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How close to the real thing?

Recently a friend of mine heard a Chopin concert in a Baptist church. I had told him that I had gone out to RMAF this year and heard some of the latest gear. His comment was that he thinks the best audio systems are only about 5% close to the real thing, especially the sound of a piano, though he admitted he hasn't heard the best of the latest equipment.

That got me thinking as I have been going to the BSO a lot this fall and comparing the sound of my system to live orchestral music. It's hard to put a hard percentage on this kind of thing, but I think the best systems capture a lot more than just 5% of the sound of live music.

What do you think? Are we making progress and how close are we?
peterayer
hifihvn
943 posts
 
For those comparing a theater movie to audio might get a different view if they see a good 3D movie done nowadays. It's been to long for me,but this is what I was told.They said you could see the audience jump or duck from an action seen in 3D.Our stereo does a good 3D illusion if you close your eyes.Pilots have come out of Flight Simulators sweating.
irvrobinson
295 posts
 
You always know it's Memorex? No wonder nothing sounds real to you! If you're old enough to remember those commercials you can't hear anything over 12KHz anyway! [Big Grin]
hifihvn
943 posts
 
Memorex had the most hiss of all the tapes too.Maybe that's what broke the glass.
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
You are right about the 12Khz:( missing in action (more or less)and yet "live" and recordings remain distinctly their own sonically.

P.S. I used TDK, when I wasn't on the Thorens.....
rebbi
1,326 posts
 
This has been a very interesting discussion to follow!

I have come to think about these issues less in terms of some "absolute sound" and more as "is the system giving me as much of what the recording engineer intended as possible." As in, "Oh, so THAT'S what Paul Simon, Tchad Blake and Brian Eno wanted me to experience on that cut from "Surprise." My own rig has come progressively closer to this goal as I've tweaked and upgraded it, I think, although it's hardly take no prisoners/state of the art.

As for acoustic music, if a tweak to the system makes it more moving or involving, I'm pleased.

YMMV, of course!
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