After I heard this phenomena I was interested in what I heard, and wanted to learn more. It’s not like I took this example and published it in a scientific journal or talked to university professors. As I mentioned I had simply googled this subject at the time. I had found several articles and Wikipedia posts saying that this phenomena was being reported widely and that scientists had concluded that this effect was psychological. Are these reports that I read the actual sentiment of the wider scientific consensus? Of course not. It was simply what was being reported widely from what I found on the internet at the time. Fast forward years later and that all changed…
Why HiFi Gear Measurements Are Misleading (yes ASR talking to you…)
About 25 years ago I was inside a large room with an A-frame ceiling and large skylights, during the Perseid Meteor Shower that happens every August. This one time was like no other, for two reasons: 1) There were large, red, fragmenting streaks multiple times a minute with illuminated smoke trails, and 2) I could hear them.
Yes, each meteor produced a sizzling sound, like the sound of a frying pan.
Amazed, I Googled this phenomena and found that many people reported hearing this same sizzling sound associated with meteors streaking across the sky. In response, scientists and astrophysicists said it was all in our heads. That, it was totally impossible. Why? Because of the distance between the meteor and the observer. Physics does not allow sound to travel fast enough to hear the sound at the same time that the meteor streaks across the sky. Case closed.
ASR would have agreed with this sound reasoning based in elementary science.
Fast forward a few decades. The scientists were wrong. Turns out, the sound was caused by radiation emitted by the meteors, traveling at the speed of light, and interacting with metallic objects near the observer, even if the observer is indoors. Producing a sizzling sound. This was actually recorded audibly by researchers along with the recording of the radiation. You can look this up easily and listen to the recordings.
Takeaway - trust your senses! Science doesn’t always measure the right things, in the right ways, to fully explain what we are sensing. Therefore your sensory input comes first. You can try to figure out the science later.
I’m not trying to start an argument or make people upset. Just sharing an experience that reinforces my personal way of thinking. Others of course are free to trust the science over their senses. I know this bothers some but I really couldn’t be bothered by that. The folks at ASR are smart people too.
- ...
- 406 posts total
@noske here is an article that explains how researchers once thought people that heard this phenomena was “fantasy”. It’s lower in the article. “The dismissal of these observations by suggesting that the sound perception may be psychological through “an affrighted imagination” set back the study of the phenomenon for nearly two centuries.” So yeah. |
elementary school audio science = ASR I would always suggest listening first; and measurements later. There are obviously reasons why such a site exists...and I don’t think the founder is out to save audiophiles from themselves and provide 100% honest reviews to save people money; all for nothing.... People make donations on ASR. Long ago, there was proof of collusion between said site admin and now-popular Chi-Fi audio brands (execs and designers) on various forums. Of course, before starting ASR, those tracks were paved over....so anyone who thinks ASR is an audio science charity is fooling themselves. it is a cult - where noobs and audio novices gather to talk about how their latest $10 headphone dongle or $99 DAC is far superior to "audiophile jewelry" all while never having stepped foot in an audio store to listen...because those who are most influencial on that site tell them that higher THD is the only thing that can impact audio quality....lol |
This is a very, very serious accusation. I had not heard it before. @amir_asr might need to defends ASR on that one. |
- 406 posts total