like preamps, power amps or disk players. They can makes such claims all they want, and they can use phrases like "I listen with my ears; I don't pay attention to specs," but without any supporting data, it's idle chatter. It's more like religion, really.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelJHuman
For example, posts by people who changed an amp who, and insist on a "night and day difference". How is that possible when so many blind tests show people struggling to hear differences? And the Stereo Review test where people could not tell apart a cheapo Pioneer receiver from an expensive tube amp? If it's hard to tell those two apart, where are all these large differences people claim to hear coming from?
My pet peeve being that I strongly feel people overstate differences. That muddies the water and confuses people new to the hobby.
Whether or not there are amp differences, the evidence suggests differences are small when they do exist. |
Without question, whatever differences that may exist among modern electronics are certain to be very small. (And let's not even consider cables.) Anyone who claims the "vast differences" you describe (and I've seen this a lot) immediately have zero credibility with me -- that's just too far beyond what we know to be true.
Here's what's ironic. One would think the "vast difference" crowd (think the culture of Stereophile and The Absolute Sound) would gleefully embrace blind testing. These folks should be able to knock out these tests close to 100 percent of the time and put the matter to rest. But what do you get instead? They'll pontificate at length as to why test procedures invalidate the results or that blind testing in general is somehow invalid. But what they won't do is participate in blind tests, let alone pass them.
Go figure.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelJHuman
If we could get people to at least try to honestly evaluate their systems (not easy IMO,) we could maybe come closer to being able to understand what differences may exist. If people simply come to these forums, and type out poetic language about how some amp changed their life, forget...we have learning nothing. |
Yeah, I know. The only things I can say for my preamp/processor combination, sound-wise, is that its quiet, exhibits low distortion and is very powerful. Those attributes matter, although sometimes more than others. As for my speakers and the room they reside in, well, that's another matter.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rnrgagne
The most comon theme IMO is people without knowing it have a tendancy to self validate their purchases. I think it's human nature, you spend your money.. you want to hear a difference.
The mind is a powerful thing. |
Without doubt that's a major factor. A couple years ago I went from a moderately powerful Class AB amp to a high-powered Class D amp. I love the new amp (powerful, light, cool running), but, no, I don't hear any difference.
