I like my system flat, no tone controls, no eq..........what is your preference, and why.


A poster on another thread here has encouraged me to post this. Been an audio professional and a hobbyist for 50 tears. I had my time with eq, tone controls ( even reverb and time delay units ). I am currently at the point where I need nothing to alter the recordings I listen to, nor to compensate for room aberrations. I have spent lots of money on equipment , had equipment on loan, of all types ( pretty much a bit of everything, for the most part ) and I have tweaked, and tweaked, and tweaked. I have recently tooled down to a much simpler and less expensive system, and I find I am the happiest I have ever been. Might be my amp, my passive unit, my speakers...…….yes, all of that. Yes, all of that is important, but it is the system synergy that has made me realize that changing anything with an eq or tone controls took me further from that synergy, that balance. I accept, and enjoy my recordings for what they are. Some better than others ( sq ). But, I am enjoying the brilliance of all the studio work put into them,  exactly as they were intended to be listened to. This is me. I do not believe in right or wrong, better or worse, newer vs older, yada yada yada. I have believed, and have stated, particularly in this hobby, to each his own. I hear fuse differences, power cable differences, etc. Some believe I was born a bat. I am happy of my gift, not just hearing well, but through the years, teaching myself " what it is I like ", which is the key for most of us. I am not sure where this thread will go, but I put it out there, and hope folks will drop in, even though much of it might have been stated before in other threads. Thank you A'gon family, be well, and Enjoy ! MrD.
mrdecibel

Showing 1 response by nonoise

A very refreshing take on this hobby, and most appreciated. I used to use tone controls to tame and tailor the sound and was never satisfied until I hit on the right combo of gear and associated tweaks (fuses) and now, for the foreseeable future, I’m content.

My system, like yours, is pretty simple and basic and I can actually appreciate the better recordings out there. Their realism can be striking, which leads me to feel I hit the nail on the head this time. Lessor recordings that I used to enjoy sound a bit off so I keep in mind that it’s just that, the recording, that is at fault, and not my system. Going back to the better recordings is all it takes to bring that big old smile to my face.

The urge to tinker is still there but if I ignore it long enough, it will subside. 😄

All the best,
Nonoise