Do you ever doubt you ears ?


I think I have very good hearing, probably better than average based on occasions when listening together with others. I have years of experience listening to a huge range of systems and equipment, a-b
comparisons etc., and I have also read an enormous amount about the subject. No doubt many here are at a higher level than I am.

When comparing cables I sometimes get confused. I hear big differences/improvements sometimes but when I go back to the reference a week later it sounds better. Switching around confuses me more. Bass is always the easiest and most consistent to compare. I start doubting my ears or my memory, especially when my opinion is 180 degrees different to reviews.
mike60
A hifi item "Several times the quality" often means several times the price with a very small (or undetectable) improvement in sound...with something as difficult to quantify as "sound quality" I think we Audio Gear Hobbyists sometimes just change for change. I recently "upgraded" nearly everything in my stereo heap to relatively inexpensive used or discontinued different (but well regarded) things and it sounds a LOT better and for now I'm happy...but that pretty turntable at Goodwin's over there would make me a better person...and that thick, well reviewed power cable would make the electrons more organized and perkier...and most of my friends won't listen to any of it.
Wolf_garcia,
It isn't always about the money. A component that is way much more expensive than your current gear may not give you the night and day difference to warrant an upgrade. So, if there is any doubt at all with regard to the improvement in sound quality wrought by a specific component upgrade in the chain(synergy and the law of diminishing returns are extremely important considerations), then there should be no doubt at all in your mind that you should shell out the extra moolah for the upgrade. Cheers!
Jon.
in fact our senses are imperfect. sometimes we hear what does not exist and other times we fail to hear what does exist.

it is natural to occasionally question your perceptions. at other times one may be confident.

as long as we recognize the imperfection of the process, the question is essentially irrelevant.