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Originally Posted by Cor /img/forum/go_quote.gif
One thing that irks me is when people publish plots made using fourier transforms without specifying the window function. The window function can have a huge impact on how things appear. More specifically, it can have a huge impact on how sharp the peaks appear. Your screenshot shows that a Blackman Harris window is being used, which is good, but comparing it to a graph made with an unknown window function is going to be difficult at best, especially when it comes to a subjective comparison of how sharp the peaks are.
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I have no control over what others may publish, I only know that which I do.
It was the best data I could provide and I tried to include all the relevant details.
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It might have been F. Alton Everest's book that I read, or it might have been another source, but I do recall reading a study on human memory and how it relates to sound. It's actually piss poor. We remember a lot of qualitative things about a sound, but when it comes to subtle differences most people can't even walk from one room to the next without forgetting. If you're chasing some golden sound from your memories, where you find it will have very little to do with what the original sound. |
I have read this also, but didn't want to bring it because, like you I do not recall the source and knew that I would be challenged and found wanting.
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My own take on this subject is that the better an amp is, the less it should alter the original waveform other than to make it bigger. This means that the best amps *should* sound remarkably similar because they're coming so close to perfect reproduction. However, this is often not the case. You often hear expensive amps that "wow" you with some kind of difference. Why is this so? If you're selling an outrageously expensive amp you need to justify that expense. Any kind of "wow" you can produce therefore helps, even if it means deliberately introducing coloration. |
I noticed a difference when I went from a basic simple Pioneer receiver in 1983 to a Harman Kardon unit that had a high current capability although its power rating was only a little higher than the Pioneer. The Pioneer unit had decent specs but it just didn't interface with the speakers as well as the HK unit.
FWIW, I watched that HK unit for months get advertised at $199 in a certain hifi store's ad, one week they screwed up and switched prices with something else that was $129, I looked carefully at the ad for disclaimers, found none, and the store sold it to me for the advertised price.
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Now, I should note here that I'm coming from the speaker side of things and am basically a neophyte when it comes to cans. However, high end speakers and amps are rife with "wow" factor, and I haven't seen anything that makes me think cans and can-amps are any different. People are still using the same ancient tube designs that, if carefully biased, pampered, and paired can *approach* the accuracy of a solid state system, but typically do not. Typically, they have at least a little euphonic distortion that gives them their distinctive sound. i.e. Their "wow". Again, I say there's nothing wrong with wanting a little "wow". Just don't try to delude yourself or others into thinking that you can have accuracy at the same time as your "wow". |
Certain forms of distortion are more audible than others, I suspect that some are even pleasant for some people. That may be what is driving the claims here of one amp being more enjoyable than another.
Sound is a very subjective thing.. And certainly it is everyone's right to purchase whatever they want or feel the need to have.
All I'm really trying to do is throw a cautionary note, particularly to n00bs to audio, to take various claims with a hefty helping of salt. The n00b in particular is unlikely to be able to discern the difference in different amps or even DAC's and I think that to tell them to invest a lot of money right at the beginning is doing them a disservice.
It takes training and experience to critically listen, and even then, as you so rightly have pointed out, our memory for sounds is quite poor.
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This, naturally, brings us full circle to the OP's contention that the amp doesn't matter. He's right in that amps designed for accuracy tend not to matter. However, amps designed to add a little "wow" do make a difference. Some spend a long time looking for the "wow" that suits them. Those that have found it will never be convinced that amps make no difference precisely because they found amps that *do* make a difference. Convincing them that difference is actually a form of distortion is yet another uphill battle, but it's at least one you have a hope of winning, if only a very slim one. |
I don't expect to "win", people think what they wish to think and most people are immune to change in ideas once they have them firmly set in their minds.
It's also true that I'm the same way, once I have reached a certain conclusion I'm unlikely to change it unless presented with very conclusive evidence, something which seems to be in short supply in the audio world.
Mostly I'm just trying to reach those who are new to audio and gullible enough to buy on the sole recommendation of others with whom they might not have much in common taste wise.