The Method of Tuning


System Playback has been evolving ever since the first stereos came out. Folks who have success can’t imagine listening to a system that has not been tuned, folks who haven’t been as successful in their listening tend to go off on their "snake oil" rants. People who buy from the "Recommended Component" list have their Plug & Play approach. The guys using measuring have their camp certainly, and there’s several other audio types out there that have their beliefs to add to the mix. Who’s correct? Well if we can remove our personal egos from this question, they (we) all are correct. The approach that you take as a listener is as legitimate as the next guys, to you. We try pushing our particular belief system on others because we are passionate about it. We have our likes and dislikes and we also have our own reasons why something does work or our blames why it doesn’t. The audiophile world has as many chapters as religious believers has denominations. It’s just the way our minds are built, you grew up on skippy, you peter pan, and you jiff. The audiophile world forgets sometimes just how many opinions and beliefs there really are, until they meet up on places like these audio forums and begin to mix this big bowl of ingredients together.

I’ve started this thread so I can share what I have learned through watching all these mixers turned on and being stuck in the bowl with each other and also from the point of view of someone who has "Tuned" many thousands of you, and have picked up on your own personal developments as masters of your own systems. So before we get going let me tell you something important. No one on the planet of listening "does" audio the way you do. You are unique, and you are a specialist when it comes to your audio adventure. You are all a salesman, because you want others to have that same level of success you enjoy. Audio reviewers, recording producers, component designers and end users are all in the same boat. You might have one or the other on a higher level than the rest, but that really has little relevance when your sitting there with your system and it’s just you and it.

What I would like to do with this thread is level the playing field and talk to you about the oldest technology in all of music (both playing & replaying). Tuning is the most basic and the most advanced technology in making fundamentals and harmonics work in support of each other and every single one of you (us) Tune. We may want to call it something else that sounds more HEA (high end audio) ish, but no matter what we choose to call it, it’s all about taking the audio variables and making them work together. This is what I have been doing all of my personal and professional life. This is also what you have been doing ever since you started to play or playback music.

Just some ground rules for this thread.

First have fun. No one gets anywhere in music if their not enjoying it. If your a sour puss, don’t be surprised if we call you out as one. Personally I don’t mind or care if your a sour puss or not, but speaking for myself, I only have so much time in the day, and if this thread gets too sidetracky & tacky I’ll have better things to do, like making music money, which is a ton of fun.

Second I’m a designer/manufacturer. I am Michael Green of RoomTune and Michael Green Audio. I would imagine over the years 10,000-15,000 Agoners have used my products, maybe more maybe less, maybe only 2 people here have bought some of my stuff. The point is we sell audio products and if someone happens to buy them from this thread don’t get all bent out of shape, sales happen. Also if other designers come up and share their ideas, again try not to get all bent out of shape. Every single one of you are going to have and or get ideas from this thread or about this thread, or about the length of my hair (lol). As far as I am concerned everyone who has a stereo system has a product they want to sell, either physical or intellectually. So? It’s all part of the same soup as far as I am concerned.

Third I and others who come to this thread are free to post long posts. Some topics are not one sentence topics, and this will probably be the case here simply because we will be talking all things audio. And I should throw this in, let me the OP decide if something is off topic.

And last, if I disappear don’t take it like I don’t care. I’m a busy son of a gun and sometimes need a week or 2 to get caught up. Lately I’ve been posting and boring you a lot up here, but when the bell rings for me I’ve got to answer. I work on the US during the day and overseas during the night so that only leaves room for cat naps at best. Everyone here is important and I respect that, and I apologize in advance for my tardiness at times.

I’m ready for some fun are you?

Michael Green

www.michaelgreenaudio.net

128x128michaelgreenaudio

Inevitably folks will be coming up trying to get me to compare $100.00 amps against $50,000.00 ones. Let me cut this off at the pass. Cost is not a consideration for me when I’m tuning. I’m looking for how easily a signal will tune with any component. That usually means I have no interest in a good looking massive faceplate and chassis. I look for a very simple design that is lower in mass, a transformer that is easy to move around and I usually like the sound of circuit boards that are not too thick and have a nice low tone when you tap on them. As I’ve mentioned before, if you look inside of the Sherwood 4105 receiver your looking at a nice piece to practice tuning on. There happens to be tons of lower mass amps out there right now to tune with. I’m not necessarily brand loyal although once I find a unit I like using I will give more attention to it’s other family members. I also gravitate to designers more simpler models, before the pressure is put on them to become over built. Over built products are not very appealing to me, too many parts crammed together and usually too close to the heat sinks, chassis walls or transformers.

Michael Green

www.michaelgreenaudio.net

What is important is whether your ears are sensitive enough to guide you in the tuning.  It is no use talking about tuning if one cannot detect subtle differences in the sound, sound stage, etc.  

Hi Michael

I read your tuneland post and found it extremely enlightening. But it stopped!

I see that there are many aspects to tuning a room, but knowing what to tune and the products where necessary to use is the challenge. I imagine it is going to be a very iterative process.

I really like what you are talking about here and “get it”. I have two questions.

- For those of us who do not have dedicated listening rooms and cannot, repeat cannot, place all manner of boxes, platforms, blocks, panels, topless gear, etc... in/on our living room walls and floors. What is the answer? Many of us cannot place even one box, platform, or panel in our living spaces. Your solutions, as viewed online, unfortunately use these additional devices which are “banned” for some of us 😁

- I find the room correction software used by Lyngdorf in their 2170 one piece solution to be a great alternative and at least part of the solution. It is unique to Lyngdorf and the best digital room correction I have used. It removes sound degrading room interplay and assures your speaker sounds as intended by the builder. Love to hear your comments on digital, and invisible, room correction.
This should be an interesting thread to follow and/or take part in especially when it further develops :-)