What is a high end stereo SUPPOSED to sound like?


I've been thinking about this for a while....like 10+ years. Would be interested in what others have to say.
My latest answer would have to be "nothing". I want to hear the music and not the stereo. Like "Come over and listen to some music" versus "Come over and listen to my new stereo". If there are errors, they would be errors of omission, not commission because I assume they are less noticeable.
cdc
Whart,

Exactly. Stridency, no. Decay (back end of wave), yes. The more complete the notes, in a musical piece, the more to appreciate.

The only analogous thing I can come up with at the moment is when one is looking at a stream. One can see the whole stream as it rushes (or meanders) past. When the waters clear, one can now see the bottom better. One can also see the streams edge as it works its way around, under and through the lands edges. Swirls and eddies are more apparent. There's more texture, fleeting as it is, to the water, what with reflections from the sun and air currents massaging its surface.

This stream is still traveling at the same speed but once the water is cleared of impurities, there is so much more to take in. It's not sensory overload but rather a better appreciation that uses more of ones mind to soak it all up.

It's that appreciation factor that makes thing seem to slow down as we're now using more than a base sensory input. It's beyond instinctual input as we're not dodging predators or looking for food. It uses a deeper part of our brain which we've honed through time with our relations to others, be it intimate, sports related, even culinary based (here's to another sense).

I'd even go so far as to say that all of our senses work this way and we take it for granted or chalk it up to something else specific to what we're doing at the time. That is what makes this hobby so wonderful for us and a complete mystery to those who don't take the time to listen to what we do.

All the best,
Nonoise
Bryon,

No, your ears are not crazy. You posted before I did so I thought I'd relieve you of any vestige of doubt as to your sanity, here.

All the best,
Nonoise
Thank you, Nonoise. I will print out your post and present it to my psychiatrist. Then she will finally have to rescind the restraining order.

bc

Hi,

Haven't perused the thread and predict my sentiment has been articulated in some fashion hitherto -- a high-end stereo should have the capacity to reproduce its source with fidelity, room notwithstanding.

Now, some may not be enamored with what they experience; albeit, the sound is being reproduced with fidelity. Enter a device to tailor the experience which satisfies the listener's sonic aesthetic.
To me it would be something that you could turn on everyday and smile. If you are happy with your sound then it's high end to you. MTCW!