Your vote: Most Useless Audio Adjective


From what I've seen in online audio discussion forums such as Audiogon, words like warm, taut, wooly, and forward can upset even died in the wool audiophiles. While some may have a hard time getting their arms around them, most of the terms seem quite appropriate to me. You have to develop some list of terms in order to convey a description of a component's sonics, or to delineate it from another component.

However, I have noticed the description "self effacing" creeping into more and more reviews, and it flat out boggles my mind. Initially, it seemed to fit into the context it was being used - affordable or downright cheap gear, that was fun and lively. However, now that I've read the term being used to describe quite a serious piece of high end kit, the time has come to point out how ridiculous things are getting.

I had to laugh out loud thinking of the snootiest, most condescending audio dealer I know who was carrying this brand. Using the term "self effacing" with anything had to do with this guy was akin to describing Phyllis Diller a young, hot sex symbol.

What is your most useless audio adjective???
trelja
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Which renders the entire thread useless, IMO.

So in a backwards kind of way the most useless word in this thread is indeed useless.

I suppose we're now asymptotically approaching the tautological, which may be as close to consensus as we'll get.

Tim
 
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adjectives are ambiguous in their denotation. take the adjectives, hot, cold, sweet, sour...... .

they have no precise meaning because they are both qualitative and quantitative. they impede communication.

why use them in an audio discussion when it is possible to be direct when explaining an intention.

for example, instead of saying bright, specify the base and upper frequency and magnitude, if possible.

there are other words which can be translated into a short sentence which is clear to the reader, so that the reader doesn't have to guess, or rely on a connotation which may be unique to him/her.

adjectives may be useful stylistically, but they often impede communication. why is it so difficult to avoid using them, whenever possible ?