Amp "timing" ?

Well, I've even read it in Stereophile when they reviewed pre-amps.  It seems like there's a new hot topic of listening placebo every year or so.  I've seen people describe better/worse timing several times and just wondering if this is more audiofraud minutia or if it's a very clear distinction that can be relatively easily recognized by a critical listener. 

dtximages 

... just wondering if this is more audiofraud minutia or if it's a very clear distinction that can be relatively easily recognized by a critical listener.

This is the logical fallacy of the "excluded middle," aka tertium non datur.

There are things that might be considered timing issues in amps, but when used in the context of a review is probably referring to detail and has nothing to do with timing at all. There is this term- PRAT which is thought to be a British thing, which refers to Pace Rhythm And Timing.
But it should be quite obvious that an amplifier can't change the timing of music; IMO this has more to do with the amplifier being low enough of the bad kinds of distortion to which the ear is keenly sensitive so that the music is processed in the limbic centers of the brain rather than the cerebral cortex. There is a tipping point for this where if the unconscious brain sorts out that there is something wrong with the 'music' it transfers the music processing from one to the other. When this happens the emotional response to the music is lost or attenuated- less toe tapping...

I haven't seen any data that shows this is specific to actual time / phase effects.

I believe that what is meant is that the beats come through so transparently you get more involved in the rhythm of the music. This is probably more of a frequency / amplitude related effect than any actual time domain effect.


Best,
E

^^ +1