Amir and Blind Testing


Let me start by saying I like watching Amir from ASR, so please let’s not get harsh or the thread will be deleted. Many times, Amir has noted that when we’re inserting a new component in our system, our brains go into (to paraphrase) “analytical mode” and we start hearing imaginary improvements. He has reiterated this many times, saying that when he switched to an expensive cable he heard improvements, but when he switched back to the cheap one, he also heard improvements because the brain switches from “music enjoyment mode” to “analytical mode.” Following this logic, which I agree with, wouldn’t blind testing, or any A/B testing be compromised because our brains are always in analytical mode and therefore feeding us inaccurate data? Seems to me you need to relax for a few hours at least and listen to a variety of music before your brain can accurately assess whether something is an actual improvement.  Perhaps A/B testing is a strawman argument, because the human brain is not a spectrum analyzer.  We are too affected by our biases to come up with any valid data.  Maybe. 

chayro

Showing 1 response by ghdprentice

I first heard of this web site not that long ago. It was from someone who used a quote from the site… and in my  experience (50 years) this generalization was simply  not true. So I went to the site and read a dozen or more reviews. Sorry, I found the comments and listening observations or recommendations that of no value and generally contradictory to my knowledge. 
 

I have been a scientist for over a decade and worked with hundreds of electrical engineers for decades in high technology… people that make the stuff inside virtually every electronic device you own. I love data: collecting, interpreting and presenting what the data is telling you. I have spent well over a decade doing that, I love the tools, the process and the outcome. But I quickly learned with high end audio this is a great way to lead you away from great sound.  Listening is the only really effective way of evaluating equipment. … although in all honesty he typically measures budget gear. 
 

I hold The Absolute Sound, Stereophile, and HiFi+ in high regards… particularly the first two. I have heard hundreds of components which they have reviewed over the last forty years and the accuracy of there evaluations is really astonishingly good. Not perfect, but very very close. Very trustworthy sources.