PBB, I didn't forget you. One of the basics of sound reproduction and perception is that the ear's sensitivity to frequencies changes with the sound pressure level. Ever notice that there's a just-right playback volume? For example, below that level there's not enough bass, above it there's too much. That's your ear at work. In the context of this thread this means that the elusive wild goose of transparency can only occur at one volume setting for each recording. At all others the perfect system will sound out of balance, and so by definition, non-transparent.
What does listening to a speaker really tell us?
Ok. I got lots of advice here from people telling me the only way to know if a speaker is right for me is to listen to it. I want a speaker that represents true fidelity. Now, I read lots of people talking about a speakers transparency. I'm assuming that they mean that the speaker does not "interpret" the original source signal in any way. But, how do they know? How does anyone know unless they were actually in the recording studio or performance hall? Isn't true that we can only comment on the RELATIVE color a speaker adds in reference to another speaker? This assumes of course that the upstream components are "perfect."
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- 51 posts total
- 51 posts total