what percentage of us really knows sound

Juan,

Merlin speakers are not really capable of reproducing dynamic range properly. And so I now know something about your system & your ears.

We could say that, if C is the "coefficient of audio realism" - the factor that tells us how closely a musical experience approximates reality according to the brain - its equation is A + B = C. A is what the system provides and B is what the brain fills in.

This explains how some lucky souls can be enraptured by an AM radio.

Hello Juan ,
Interesting topic and one many can relate to. I for one have long gone given up on the ultimate or perfect hi-fi system , IMO it does not exist , all are perfect for a time and all subjective to taste.

Put 15 individuals to listen to a live symphony and i guarantee they all hear it differently, no different from listening to hi-fi and while i do agree with you regarding most big $$$ hi -fi sounds like crap, you cannot fault someone's opinion, it's there opinion and it's best for "them "...


Juancgenao:

MY system is simple,

Joulet electra150MkIIse.
Quick silver M100.mono blocks
Kora hermes, Dac
sonic frontier FST-I, transport.
Oracle Delphy IV, TT,
KCI, silk worm I/C
Merlin, Vsm, MMe speakers
MIT 750, music Hose, spkr, cables
ELrod PC
Black sandviolet ZII PC
Audience e' PC
Former speakers. Von swheikert VR4,

I'm sure there will be those who would find your sound unsuitable, who knows. The VR4 sounds like Hi-fi and the merlins lack energy IMO. It's your hi-fi, not mine enjoy it ...

Now for the business of Hi-fi,

This i can agree with you totally , regarding the Phobie dust cables and speaker leads , amplifiers and speakers costing tens of thousands and sound like low -fi much less live music .

IMO, Hi-Fi dealers and re-sellers is who have killed off hi-fi and turned it into what it is today. My most recent experience with such after being requested by a friend to accompany him to listen to some new wonder product and viola , poor sound , poor setup and the usual you are privileged to be here attitude had me wondering why would any one put themselves thru such drivel. Worst when we told them the product was not to our liking and requested to hear their wonder beast setup , that famous sorry , you need to have an appointment .. LOL..

I had envision most being out of business a decade a go , a pity it has taken this long, thank god for the internet, hi-fi shows and direct sales. The good ones will survive, the ones that are truly into the hi-fi and work with their customers, the other 90% that's bad need to go as they are not selling hi-fi, they are selling snobbery to the highest bidder and by doing so are misleading those not in the know into believing they have good hi-fi...... Scoundrels .

regards,

Juan you are right that there are a few people out there who are broke from spending way too much on the wrong things, however, you cannot generalize. For example, my system cost is irrelevant to me. I choose not to buy what I feel are ridiculous inflated prices for many items that do nothing significant for me - but this is just a reflection of my engineering background rather than any desire to save money. It is like moral principles for me. If I can see that I am being hoodwinked then my wallet simply stays in my pocket.

I would never put so much money into cables and IC'sand PC's, as you have done. In fact, from my perspective you could improve the sound more by investing in better components (although what you have is already excellent and more than enough for most people)

Juan, to answer your topic question (What percentage...?), I believe there's a large percentage of people that really know about sound, i.e. what sounds good and what doesn't. Most people can tell the difference between excellent and poor sound. For example, a first-time listener to a high-end system usually reacts with delight, pleasure, surprise, and appreciation.

However, because this hobby (like most hobbies) is driven by perception and experience - including the economics side of the hobby - you can conclude there's going to be a wide range of perception and experience as to what aspects of the sound are more important, especially for people like musicians. Perception and experience are as varied and unique as our fingerprints.

Nevertheless, while it may be almost impossible to create a definite standard acceptable to everyone, we can still agree on many commonalities in determining what generally sounds good as well as differences in sound quality.

With regards to the other issue you raised about personal financial capacity, all I can say is it's just a matter of choice - once again, based on perception and experience.

I guess I would agree as it always shocks me at shows, such as CES that rooms I left because of the bad sound get "best of show" awards. And I go into rooms where some of transfixed by the sound and I have to leave. But all that I have to satisfy is me, so what do I care. I have a circle of friends whose ears I trust and cannot say I trust any reviewer, with the exception of Michael Fremmer.