Quote:
Originally Posted by darkclouds
So, by your logic, the best sounding setup would be to use pro audio gear along with pro studio monitors? I mean, that's what's used to make the cds right?
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Question isn't directed at me, and not sure if its stated with a bit of negative tone or not, but...
In my mind....almost yes.
The 'general' pro audio world? No. But I could say the exact same thing as the 'consumer' or 'audiophile' world. There's a mass market for every consumer type. The pro audio world is riddled with crappy components in the same manner that the home consumer world is.
But there are loudspeakers and headphones and amplifiers marketed for professionals that meet the audiophile's requirements as well, though not always, as some parameters vary occasionally. For example a nearfield monitor isn't going to satisfy me if I'm looking for a home audio system for a large room. Extra connections, and professional connections might make my integration more annoying, but that doesn't equate to being wrong.
As for a source -- I would absolutely, absolutely love to have a professional setup -- a solid system, a solid card, and more than anything -- software, software, software, software.
If all audiophiles had the same preferences and sound tastes, there would be no audiophile market. Regardless of system matching, there wouldn't be people buying Jadis gear and others buying Krell. Why? Different tastes.
I think we can accept that there's a high end in any market if you look hard enough, and most people haven't heard the top of the line in the professional world, which would include PC/HD/Software sources. Why? Most of us are consumers.
But people play with cables, people play with different DAC implementations, some people like SETs, some people like transformer distortion, some people like vinyl, some people like crisp and clear, and on and on and on.....why? To tweak the sound to their liking.
The pro audio world is more about aiming for truth in the studio, though they have to cater to crappy car and boombox speakers and good systems as well. They listen on those as well. They have to modify recordings for whatever their need is as well as their liking and their values. Soften the sound? Present more detail? Make it louder? Clean up boomy bass? They tweak a recording to their requirement or their liking or both.....at source....at output they want the truth.
I think of the same thing on my preferences.
What do I want? A wonderful ICEPower based amplifier that will let anything I feed it through. What do I want feeding that? A PC source where through software I can tweak anything. Simulate a triode, simulate a transformer, upsample/downsample, equalize, play with the soundstage and presentation, play with dynamics, dither, crossovers, simulate filters, simulate tube gear -- I geat one box to play around with my sound...as source.
To me, those would be professional values translated into my own consumer need. And yes there's a market for it at that level and at prices and capabilities that meet or exceed a lot of the best 'audiophile' components.
This strays away from my software slant, but one toy I always wanted to buy that other people might find interesting is the HEDD192
http://www.cranesong.com/hedd192.html