AES Video "What Does 'Accurate' Even Mean? with James D. "jj" Johnston


Interesting video. Possibly of interest. 

"jj typically gives his home AES Section an annual discussion, this year being on the thought provoking usage of some terms regarding audio accuracy. Some of his concepts, in a nutshell:

• Accuracy of an audio signal that goes through any wire, any active or passive circuitry, any ADC/DAC is relatively easy to thoroughly measure for accuracy. It is easy because we have the source to directly compare it to.

• We can say with a great deal of confidence that there are thresholds of accuracy in these signals where we can claim audible transparency.

• Speaker/rooms are not so easy to measure for accuracy. They are impossible to compare to an original acoustic event like a classical concert for accuracy. These things are difficult to measure because of lack of direct access to the source for direct comparison. Speakers and rooms have to be considered as a system. The ideal design for one depends on the other.

• Many audiophiles and engineers fail to pay proper attention to the issues of head transfer functions and head movement. The advancement of audio will need to address head transfer function and head movement.

• Preferences are inarguable. Stop arguing with people about what they like and stop demeaning them for it."

 

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Great thoughts. Having been to many AES conventions, there are always good sessions about home listening. I especially like his idea of a threshold of quality and head movement. The psychoacoustics issues fascinate me. 

Interesting video thanks to the OP ...

 

These are the main points i advocated for here when i claimed that there is no reproduction of a musical album but only the acoustic TRANSLATION from the acoustics chosen trade off choices of the recording engineer to the set of acoustics parameters of the system/room of the listeners ...

Nevermind your upgrades race if you dont takes into account acoustics and psychoacoustics ( ears canals measurements and HTRF) your race is half the time throwing money in the wind ....

 

 

Speaker/rooms are not so easy to measure for accuracy. They are impossible to compare to an original acoustic event like a classical concert for accuracy. These things are difficult to measure because of lack of direct access to the source for direct comparison. Speakers and rooms have to be considered as a system. The ideal design for one depends on the other.

• Many audiophiles and engineers fail to pay proper attention to the issues of head transfer functions and head movement. The advancement of audio will need to address head transfer function and head movement.

 

Some of us… do actually record the original acoustic events… and use playback of such as references…. Absolutely the speaker / room are a system, including the amplifier…. Imagine a company …in business since 1977…addressing all 4 ( i am counting the reference materials ) 12 bands of EQ below 120 hz, benign loads and bespoke high pass amplifiers as part of a system… 
 

I don’t see anything wrong w flavorizing aka picking distortions you like, but it isnt moving the accuracy ball forward….

Thanks for sharing this excellent video…