"Audio Without Numbers" by Herb Reichert

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The Reich fellow saw a UFO. In my book that's up there. Up. There.

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This and other chronicles of similar nature have become a common sight in the past few months.

 

I have the impression that this all started with MQA, and the press's inability to convince the consumer that the new technology is the right thing for us.

 

Audio without numbers = MQA

 

The once influential voice of the poor old professional audio critic with the 6 figure high-end system, whose taste-driven subjectivist approach was once an trend setting instrument, no longer seems to heard.

And that hurts... As in that old song "stars they come and go...".

 

But it's not just egos being hurt here. The whole industry should see this as a wake up call. Audiophiles of the world unite.

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1 hour ago, adamdea said:

We are talking about hobbyists who happen to take positions which would ,

 

Thankfully they have not taken up sailing, or skydiving...

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3 hours ago, Rexp said:

The quality of a fine audio system and the quality of a fine wine are both subjective judgments and since no one has come up with an objective way to determine quality, i'll stick with my opinion and opinons of others I trust and not some nerd with a scope.

 

Subjective judgement is akin to tasting: it won't tell you that something is good (in this case accurate at reproducing the signal) but whether or not you like it.

 

Good = objective

Pleasing = subjective

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12 minutes ago, Rexp said:

As I said I judge audio systems subjectively cos as far as I know no one has come up with a way of objectively proving the analog signal captured during recording is identical to the one reproduced by the audio system. Or have they?

 

Measurements are made by comparing the signal going in with what is coming out. So yes they have.

Will this tell if you like the outcome: no.

 

Gradient even performed an AB comparison where the listener would hear the recording in one channel and the live feed from a speaker reproducing into an anechoic chamber. Only one speaker was deemed"transparent", but that was in the early 90's if I'm not mistaken.