There Is Nothing Like the Real Thing - Our State of the Art


This is a long expose’.  My apologies in advance.  Perhaps you will find it enjoyable or thought provoking.  Perhaps you will find me in need of therapy.  

 

I am lucky to live in the NYC suburbs that provide multifarious venues for all genres of music, dance, and theater within the inner city and beyond.  There are the large venues (Carnegie Hall, Koch Theater, Metropolitan) but many smaller venues where ensembles perform.   This weekend I attended a Fever Candlelight Concert of seasonal music at the St. Mark’s Episodical Church in Mount Kisco NY performed by the Highline String Quartet sitting about 25 feet from the performers in a warm acoustic environment.  Much enjoyable. Vivaldi L’inverno evoked a tear.  However, every time I come home from a live performance, I reflect on the state of the art of musical recording and playback, with feelings that as far as technology has advanced in the past 10 years, we are far off from the real thing.  I have spent much time with $1mm systems at dealers and have curated a system within my means that focuses on timbre, dynamics, and image density, at least to my ears.   But after listening to the real thing, I have the following observations:  

 

1.  Organic nature of reproduced music cannot approach the sweetness, liquidity, and  palpability of the real thing.  The real thing is detailed but never with harsh artifacts that I still hear even in $1mm systems.  Massed orchestral  strings is the best example of where the state of the art is getting better, but still far off from the sweetness and liquidity of the real thing. 

2.  Imaging and staging of reproduced music cannot approach the real thing.  I find systems homogenizes the sound field and some separate the sound field images in excess compared to the real thing.  When in a live venue, there images are distinct but the secondary harmonics from the instruments and the reflected sounds from the venue mix and diffuse the images in a manner that recorded and reproduced music cannot capture.  

3.  The dynamics of recorded and reproduced music have a different quality than the real thing.  Dynamics is where the state of the art has much improved.  Macro and microdynamics of systems I like are well reproduced.  The difference I hear is that the leading edge of the real thing is powerfully evident but never harsh.   It’s forceful and relaxed at the same time.  

4.  Many systems today produce vivid detail but in a manner different than the real thing. The way the bow, strings, and sounding board/body of the instrument develops and ripples out into the venue in an integrated manner is getting closer, but not yet there.  This, combined with my comments on imaging/staging produce detailed sound that progresses from a point source outward in three dimensions.  As an analogy, the detailed sound wave images progress into the venue like the visual image of a fireworks exploding in the sky.  Recorded music playback is getting closer, but it’s not the real thing.  

 

I believe the recording technology is most at fault.  This belief stems from the fact that some recording labels consistently come closer to the real thing.  For example, certain offerings from Reference Recordings, 2L, Linn, Blue Note,  and Stockfish produce timbre, staging/imaging, and dynamics closer to the real thing.  I do not understand recording engineering to understand why.  

 

What are your observations on the state of the art compared to the real thing?   For those technical competent, any explanation why we are not closer?

jsalerno277


@helomech Omnidirectional speaker designs have existed for over 60 years.  One of the first I recall is the Ohm Walsh. Other brands are German Physiks, MBL, Mirage, Linkwitz Labs, Dueval, Morrison Audio, and one DCM model from the 80s with a multiple tweeter array.  Some brands were more successful than others at reproduction of “real thing” soundstage.  The best I have heard are the MLB Radialstrahler  series of speakers if you can afford the price of entry.  There soundstage is what I have attempted to describe as that produced in a live acoustic music concert - evident imaging but diffused by secondary harmonics and hall ambience. 

What I was suggesting isn’t very similar to any existing omnidirectional loudspeaker that I’m aware of. The large MBLs or BeoLabs are probably the closest, but still much too simplistic in the way they divide the bandwidths and their lack of point-source dispersion. 

 

I identify with the OPs observations and share them. I too enjoy chamber music concerts in a great venue. I agree with the many who note the futility of trying to replicate the live performance in your home. I find the same to be true with acoustic jazz, which I also enjoy in great smaller venues. No mikes, no mixers, no recording engineers, no mastering, no digital. The live acoustic sounds more natural because that’s what it is, subject to the venue and your seating position. 
 

The live performance aspect is a draw to concerts too. But I have vivid memories of walking out on rock concerts in venues like arenas for an NHL hockey team. One Billy Joel concert was absolutely awful. We went home and listened to Billy Joel on our audio system and were much happier. 
 

I also share the OP’s observations about MBL speakers. I listened to them at an audio show, then in a better listening room at an audio dealer. Great imaging and an outstanding naturalness of instrument timbre. Too expensive for my budget. 
 

So I live with and enjoy what I have, still finding a wide range in the quality of recordings. That’s the price you pay for having a revealing audio system. You can all too readily discern the difference between good and bad recordings, especially on acoustic music. 

25 years as a symphony musician and 25 years as a recording engineer settled my mind as to realistic sound. Acoustic instruments playing in an acoustical environment is about as real as it gets and attempts to replicate it are exactly that ------- replicas ----- never exactly like the original, but close enough. A fine recording engineer subtly uses his tools without you realizing his input. George Massenburg is my favorite "artist" engineer. Far too many recording engineers think that they are the "Hand of God" but have no concept of what an honest musical sound is. I’m constantly amazed at how a well-recorded performance using only two microphones can so effectively approach the real thing. But ---- it’s still a replica !!

@northman Well stated. However, I will suggest that all music venues or performances are not created equal.  There are times when I prefer listening to my own system than the "real" thing. If the live performance is amplified and I have less than ideal center front seats the experience is often not as emotional as I can experience from my home system.  Add to that audience noise and the frustration of folks standing then that experience can lack intimacy. I remember one concert with one of my favorite artists in a smallish venue where the guitar amp had an anoying ground hum.  Drove me nuts.