[fewtch]

I dunno, it's strange. Lately anytime someone mentions "distortion" in relation to audio, it drives me nuts. The word is so vague and doesn't really mean anything, and it's almost always used out of context to anything else. For example:

"LP's have more distortion than CD's."

What? How does that relate to what I'm hearing when I'm listening to LP's or CD's? Is that total harmonic distortion (THD), or some other kind of "distortion" that the writer hasn't even defined? Does it mean a change in the audio signal? If so, what about "euphonic distortion" (a change that actually sounds better than the original)... is that supposed to be a "good thing" or a "bad thing"... on and on.

I think the word should be dispensed with when discussing audio, and people ought to be more specific. Otherwise, I'll go bats&%$$%*t eventually.

 

[usc goose]

i think we should get rid of the terms musical, coloured and analytical while we're at it. but that may just be me.

 

[fewtch]

I'd definitely agree with "musical" and "musicality" (in particular the latter). I think the only thing I've listened to lately that didn't sound "musical" was a 40 Hz test tone.

Still, there's something particularly niggling about "distortion." It's a vague, general purpose term (often with negative connotations, but not always) and applicable to nearly anything. A diaphragm in a pair of headphones "distorts" to produce sound waves -- let's ban headphone driver diaphragm distortion!

In other words, the word "distortion" is not "musical" enough.

 

[MD1032]

For me, distortion means hitting the limiter on the old equalizer so you get that nasty crackling sound. Also, the same sound comes from a blown driver.

 

[john_jcb]

The hardest thing for a reviewer is to describe what they are hearing or not hearing in relative terms so that it is understood equally by all readers.

When you read some reviews you are led to believe that a half deaf person would hear the differences between two pieces. In fact if you have 2 comparable items from two manufacturers there most certainly will be differences but the difference is in the detail, the subtleties of the sound. As the equipment gets better and better we pay more and more for fraction of a percent differences in sound. You move to a place where the published specifications mean nothing. Describing this in words is a challenge and a large number of terms have been developed to describe small differences.

Serving in Ecuador and I (mostly Doug) worked on the response to a FAQ and developed a set of terms for reviewers and readers to reference. Sometime soon I hope it will be published.

 

[JMedeiros]

Quote:

Originally posted by usc goose i think we should get rid of the terms musical, coloured and analytical while we're at it. but that may just be me.

I use musical and colored all the time and I agree it's a lazy and vague way to express what I'm hearing. Ban the words I say!

We actually need a sub forum in each of our categories for reviews that use these words.

From this day forward I am going to try and not use the following words in my audio impressions:

Musical (unless one of my test CDs is "Hello Dolly"

Colored (unless it refers to silver or black housing or blue smurfs

As a matter of fact, I just went back and edited my "out of the box" impressions of the new Perreaux headamp to reflect this pledge.


John

 

[scrypt]

Now that it's 1963 and we're living in the Twentieth Century, I believe that colored people ought to be able to listen to all the musicals they like without being told to stop by the horrible white man, nor does it matter if our Jewish friends have undergone psychoanalysis. And besides, bounty hunting is wrong!

 

[Russ Arcuri]

Funny that you're harping on "distortion" as a word in audio; it's one of the few terms that actually does have a solid definition, unlike other more vague terms such as "musical" or "harsh." I mean, unlike some of those other terms, distortion can actually be measured.

Distortion, in terms of audio, simply means deviation from the source. When people say vinyl has more distortion than CD, it's because if you measure the input, and compare it to the output, CD's output is closer to the original input than vinyl.

NOTE: I am not trying to start a CD vs. Vinyl debate. I know that there are excellent turntables that can, with good vinyl, produce wonderful music. K?

The point is that there are other terms to get annoyed about for being vague, but "distortion" isn't one of them. It's all a matter of degree; small amounts of distortion will probably not be noticed and can, depending on the character of the medium, actually sound pleasing. However, the more distortion there is, the less likely it is to sound pleasant.

"Musical" is much harder to define -- it's one of those "I know it when I hear it" kind of things. Unfortunately because of this it's vague and subjective. Same with "harsh" -- many people would interpret "harsh" as treble increased to annoying levels, but not everyone agrees. I know a few people who use "harsh" to describe bass boominess, such as what you might hear through Sony MDR-V600s.

 

[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally posted by Russ Arcuri Funny that you're harping on "distortion" as a word in audio; it's one of the few terms that actually does have a solid definition, unlike other more vague terms such as "musical" or "harsh." I mean, unlike some of those other terms, distortion can actually be measured. Distortion, in terms of audio, simply means deviation from the source. When people say vinyl has more distortion than CD, it's because if you measure the input, and compare it to the output, CD's output is closer to the original input than vinyl. NOTE: I am not trying to start a CD vs. Vinyl debate. I know that there are excellent turntables that can, with good vinyl, produce wonderful music. K? The point is that there are other terms to get annoyed about for being vague, but "distortion" isn't one of them.

Nevertheless, I'm annoyed.

Maybe it's the fact that distortion can be measured that's annoying -- it's used all too often with negative connotations, as if there were something completely distortion-free, and it's often used (mostly by objectivist absolutists) in a way that tries to invalidate people's subjective likes, dislikes, preferences and perceptions. Wouldn't you call that annoying?

And I still find it vague. The type of distortion being measured is rarely specified, usually only that "this" has more distortion than "that." Worthless both in the objective and subjective sense.

 

[Russ Arcuri]

Quote:

Originally posted by fewtch Maybe it's the fact that distortion can be measured that's annoying -- it's used all too often with negative connotations, as if there were something completely distortion-free, and it's used (mostly by objectivist absolutists) in a way that tries to invalidate people's subjective likes, dislikes and perceptions. Wouldn't you call that annoying?

Yes, but it's really not the word's fault. It's the fault of those that would deny you the right to state your preferences.

Me? I want to sit in my living room, close my eyes, and be utterly convinced that I'm actually sitting 12th row center at a symphony orchestra. Nothing even comes close -- not CD, not $50,000 all-analog vinyl-sourced systems, nothing. There's something about orchestral music that makes it impossible to reproduce in a living room.

"Small" music, such as that produced by a guitar player strumming an acoustic and singing, is easier to do from artificial sources in a living room. If I close my eyes I can be fooled into thinking the Dave Matthews/Tim Reynolds LIVE AT LUTHER COLLEGE double CD is actually Dave and Tim sitting in my living room. Just two guys, two acoustic guitars, one singer. My system can do that realistically, or close enough for government work.

In between these two extremes, there's stuff like rock bands and jazz quartets. My home system isn't good enough to trick me, but it does better than with orchestral music. I have a clear path for this one, though. A good pair of modern magnaplanar speakers, driven by good amplifiers, and sourced from something decent can fool me. I've got the amplification and source. I just need to save the money for the Magnepan 1.6s and a room to put them in.

Sorry for rambling. I like CD for its accuracy. I like vinyl for its warmth (distortion

). I'd like somebody to send me a pair of Maggie 1.6s.

Conclusion: don't get so mad at a word. It never did anything to hurt you.

 

[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally posted by Russ Arcuri Conclusion: don't get so mad at a word. It never did anything to hurt you.

A word is only as good as its usage (otherwise it's just a collection of alphabetic letters). If it's often abused, then imho it's not a good word.

If someone told you "xxx amp has more distortion than yyy amp," would you consider yourself more informed upon hearing that?

Would you know what amp to buy based on that advice? Would you know anything useful based on that statement?

If it feels better to you, I'll state that I'm annoyed whenever I see the word used in an annoying context (which is often). Maybe that's a bit clearer.

 

[jessica00]

distortion can also be what happens when say...a hair gets in the driver housing.