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How you know your system is improving?

Fellow Audio Junkies - 

Over the last few years, I've invested in my first high end system. It's been a far costlier affair than I'd initially conceived. I started off simply wanting to listen to music in my home. At this stage of my life, I was fortunate to have some resources to invest which led me down the path of reading forums and reviews, while also having the opportunity to visit a few audio stores to demo equipment.

And down the rabbit hole I went... Once I realized all the nuances of equipment and their impact on the listening experience, I became fascinated with creating the most satisfying musical experience in my house. I ended up purchasing several amps, three sets of speakers, NOS power tubes, and a myriad combination of power cords.

With each investment, I would often remark to myself "yes - I hear an improvement..." But sometimes a doubt would cross my mind. Is this some sort of confirmation bias I've got going? Am I just throwing money away? Do I need to see a shrink? 

Admittedly, I was largely convinced things were improving, but a small part of my brain recognized I might be have been chasing windmills... 

Which brings me to this question: "How do you know your system is improving after you've made a system change or hopeful upgrade?" 

For me, a moment came last night when I put on a piece of music - Beth Orton - and played a track that a year ago sounded muddy or poorly recorded. There have been several system changes since I last played that Beth Orton track. As I began streaming over Quboz, I could hear details in the music which had been previously fuzzy and hidden. The tone of her voice was more real. Guitar strings came out of the fog... 

I guess the concept I often read about here, "using a test track" had become my new litmus test on whether my system was improving. It was inadvertent, but I think I'll default to this approach more consistently moving forward, going back to a few tracks that have proven to be challenging with the current system and giving them a go when a new component gets added. 

Yes, I know... nothing radical here. But would welcome how many of you benchmark improvements in your own systems! 

bluethinker

Showing 1 response by macg19

macg19
973 posts
 

@baylinor +1

Bluethinker - I tried to look at your virtual system but it is blank. That might help with getting advice here from those way more knowledgeable than myself.

I learned the hard way that the wrong tube amp paired with a non-tube friendly speaker (or vice-versa) can be an expensive mistake.

Be wary of the cable-chase - you need decent cables to progress, but significant gains can be made without spending silly money on the right used cable (safest bet in used audio IMO, pretty hard to destroy cables). As a recent example (only), a used Voodoo power cable and Acoustic Zen speaker cables bested all previous purchases. Both examples were from recommendations by fellow AG members. (thank you!)

Lastly, use good reference material - tracks you know well, and don't rely on a quick a/b test. Take time - 3 days later you might just turn your head and think wow, never heard that before, and I like it...that's a good indication you are going in the right direction. 

 

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