prof2,732 posts04-15-2021 12:30amIf you were provided with a full spec sheet of any/all products, would you be able to translate those specs into something meaningful? Something you could interpret and explain to someone else that “these should sound like this because of that..”
If a product is claimed to have altered an audio signal to an audible degree, there should be measurable differences in the audio signal with and without the product in use. It makes sense then to ask a claimant to show measurable differences in an audio signal, for frequency response, distortion, whatever, to a degree that suggests it’s audibility. It would be even better if it was established as audible under blinded conditions.
What you have stated should be evident Prof, but unfortunately, 20 plus years of a misinformation campaign coupled with a target audience without the background for defence, nor willingness has created inertia that is hard to change.
It is easier to make a false claim about one side, i.e. claiming they are using measurements to define preference, or to make a scientifically unfounded claim, i.e. claims about our not fully understanding sound, when we are talking about an electrical signal, whether it will become sound or not.
If you claim a power cable or interconnect reduces the noise floor, that is something easily verified. An accurate conclusion can be drawn on audibility. A similar claim could be made about distortion and speaker cables. If you claim that RF interference generates noise in digital connections, it is really quite easy to both prove this and show how your cable fixes the problem. We are not even talking about whether the effect is audible or not, we are talking proving simple technical claims. I have a very hard time accepting that proving cable maker technical claims will hurt their business. If anything, it should open up new markets. Now imagine if you proved with listening tests that not only can you detect the changes, but they are audible?
I use SR purely as an example here, but don't people find it strange that SR, in all their videos, only has one set of speakers, one set (however complex) of electronics? If cables make a difference, certainly there are aspects of interaction between components that must be taken into account? Even end users accept this. Shouldn't SR have a whole range of speakers and electronics that they need to test with to either tune for that electronics / speaker, or at least to provide the best average improvement? I do find this one of the more telling aspects.