High Performance Audio - The End?

In my experience with both lower end and upper end systems, distinction between steel and nylon strings is not necessarily an exacting measure of a system's absolute capacity. Even lower end HiFi systems can distinguish the difference between steel and nylon strings. Back when I built $5K rigs I could always hear (but not nearly as clearly as with upper end rigs) the difference between them. It takes no great feat to do so. Similar with vibes versus Xylophone; there is a gross enough distinction that they can be identified with lower end systems. This is not a good measure of the rig being extreme in terms of
resolution, imo.

The proper question is to what degree can a system do so? That takes head to head comparison, and all the hype and promotion here does not answer it. My Kirksaeter Silverline 220 Speakers, which I used (sold a while back) in a second system, with it's twin 7.5" woofers and 7.5" midrange, would have likely made a very nice comparison to the Elac Adante, and may have outperformed the Adante in some respects. But, regardless of the designer(s) and manufacturing, only a comparison head to head would tell.   :)

@mikewerner,

"If a system is high resolution, then it is low distortion. This is NOT true.

This helps explain much of the seemingly contradictory statements made in this thread."


I think we could say that good system building can be a tricky business.

Describing good system building seems to be even trickier. Even professional journalists often wind up sounding confused.

It has to be a question of balance because if you imagine a system combining the best ribbon tweeters with mediocre bass drivers joined by a poorly configured crossover it might well offer amazing resolution, but only at the odd particular frequency.

The rest of its frequency range might well be noticeably distorted.

There’s also the question of room effects which might be significant for some users.

To keep the illusion of listening to to a facsimile of real musicians there must be as little as possible that draws attention away from the illusion.

Assuming of course that the recording is a decent one in the first place.

Even so, that doesn’t explain why so many high priced (high resolution?) systems often sound so poorly integrated.

Is that the fault of the equipment, the room, or even the recording itself?

I still want to believe the explanation given by @atmasphere earlier that a genuine high resolution product must not only be able to resolve more detail, it must do it without adding anything superfluous at the sane time.

So assembling a good system might just be a question of finding and combining those rare products.

I think it’s pretty obvious that most loudspeakers are not only guilty of the sin of ommision but also of commission.

Perhaps here lies the problem?


@douglas_schroeder,

"But, regardless of the designer(s) and manufacturing, only a comparison head to head would tell. :)"


I don’t think anyone would disagree with that.

I once compared 2 different integrated amplifiers together and was surprised (and given the differences in price not a little disappointed) by what I heard.

Once adjusted for volume they were virtually industinguishable. And that wasn’t even done by the prescribed instant switching method by relay.

With all of the various loudspeakers I have heard no two have sounded alike.

The Tannoy Revolution 3s might share a similar signature to the Tannoy Berkeley’s, but the difference in scale and ease of sound is still blatant.

To clarify,
I am saying that a low distortion system is NECESSARILY high resolution.
A high resolution system is NOT NECESSARILY low distortion.

Everyone knows that the Adante was a flawed design.  Released to much heralding, look how short a time it remained in the Elac line-up.  It was discontinued because it wasn't selling (duh), and it wasn't selling because people were listening to it and comparing it to other similarly priced speakers.  If you're going to vaunt a "giant-killer" (a dubious concept at best), at least pick a half-decent model to promote in the first place.