Sherwood
Headphoneus Supremus
I think the top can be reached in headphones and amps. No idea what the top is for sources. I love mine, but I think better can be had.
I think the top can be reached in headphones and amps. No idea what the top is for sources. I love mine, but I think better can be had.
I think the "top" is pretty subjective and is dependent on individual's preference of sound signature.
But fidelity isn't enjoyment, and unless you're recording, mixing, or mastering fidelity is never really necessary (desired by some, yes, but desire isn't a need). Most people also don't know how to properly measure or even read complex measurements of transducers (such as CSD plots).I don't agree. Headphones are transducers, and their performance and fidelity is measurable. Amplifiers are also measurable, if somewhat more abstract. While there is certainly room for individual preference as to what you enjoy, the best headphone objectively is the one with the greatest fidelity to the signal. Fidelity is not subjective.
But fidelity isn't enjoyment, and unless you're recording, mixing, or mastering fidelity is never really necessary (desired by some, yes, but desire isn't a need). Most people also don't know how to properly measure or even read complex measurements of transducers (such as CSD plots).
I don't agree. Headphones are transducers, and their performance and fidelity is measurable. Amplifiers are also measurable, if somewhat more abstract. While there is certainly room for individual preference as to what you enjoy, the best headphone objectively is the one with the greatest fidelity to the signal. Fidelity is not subjective.
Fidelity can be enjoyed as this website proves it. I personally am one that is quite picky about how I enjoy music. I am more so than I used to be now that I've moved onto better gear. I've reached a point where I will only listen to music with my best headphone.
With the right gear, I enjoy a new recording many times more when I hear much higher fidelity coming out of my gear. I personally think it's the hobby itself, looking for the setup that wows you like the enthusiasts that like to tweak things to bring out the best performance and that gets them going.
I think of this as enjoyment, yet other may think of this as boring.
Can be, is the key. Many people don't look for accuracy, they look for traits that are unnatural... such as extra treble/bass, overly large soundstage, extremely rough treble, overly boomy mid bass, etc. In fact, some people can't even tell the difference between high and low quality sound, all they care about is the music. I mean, if you want complete accuracy just go to a ton of concerts and wear earplugs... why even bother with the expensive equipment as it's just reducing the true quality?Fidelity can be enjoyed as this website proves it. I personally am one that is quite picky about how I enjoy music. I am more so than I used to be now that I've moved onto better gear. I've reached a point where I will only listen to music with my best headphone.
With the right gear, I enjoy a new recording many times more when I hear much higher fidelity coming out of my gear. I personally think it's the hobby itself, looking for the setup that wows you like the enthusiasts that like to tweak things to bring out the best performance and that gets them going.
I think of this as enjoyment, yet other may think of this as boring.
Can be, is the key. Many people don't look for accuracy, they look for traits that are unnatural... such as extra treble/bass, overly large soundstage, extremely rough treble, overly boomy mid bass, etc. In fact, some people can't even tell the difference between high and low quality sound, all they care about is the music. I mean, if you want complete accuracy just go to a ton of concerts and wear earplugs... why even bother with the expensive equipment as it's just reducing the true quality?
I think part of this hobby is just ego. I'm not saying it is to you, but to some people anything expensive is a competition. "Oh your headphones suck, mine have way more fidelity!" Stuff like that. I don't really like going out of my way to see concerts, having to be afraid that the artist may not perform as well as their recordings, and being deafened by loud volume... so speakers/headphones are a decent alternative. But most people like concerts, so I don't understand why they don't put their money into tickets. It's like they enjoy being snobs about sound quality more than the music itself and the gear is a way to do so.
Can be, is the key. Many people don't look for accuracy, they look for traits that are unnatural... such as extra treble/bass, overly large soundstage, extremely rough treble, overly boomy mid bass, etc. In fact, some people can't even tell the difference between high and low quality sound, all they care about is the music. I mean, if you want complete accuracy just go to a ton of concerts and wear earplugs... why even bother with the expensive equipment as it's just reducing the true quality?
I think part of this hobby is just ego. I'm not saying it is to you, but to some people anything expensive is a competition. "Oh your headphones suck, mine have way more fidelity!" Stuff like that. I don't really like going out of my way to see concerts, having to be afraid that the artist may not perform as well as their recordings, and being deafened by loud volume... so speakers/headphones are a decent alternative. But most people like concerts, so I don't understand why they don't put their money into tickets. It's like they enjoy being snobs about sound quality more than the music itself and the gear is a way to do so.
Edit: I guess for artists you can't see, it makes sense. But really, how much fidelity do you need. After a while no more detail is presented, it just ends up being presented differently... it might measure better but who gives a damn. It's about enjoyment in the end.
...(Heard a tune I thought was fantastic last night in - of all places - a bar but no-one on either side of the bar could tell me the actual name of the tune or who sang it. Frustrating, particularly as I dont listen to radio stations any more and I rarely listen to anything that's charting)
We all have an ego, even (perhaps especially) the folks that try to invent some sort of moral high-ground for being "all about the music, first and foremost!". I love music and gear, each a lot. Damn I really love gear, but truthfully I wouldn't have maintained this level of enthusiasm for so long if there wasn't the music side of things too (all my hobbies as a kid were very 1-dimensional and quickly fell by the wayside as a result). And I'm unashamed to have more cash (realistically, probably much more) in my gear.
Agreed with you.
This hobby to some may not even be about music, it could be ego and need to "feel good" owning some expensive headphones or equipment, or some just like to collect expensive flagship headphones for the sake of collecting. Different people indulge in this hobby for different reason, and may not always be the obvious and rational reason.