recommended reading


As a relative newcomer to the land of audiophiledom, I'm trying to learn the language and see that much of it seems to require an electrical engineering degree. Short of that, are there any books you can recommend to establish an understanding of the basics? Most of the magazines, ezines, blogs etc seem to assume a basic foundation. THanks. JK
jkentbcd0
Also recommended is " Good Sounds " by Laura Dearborn . It is out-of-print , but can be found used [ probably for $10 or less ] . Put a Want Ad on this site . This book is aimed at more of a novice than the Harley book . Contact me if you want a copy .
I just got and read: "High Performance Audio Systems" by Harley. It is a very good primer.

If you have been (like me) reading audio press for parts of the last 15 years then you will find it does not add anything new to your understanding. If on the other hand you want a book to give you a solid foundation this is the book for you!
Do not read any of the propaganda. It's all opinion. Your ears hear differently than anyone else's. Don't forget that and just trust them. If you read anything, read the forums here on the Gon.
Thanks everyone. Harley's book got both darts and laurels in the Amazon reviews and, like with seemingly everything audiophile, there is the temptation to believe none of it--or all of it. I think I will get a copy and read with a critical eye and, I hope, surely learn something about the physics, which I can then either abide by or ignore. I had a music teacher years ago who said you have to learn Bach in order to ignore him later, but you can't ignore him with authority until you learn him. JK