"What is it with this urge to explain away the things we hear? Not explain- explain away. The implication is you didn't really hear what you know perfectly darn well you did. It didn't really happen. You only think that it did.
Poppycock! "
millercarbon, I firmly believe from my own experience that there can be profound differences in perception of the same sound at different times due to the state of mind of the listener. Some people, perhaps yourself, may be better at purely objective listening than others. I know my limits and have to be careful. Flying an airplane in clouds taught me really quickly that my inner ear sense of up and down is not well fixed, but is highly calibrated by what my eyes are seeing and what the rest of my body is feeling. I've experienced my sense of timbral balance change significantly at times. I came home one time after a long drive and turned on my system. The bass was severely lacking. I measured. It measured just fine. I listened to the same music on my headphones using an entirely different battery operated playback chain and the bass still sounded thin. It had to be my perception being temporarily altered, not the equipment output changing.
Poppycock! "
millercarbon, I firmly believe from my own experience that there can be profound differences in perception of the same sound at different times due to the state of mind of the listener. Some people, perhaps yourself, may be better at purely objective listening than others. I know my limits and have to be careful. Flying an airplane in clouds taught me really quickly that my inner ear sense of up and down is not well fixed, but is highly calibrated by what my eyes are seeing and what the rest of my body is feeling. I've experienced my sense of timbral balance change significantly at times. I came home one time after a long drive and turned on my system. The bass was severely lacking. I measured. It measured just fine. I listened to the same music on my headphones using an entirely different battery operated playback chain and the bass still sounded thin. It had to be my perception being temporarily altered, not the equipment output changing.