Blind listening tests under controlled conditions may not be perfect, but they are infinitely superior to sighted ones if all you are concerned with is sound quality.
I remember vividly how after 'upgrading' my amplifier to one costing 4 times as much I thought I'd check the old one before putting it up for sale.
After switching back and forth a few times the really strange result left me baffled - they sounded remarkably alike! How could this be? Reviews had waxed lyrical about how wonderfully luxurious the new one sounded. Even now, years later I have trouble accepting what I heard. Buying without listening really would be the bane of the audiophile's life if there weren't others out there willing to do the same.
Similar things often happen when comparing different (re)masterings of favourite albums. Once you have level matched them they often sound remarkably similar. Apart from Dylan's Street Legal, its difficult to think of a clear improvement when its comes to remastering.
It was also odd that when my amp superseded by a new model a few years later the replacement was deemed a clear improvement in the press.
All these 'improvements' year after year....
Perhaps its high time we all got into the tweaking business. Look here, I've got the perfect contact cleaner...it'll transform your system beyond belief. For a mere $50 per 330 ml bottle! I know it looks like a bottle of tap water but trust me....
I remember vividly how after 'upgrading' my amplifier to one costing 4 times as much I thought I'd check the old one before putting it up for sale.
After switching back and forth a few times the really strange result left me baffled - they sounded remarkably alike! How could this be? Reviews had waxed lyrical about how wonderfully luxurious the new one sounded. Even now, years later I have trouble accepting what I heard. Buying without listening really would be the bane of the audiophile's life if there weren't others out there willing to do the same.
Similar things often happen when comparing different (re)masterings of favourite albums. Once you have level matched them they often sound remarkably similar. Apart from Dylan's Street Legal, its difficult to think of a clear improvement when its comes to remastering.
It was also odd that when my amp superseded by a new model a few years later the replacement was deemed a clear improvement in the press.
All these 'improvements' year after year....
Perhaps its high time we all got into the tweaking business. Look here, I've got the perfect contact cleaner...it'll transform your system beyond belief. For a mere $50 per 330 ml bottle! I know it looks like a bottle of tap water but trust me....