Do we believe in Machina Dynamics?

Freemand +++ Why does a $2000 dollar power cord make any difference in improving the sound +++

A power cable can filter out RFI and EMI out of the power source, which results in a cleaner B+ voltage on the rails. That leads to better sound reproduction. Simple no?

+++ Science would seem to tell me that the power cord wont help +++

No, your lack of understanding of science tells you PC won’t help. The assumption that others share your lack of understanding is erroneous.

+++ Everyone has the right to let their ears determine and not some scientific method. +++

It’s a free country and you have the right to do whatever you want (if legal that is). However, that does not eliminate the possibility of placebo effect nor does it diminish the fact that every tweak that actually works has a perfectly plausible scientific reason for doing so.

+++ I would trust my ears then some science geeks with a white lab coats and pocket protectors. +++

Fortunately, I have enough understanding to know when said geeks with pocket protectors are frauds. I know a phone call cannot improve sound and I don’t need to spend $75 dollars to find out.

Regards
Paul

This isn't about science or faith. It's about the gray area of plausibility.

If the latest tweak/craze involved wrapping up some dog s**t in aluminum foil and depositing it on top of your CD player, would you do it? I'd bet not, because it would cross the plausiblity threshold of nearly any sane person. Some would demand a bit of insight, and rightfully so. That is what is being alluded to as 'science' here. They (myself included) want some evidence that the claimed process, product or ritual is possible. Just a simple, plausible explanation, even sans conclusive proof. When that information is not forthcoming, most become suspicious. Again, rightfully so. Unfortunately Norm, MD products seem to set off the bulls**t detectors of many on this site, and the threshold of plausibility is breeched. Of course, it doesn't make them(us) right.

Having an open mind, or 'faith,' is the other side of this coin. Everyone has a certain amount of it, in various things. It is only interrupted by the same threshold of plausibility. How much confidence are you willing to invest in a tangible or conceptual thing without supporting evidence? If you hear an audible difference in your system, better or worse, brought forth by any kind of product, that doesn't make the difference real, nor the believer right.

The argument then lies not among two opposing sides afterall, because we all invest a certain amount of faith and demand a certain amount of evidence in our daily lives. It's a sliding scale that rests at a unique point for every individual.

P.S. I do find something wrong with being vindictive and petty in defending the indefensible. Neither side of this argument is 100% correct...

Loonytunz, you say, "The argument then lies not among two opposing sides afterall, because we all invest a certain amount of faith and demand a certain amount of evidence in our daily lives. It's a sliding scale that rests at a unique point for every individual." I agree. As I said long ago, when Geoff approached me to test his new phone treatment, I found it implasible. It took me some time to even have it explained that the phone itself was treated. I would not have bought it without a demonstration, but I seek evidence.

I learned some time ago after repeated experiences that some tweaks work and others do not, but that all lack really clear demonstrations of how they work.

The power of Placebo

"Doctors in one study successfully eliminated warts by painting them with a brightly colored, inert dye and promising patients the warts would be gone when the color wore off. In a study of asthmatics, researchers found that they could produce dilation of the airways by simply telling people they were inhaling a bronchiodilator, even when they weren't. Patients suffering pain after wisdom-tooth extraction got just as much relief from a fake application of ultrasound as from a real one, so long as both patient and therapist thought the machine was on. Fifty-two percent of the colitis patients treated with placebo in 11 different trials reported feeling better -- and 50 percent of the inflamed intestines actually looked better when assessed with a sigmoidoscope ("The Placebo Prescription" by Margaret Talbot, New York Times Magazine, January 9, 2000) "

A crotchety old man was successfully convinced that his hearing and sound system improved after receiving a 30 second phone call. ("Baiting Norm" by Pauly, Audiogon Forum, August 31, 2007)