[Ohno Schiitizen]

The only thing I can think of that’s warmer than AM radio is an AM radio under a pillow!

Yep, I learnt/ experienced how earpad works when I was a small boy .. a big earpad....

P.S. in the old days, resources are limited, we heat the battery after it ran out to squeeze a bit juice left in it, place the radio inside a small wooden box to make it sound a bit louder (Speaker cabinet/transmission line?), same applies to a music box, we learnt it from daily life hacks .... (room accustics)

 

[EricDH]

Amazon

I only find notebooks with this text on Amazon (and most of them out of stock), no shirts unfortunately.

Edit: found it.

 

[Erratic Gravy]

Icelander also built something like this, whether it is for lava protection, I am not quite sure.

keep the cold out and the warmth in !! turf is fab insulation and storm resistant plus damn good camouflage

 

[Timster]

In that regard what is the proper way to "evaluate systems". How does one properly go about it? Or any other equipment. How many on this thread know the proper way? And, for instance, can filter out "soundstage", whatever that is, out of the equation for proper "evaluation". I surely do not but am genuinely curious as to what it is.

How do I evaluate systems? ... just a few select tracks that I know really well. And then I know what I like the sound to be for me.
The tracks contain certain elements that I'm evaluating, such as placement of the vocals (dead centre), some ambient signals (wide or behind, see my earlier post) and overall balance and punch. Nearly all of the above are subjective, as in I know what I'm looking to hear, and what I'd like to hear.

I've always had some good audio equipment around me, as growing up dad had many a good hi-fi. The one that I first remember is the system with Dual 701 TT, Quad 33/303 combo and JMR 2008 speakers (which he still has, and I have the TT). Always went to HiFi shows in my teens, and built my own speakers at 16 after buying a NAD 120 receiver, and a Harksound TT. Lots of other music and systems under the bridge.... However it wasn't really until I heard the Duntech Soveriegns powered by a Krell system with Jennifer Warnes singing Joan of Arc (Famous Blue Raincoat), that it really gelled for me. That is my go to test track to this day, 35 years later.

In my view there is no "proper" way. Do what works for you, after all its you who will be listening and no-one else hears what you hear!

 

[corndog71]

I did not grow up around fancy hifi. My mom loved listening to music but she would have my dad hang the regular box speakers high up on the wall of our living room to get them off the floor. We probably got the cheapest turntable/receiver they could afford.

I got my own first stereo at 14 and had the all-in-one combo of turntable / dual tape deck (with 5-band equalizer!) by Fisher. For a while I had the speakers propped on the headboard of my bed.

Needless to say I didn’t hear a proper soundstage until my first visit to a real hifi store in my 20’s.
It was a revelation!

 

[Moondog55]

RIP Eric Carmen

 

[artur9]

How do I evaluate systems? ... ...

I've always had some good audio equipment around me, as growing up dad had many a good hi-fi. ... However it wasn't really until I heard the Duntech Soveriegns powered by a Krell system with Jennifer Warnes singing Joan of Arc (Famous Blue Raincoat), that it really gelled for me. That is my go to test track to this day, 35 years later.

In my view there is no "proper" way. Do what works for you, after all its you who will be listening and no-one else hears what you hear!

hear, hear!

I did not grow up around fancy hifi. ...

Me, neither. I grew up listening to re-broadcasts of short stories from the 40s, things like Orson Welle's War of the Worlds. On one of those consoles with the disco lights ...

My music "sense" stems from my father playing acoustic guitar. Mediocre, from all reports, but he was the only one in the extended family who could so he got invited everywhere to play. He always needed "assistants"/"roadies."

That, and early exposure to the Cleveland Symphony as part of an "education enrichment" program and my fate was sealed....

 

[turtlerod]

How do I evaluate systems? ... just a few select tracks that I know really well. And then I know what I like the sound to be for me.
The tracks contain certain elements that I'm evaluating, such as placement of the vocals (dead centre), some ambient signals (wide or behind, see my earlier post) and overall balance and punch. Nearly all of the above are subjective, as in I know what I'm looking to hear, and what I'd like to hear.

I've always had some good audio equipment around me, as growing up dad had many a good hi-fi. The one that I first remember is the system with Dual 701 TT, Quad 33/303 combo and JMR 2008 speakers (which he still has, and I have the TT). Always went to HiFi shows in my teens, and built my own speakers at 16 after buying a NAD 120 receiver, and a Harksound TT. Lots of other music and systems under the bridge.... However it wasn't really until I heard the Duntech Soveriegns powered by a Krell system with Jennifer Warnes singing Joan of Arc (Famous Blue Raincoat), that it really gelled for me. That is my go to test track to this day, 35 years later.

In my view there is no "proper" way. Do what works for you, after all its you who will be listening and no-one else hears what you hear!

The only proper way is the way that makes you happy. For me I listen to tracks I know well. I focus on individual instruments in the track, particually the acoustic instraments, because I know what a real one sounds like. Listen to a stand up bass, the notes should be clear and go all the way down to the limits of my system, and I still should be able to tell the bass was made from wood, and I can hear the effect of the wood on the sound. Listen to a piano, does it sound like a piano, you should be able to hear the sympathetic vibrations of the strings and the sound of the wood of the entire piano.

When I got my Yiggy, my whole world opened up and I could hear so much more, including the noise some of the artist clothing was making during the recording. I also listen to the entire range of sounds, can I hear the highs lows and mid range. I should be able to hear them all and without peaking drops in any part of the spectrum. The human voice is also a great indicator. Does it sound like a person singing? I have my music stored on my server in losses format, and it is over a terabyte. Years after I got the Yiggy I am still pulling up music I knew well and it sounds new. I can hear instruments in recordings that I never heard before.

When I upgrade again and added a couple of Tyrs, The entire spectrum was improved. All instruments were clearer. It is hard to explain but I will try. With the Tyrs, the amps seemed like nothing bothered them, They could reproduce the highest highs while also reproducing a bass and I could hear the bass all the way down to the lowest notes, and they could do all of this while the drummer was pounding away.

The last big improvement was when I added two Rythmic18” subwoofers. I set the low pass to start rolling off at 80Hz so that both the subs and the speakers shared a lot of the low frequency information. I tweaked the filters and the sub setting until I could not tell where the sound is coming from. With the roll off at 80 hz there is still a lot of directional information coming from the subs and when you sit between the subs and the speakers the room is incredibly alive. There are some pieces of music where I thought that there was a single hit to the bass drum, but on some recordings I can now tell it was a double hit very close together. The Tyrs and the Rythmic subs can tell the difference, so now I can too

All of my old music is new again.

 

[Ableza]

I missed a couple days and at least 300 posts so may not be following this exactly and understanding little, as usual.

Inspite of people hearing differently let's imagine a loyal Schiit Hi-Fi enthusiast that's been tinkering at building a 2 channel system.

The HiFi enthusiast has a Freya, 2 Tyrs, a pair of floor standers of reasonable quality readily available speakers well positioned in a reasonably appointed room and a Modius balanced DAC.

The next purchase is a Yggy MIB.

If the enthusiast exclaims, "the Yggy sounds better! The instruments sound better. I can pick them out better on my favorite tunes than with the Modius". Was the individual "interacting" possibly or primarily with the fact that it's a new purchase, and it's a Yggy? Next, a quirk of the randomness of the universe, 100 loyal Schiitheads stop by one by one for a listen, they're told Yggy has 100 hours of play time, they all sit in the same position, just the individual, not a room full of loyal Schiitheads to change up reflections, and they compare the Yggy to the Modius and they all say "yes, I like the Yggy better it sounds 'gooder'! The music just sounds more good!"

Are they hearing or "interacting" the same because they want to hear or "interact" that way because it's a Yggy?

If individuals buy new gear, replace a speaker element or roll in some new tubes and they enjoy their music more seems like a win for the individual whatever the truth of the matter.


...soundstage is irrelevant.

Ok point taken. In Jason latest chapter he reported that the new Aegir "slaughters" the old Aegir, and that not one person preferred the old Aegir.

It sounds convincing. I only know the results of what Jason reported. I believe him. I have ok amps and much better sounding amps and have experienced that kind of thing. But it's only for me and me alone? Factoring out the hyperbole, in proper "evaluation" technique what "evaluations" would you use to validate the superiority of one amp over another.

In that regard what is the proper way to "evaluate systems". How does one properly go about it? Or any other equipment. How many on this thread know the proper way? And, for instance, can filter out "soundstage", whatever that is, out of the equation for proper "evaluation". I surely do not but am genuinely curious as to what it is.

Several ideas being thrown around here but let me try to remove a few of your ingredients from the idea blender and make it simpler. I'll try not to go all Armchair verbose on you.

1. You evaluate audio equipment by listening to it. It's subjective, meaning everyone hears things slightly differently. There is no easy way to do this and specs don't tell you the story. You have to have something in your house, in your system, and listen with your ears before a final decision has any meaning. Inconvenient, and expensive? Yes.
2. The discussion about soundstage started because while it may be an important criterion for some users to listen for, it is also completely subjective and varies more with the recording than with the gear. It is not something that can be designed into gear, although it can be mixed into a recording. Or created through system setup by a user. But hey, if you hear it and you like it then more power to you. Again, trust your own brain.
3. I think Bifrost 2/64 sounds "more gooder" than a Gungnir MB. Others may tell me I'm crazy. I am right, and so are they.
4. Perhaps it bugs you when Jason uses superlatives and exaggerations like "slaughters." So be it. To me he's just expressing his preference.
5. There are two "proper ways to evaluate systems." One is for a designer or tester to use known standards and calibrated test equipment to ensure things are operating as designed. This is for the engineers, designers, and number tweakers. I used to do this for THX and it is a boring, tedious activity that ultimately only means the thing turns on and works the way it was designed to work. The other much more important way is, as I keep saying, to listen since listening to audio is a subjective, experiential activity. As a wise person I know once said, "All audio is a compromise. The trick is finding the compromise you want to live with." Use music you love and listen. If the system sounds good to you then it is, even if it is an AM transistor radio. If something else sounds better, then it is. Decide what compromises you are willing to live with.

 

[Moondog55]

As previously stated, when evaluating the 'sound' of a particular system, use familiar tracks. Also, I like tracks with info 'buried' in the mix and listen to hear how well I can discern that passage. Personal example is at the end of Strawberry Fields Forever, John says 'I'm very bored' or 'I buried Paul' depending on the resolution.

 

[Ohno Schiitizen]

Jason never talk about the sound of the Schiit products .... but, how many units sold and people likes it?

 

[HWB3]

I did not grow up around fancy hifi. My mom loved listening to music but she would have my dad hang the regular box speakers high up on the wall of our living room to get them off the floor. We probably got the cheapest turntable/receiver they could afford.

I got my own first stereo at 14 and had the all-in-one combo of turntable / dual tape deck (with 5-band equalizer!) by Fisher. For a while I had the speakers propped on the headboard of my bed.

Needless to say I didn’t hear a proper soundstage until my first visit to a real hifi store in my 20’s.
It was a revelation!

I had some rinky dink stuff when I was younger, but it was good enough to like what I was listening to. My exposure to some serious stereo equipment came when I was sent to Japan after tech school in the AF. Most of the guys had some pretty fine sounding stuff and a love for that began. I brought home some pricy gear but most of it drifted off over the years as raising a family and other things came along. I've been into headphones now for about four years and I'm adding slowly to what I have. I wished that I would have started down this road sooner.

 

[Ohno Schiitizen]

I had some rinky dink stuff when I was younger, but it was good enough to like what I was listening to. My exposure to some serious stereo equipment came when I was sent to Japan after tech school in the AF. Most of the guys had some pretty fine sounding stuff and a love for that began. I brought home some pricy gear but most of it drifted off over the years as raising a family and other things came along. I've been into headphones now for about four years and I'm adding slowly to what I have. I wished that I would have started down this road sooner.

You are not slow, the first thing is not the equipment or finer equipment, but MUSIC, how can one judge the equipment is/are good or not if not knowing more about the music, right?

 

[Tbone289]

I'm back on that Schiit , y'all

How's that bad boy workin' out for ya? If you like yours half as much as I like mine, you're in good shape.

 

[HWB3]

You are not slow, the first thing is not the equipment or finer equipment, but MUSIC, how can one judge the equipment is/are good or not if not knowing more about the music, right?

It is about the music and then as time goes on and your equipment improves so does your enjoyment. I remember listening to 45's over and over again because I loved the song. Lol.