Does hearing the best in high end audio make your opinions more valid?


I say yes. Some say no. What are your thoughts?
calvinj

calvinj OP
Well I think you missed the point of my whole post. He had great equipment. He matched it perfectly with cables and component matching. He had an almost perfectly measured listening enviorment. He had the makers come in and set it up. The recording quality of the music he was playing was excellent. He had the whole cottage built for the purpose of listening to the best equipment he could get his hands on and because of his all out assault Audio nirvana happened. Lol. Until you’ve heard it don’t comment. Honestly, I don’t think I will ever hear something that good again. He went to great lengths to set the whole thing up!

>>>>>I think YOU missed the whole point of MY post. If good intentions and hard work and money were all there was to it all the well heeled pros at CES would have great sounding systems. Obviously that is not the case. A rich audiophile has as much chance of entering Audio Nirvana as a 🐪 has of passing through the 👁 of a needle. Whatever you heard it could have been better. 


Actually, the LS3/5a is not the really the best example to try to make your case with as it was notoriously inefficient, had no dynamics and no bass whatsoever. It could not play rock or orchestral music due to its limitations. Voices sounded great. It will give it that.
cd318,

Your post could be in the Textbook of Audiophilia. Chapter "Give me a break". On the other hand, or maybe ear, if everybody agreed with it what other useless thing would we fight about?


Your lower hearing around 14 000 Hz and apparent normal above it is actually quite common and, if I remember it correctly through this fog of years, frequently observed on neural curves. Even if my life now depended on it, I could not remember the name for that. It does have something to do with the perception and some overlapping regions, but I am not brave enough to try to make it up now. It was a long time ago. Even without explanation, I hope it helps a tiny little bit.

Hearing ability changes over time and not everyone hears music the same.  If you take on of those detailed hearing examinations in an enclosed soundproof room you will see that your hearing has gaps.

it is scary.  This is a good reason why equalizers are needed.  not only for room correction, but more importantly, for personal hearing.

The problem comes when the equalizer is installed and set up for your hearing preferences or gaps and someone else comes over and listens and to them it doesn't sound quite right.

I'm pretty sure that I don't hear the highs quite as well as I once did.  My Krell KBX crossover has adjustments for that.  But, not quite as good as a decent equalizer.

I remember ages ago when I was interested in a pair of Martin Logan Sequel II speakers, I set up an appointment at Christopher Hansen in LA .  Naturally they had to set up the system so I and my friend waited in another room.  Well, that room had top of the line Goldmund Apologue (I believe) speakers, Mark Levinson 23.5 amps, Goldmund top turntable, etc.  I brought my own music and just had to hear this system.  Well the salesperson told me that it would ruin my ear for the speakers I wanted to demo.  I didn't care,

This was the first time I heard the artist step out of the speakers.  I closed my eyes and could see where artist was on the stage, the piano, the bass player, etc.  It was amazing. 

it didn't ruin my ear at all. In fact it actually helped me obtain a reference point for what reproduced music should sound like.  That was my first venture from mid fi to real high end and I've not looked back.

Glubson:  I saw the Mercedes S560 at the LA auto show.  What a car!!!  Definitely not a Versa.

enjoy

Neverthelesss, somehow we muddle on. 😛 Just wait until you hear that Raidho System calvinj was raving about.