[idairyou]

Well looks like I've been moderated over there(asr), not sure what I said that wasn't alowed but my last post is "awaiting moderator approval." I guess it's time to move on

That sounds par for the course for ASR. Pretty hostile place to post if you don't agree with Amir's point of view. Once I saw how hostile the ASR board is I just stopped visiting the site.

I think Passion for Sound ran into the same thing. He wanted to have an honest open discussion with Amir and was shot down because Amir is always right and everyone else is wrong.

The reason I like Head-fi.org. It's a place where you can meet in the middle and have a civil conversation most of the time. Objectivist, subjectivist, Audiophile, Audio enthusiast, we can all engage in the conversation and bring something to the table.

 

[Xcalibur255]

I didn't mean to say that but I guess it's destiny.

As the great Bob Ross would say: "We don't make mistakes, we just have happy accidents."

 

[zach915m]

One would think a forum supposedly intended for scientific purposes would welcome constructive discussion and debate on topics like this.....
Unfortunately that's repeatedly been shown not to be the case

Yeah I've heard they haven't exactly been open to discussions with you as well which is a shame because you're one of the few people who understands both sides very well.

For me it's not about a right or wrong argument, as there's plenty of people who are smarter and more versed in various areas than I am, but I have dedicated the last 12+ years of my life almost solely to building headphones and I would love to engage in a healthy and constructive way as I enjoy all this stuff.

 

[GoldenSound]

Yeah I've heard they haven't exactly been open to discussions with you as well which is a shame because you're one of the few people who understands both sides very well.

For me it's not about a right or wrong argument, as there's plenty of people who are smarter and more versed in various areas than I am, but I have dedicated the last 12+ years of my life almost solely to building headphones and I would love to engage in a healthy and constructive way as I enjoy all this stuff.

Exactly, even in situations where it's unlikely that two sides of a discussion or debate are going to come to an agreement, healthy debate and discussion is a key part of the scientific process. I've had my mind changed plenty of times through good debates like that. And even if not acting as a participant, just reading through different approaches and interpretations can be very beneficial.

It's not about who is right or who is wrong (and often what is 'right' simply isn't certain or absolute), if no discussion can be held unless it aligns with one particular person's view, then it's hardly scientific.

 

[Pharmaboy]

(Caldera lover here again)

Much as I'd rather not prolong the ASR segment of this otherwise wonderful, informative threat, I have to mention a related issue. For years I've subscribed to a "Recap for the Week" email from Audiogon.com. It's a compilation of new threads begun on the site each week. Audiogon is a fairly decent place, mostly made of audiophiles who spend real $$ on 2-channel audio, plus a rather useful smattering of manufacturers. I've learned a lot from some of their threads.

However, Audiogon, like all member-based communities, is infested with hostile know-it-alls. By far the most tiresome thing is how readily many interesting threads are hijacked by "objectivists," usually self-identifying as ASR devotees. They show up to logically debunk and shut down whoever starts a thread in which subjective listening & music appreciation are mentioned. These ASR drones are incredibly persistent; they'll pound away for page after page of replies until there's no one left in the discussion but themselves.

This is unbelievably tiresome to sit/read through--and IMO really not representative of Audiogon's membership. It's almost like a roving gang of audio brownshirts who show up to burn subjectivity at the stake everywhere it pops up...

 

[Ciggavelli]

I like that Zach responded. The Chord approach, where they decided to not respond to ASR at all, doesn't really work. It's always good to hear the counter argument.

 

[Lyssky]

Well looks like I've been moderated over there(asr), not sure what I said that wasn't alowed but my last post is "awaiting moderator approval." I guess it's time to move on

As the wise philosopher Gimli said: ''Let him stay there. Let him rot! Why should we care?''

 

[robo24]

I like that Zach responded. The Chord approach, where they decided to not respond to ASR at all, doesn't really work. It's always good to hear the counter argument.

Chord was a big part of what got me to completely disregard ASR. Early in the hobby for me they had the SMSL-SU8 as this amazing, great measuring DAC, rating it well above the Hugo 2. It's a fine device, especially for the price. Didn't use it much after getting the Hugo and other higher end DACs. When I finally decided to sell off the SMSL I tried it again and was floored by how grainy sounding it was and how much of the music was simply missing. This was on an amp with easy input switching so very easy to A/B at the same volume, reducing other potential biases. To ASR, the SMSL is a far better device than even the TT2. That was all I needed to know from ASR.

 

[zach915m]

I like that Zach responded. The Chord approach, where they decided to not respond to ASR at all, doesn't really work. It's always good to hear the counter argument.

Haha for better or worse I at least want people to know my perspective. Thank you!

 

[ArkNerevar]

My new Caldera Cocobolo has just arrived!

 

[Ciggavelli]

Chord was a big part of what got me to completely disregard ASR. Early in the hobby for me they had the SMSL-SU8 as this amazing, great measurig DAC, rating it well above the Hugo 2. It's a fine device, especially for the price. Didn't use it much after getting the Hugo and other higher end DACs. When I finally decided to sell off the SMSL I tried it again and was floored by how grainy sounding it was and how much of the music was simply missing. This was on an amp with easy input switching so very easy to A/B at the same volume, reducing other potential biases. To ASR, the SMSL is a far better device than even the TT2. That was all I needed to know from ASR.

When ASR reviewed the m-scaler, he only put it on 2x upscaling, when it goes up to 16x. That sh!t was laughable, but Chord didn't respond. I can respect the "no response" approach, in theory, but it allows ASR to run away with the narrative. Look what happened to the DAVE. Sometimes responding is the best approach. The cult of ASR needs a counter, which I guess is head-fi maybe, but it's always good to hear responses from manufacturers.

 

[GoldenSound]

When ASR reviewed the m-scaler, he only put it on 2x upscaling, when it goes up to 16x. That sh!t was laughable, but Chord didn't respond. I can respect the "no response" approach, in theory, but it allows ASR to run away with the narrative. Look what happened to the DAVE. Sometimes responding is the best approach. The cult of ASR needs a counter, which I guess is head-fi maybe, but it's always good to hear responses from manufacturers.

I'd also note that none of the issues Amir documented were present when I tested the device (I set it to the highest rate allowed, and also tested both with a Chord DAC and non-Chord DACs)

https://goldensound.audio/2022/03/17/chord-hugo-m-scaler-measurements-and-technical-evaluation/

 

[zach915m]

A fun read about preferences and how to butcher your Caldera tuning https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/zmf-caldera-headphone-review.50016/

Applied Amirs EQ, the treble is just too much, in some recordings Caldera becomes shouty, bass is bloated and starts to bleed into the mids. Best are the acoustic recordings where the instruments simply dont sound natural anymore. Sometimes I wonder how much does age matter and if my mid 30s ears are just not ready for this haha, but with this tuning I probably would have sold my Caldera long ago.

A good example why supposedly objective ASR echo chamber "reviews" are to be avoided.

Ha ofcourse after my posts are moderated and need approval to be posted Amir comes in and posts a bunch responding to me and calling out his popularity of course. So it goes I guess. I need to be done with it for my sanity.

My new Caldera Cocobolo has just arrived!

Man that looks better than I even could have remembered! Nice pic showing the grain, orange/bright Cocobolo is the best, I buy it whenever I have the chance.

 

[iamoneagain]

Ha ofcourse after my posts are moderated and need approval to be posted Amir comes in and posts a bunch responding to me and calling out his popularity of course. So it goes I guess. I need to be done with it for my sanity.

Man that looks better than I even could have remembered! Nice pic showing the grain, orange/bright Cocobolo is the best, I buy it whenever I have the chance.

I really like the way the red comes thru on the grill. I like the natural look and this is one of the best I’ve seen. I’ve been happy with stock coffee stain oak but man, this is nice looking. I’ll save up some cash and maybe one day get the Caldera closed in Cocobolo.

 

[Leto Dal]

Ha ofcourse after my posts are moderated and need approval to be posted Amir comes in and posts a bunch responding to me and calling out his popularity of course. So it goes I guess. I need to be done with it for my sanity.

Man that looks better than I even could have remembered! Nice pic showing the grain, orange/bright Cocobolo is the best, I buy it whenever I have the chance.

Yeah well. At least he is at point genuinly admitting he is just used to more bass lol

Guess I will get muted soon too.