Volume Control

That is interesting as the Golden Cross is used by many audiophiles to tame the upper midrange and treble of digital sources that are all too often "hot" in those areas.

It's not only on digital sources that the treble and upper midrange are too frequently "hot" or too bright, it's also on a good number of non digital components as well. In fact at times it seems pervasive. Several of my audiophile friends, including two who have been in the electronics business for many years, recently attended a big audio components show. I couldn't partake, but when I asked them about what they had heard, their main reply was that I "didn't miss much". In the large majority of rooms they reported the kind of sound that was annoyingly bright. In some instances when they questioned this they invariably received the reply that it was "the fault of the rooms". But this sort of chant is nothing new, and seems to have become the proverbial "broken record".

And I couldn't agree with you more, Hifiman. I also attend live orchestral concerts fairly regularly, and do not hear the kind of crystal clear neutrality, squeaky cleanness and treble prominence that is fairly frequently projected by stereo equipment, including a good portion of which costs tens of thousands of dollars. We all enjoy our own preferred, reproduced illusions in the comfort of our homes. Some of them may come closer to approximating reality than others, but there's obviously something unique about unamplified music, and it's easy (and often uplifting) to notice this when we hear the sound of the violin or piano live. As you say, our re-calibration kicks in. Indeed, the warmth and natural, often easy tonality of the violin is rarely approached by electronics. Instead, we are often "treated" to a wiry, acidic and somewhat unfulfilling representation that belies the sort of relaxed enjoyment which accompanies the genuine event. Nonetheless, fortunate are those who, often after a long and sometimes expensive electronics journey, have been able to reap the rewards of their hard won audio nirvana.

Opus88 I absolutely agreed. Music were mixed down from prerecorded sessions especially for pop music. The so called imaging, localisation, tonal balance etc etc were products of mastering. Perhaps classical music recordings using minimal miking could present a truer stereo. I guess some cables are capable of taming those illusions and in doing so you enjoy more of the music.