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The Ten Rules of high-end audio

1. Room acoustics can make up to 50% of the final sound.
2. With cables you can only "tune" the sound: they don't make a flawed system sounding good.
3. Tweaks can change a system's sound, but a different sound doesn't have to mean that there is better sound.
4. System synergy is not brand dependent. It has a weak relation with the costs of the individual components. It has also a weak relation with the technical design of the components (for example tube or solid state amplification, cone based or ribbon speakers).
5. It is better to have a good front end (where music reproduction begins) than to have very good speakers but only so so front end.
6. The importance of a clean AC power shouldn't be underestimated.
7. It is more worthwhile to invest in electronics and/or acoustics than in so called "tweaks".
8. It is better to strive for a "balanced" sound with some comprimizes than to strive for a "perfect" sound by frequently mixing and matching things. This way you will likely end up with a less satisfying sound.
9. Older high end components are not inferior to more contemporary units by definition. Some older units sound even better (= more musical) than the newer ones. This is also true with newer iterations of the same basic concept (Mk II, III, IV, etc).
10. When you are building up a high end system (or replacing units in your system) you should ask yourself two questions: What are the goals I'm striving for? What can I expect sonically from the component(s) I'm purchasing?

Comments please!

Chris
dazzdax
mrtennis
3,295 posts
 
every rule has an exception and most rules are made to be broken. also consider this:

most generalizations are useless.

what does this mean ? forget the rules and trust your ears.

if you like the sound, it doesn't matter what the rules are.

listen, listen and listen again. in time we all will figure it out.

how many did anything significant in life, by following the rules ??

of course if all this rule business is just banter, forget the above.
chadnliz
3,736 posts
 
These rules pop up about every year when someone decides to again post opinions or their take on it all, and everytime folks chime in and re-arrange it all....yawn.
dazzdax OP
599 posts
 
Chadnliz, do you have some additional comments on the "rules" that have being posted?

Chris
metro04
222 posts
 
Shadorne/Chadnliz, My general observations as well!
shadorne's avatar
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shadorne
7,477 posts
 
Shadorne, was your post 'tounge-in-cheek', serious, or Mixed????

My post was just intended to highlight how some can get trapped into expensive pitfalls that lead to endless frustration and never reaching satisfaction...

50K systems in a room with bare walls and speakers crowded in the wrong place with listening chair up against the rear wall...

Systems with $1000 speakers (with $39.98 drivers) and $2500 speaker cables and $1500 interconnects and $5K each for source and amplification.

Those who buy/sell extremely good gear to tune the sound rather than acoustically treat the room deficiencies or adjust the tone control (often these systems have NO tone control!)

Believing that diamonds, gold or precious metals or other costly materials must necessarily make meaningful audible improvements because they add cost. (Gold everywhere on connectors is nonsense)

Blind belief that "purity" is essential - when good sound often requires a fair degree of "complexity".

Blind belief that Digital is fatally flawed instead of blaming the mix/mastering engineer for an unforgiving sound that you don't like. (There are both good and bad CD's - same as Vinyl)

Those who accept to listen to something for 1000 hours (break-in) before making a decision about liking it or not. (if it doesn't sound good after an hour out of the box or you initially can't hear any improvement at all - then something ain't right and it ain't that you need to endure 1000 hours)
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