And like said atmasphere any good speakers is able to do imaging well by design and by acoustics knowledge used to pair and optimize the room /speakers acoustics.
Without acoustics basic applied in any room speakers dont work optimally ...
Maybe critical listening skills are bad?
In another thread about how to A/B compare speakers for a home I was thinking to myself, maybe the skills a reviewer may use to convey pros and cons of a speaker to readers is a bad skill to use when we evaluate hardware and gear?
I'm not against science, or nuance at all. I was just thinking to myself, do I really want to spend hours A/B testing and scoring a speaker system I want to live with?
I do not actually. I think listening for 2 days to a pair of speakers, and doing the same to another pair I need to focus first on what made me happy. Could I listen to them for hours? Was I drawn to spend more time with music or was I drawn to writing minutiae down?
And how much does precise imaging really do for my enjoyment by the way? I prefer to have a system that seems endless. As if I'm focusing my eyes across a valley than to have palpable lung sounds in my living room.
Anyway, just a thought that maybe we as consumers need to use a different skill set when buying than reviewers do when selling.
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I don't think you need to spend hours or days comparing 2 sets of speakers in order to figure out which ones you prefer... what I do is I have 4 or 5 musical passages (from different musical genres that I frequently listen to) and that I chose for things like SQ, soundstage clarity, vocal / instrumental clarity, etc. and I play those and alternate between the 2 pairs of speakers. Most times, I have noticed differences / formed preferences within maybe the first 5 minutes or so of careful listening. I have also found that at least half the time the sonic difference between 2 different pairs of speakers is almost instantaneously obvious... then I just need to figure our which sonic presentation my ears prefer... |
Great topic... During the past few years I have reducing my collection, replacing gear, rolling tubes, etc. So I have had the same challenges, thousands of times. To me: A. 'critical listening skills' are just that... critical. When needed, I listen to the attack of a bowed violin, the fingering of a oboe, the plucking Fender bass, or cymbal crass. I listen accuracy of tone and harmonic structure. I listen to decay (is it natural, truncated, over-extended?) I also listen for micro-dynamics (did a flute-players air wobble, or did a tape-splice change the volume of a acoustic guitar?).
Yet, critical listening is for a comparison, and should never be a life-style.
B. the other-side of the coin is the wholistic or gestalt experience eloquently discussed above by so many... I prefer many days of hearing music on new gear (especially speakers), allowing myself to remember this music played on my earlier gear... the result is very satisfying. I know my efforts have paid-off when I relax and truly hear the music. In other words, I am no longer searching for a sound, I can simply let the music come to me...
In my home, critical listening and casual hearing both play a vital role. I hope this is fertile ground... |
+1 @inagroove Although engagement/resonated/satisfying is more important than critical listening, critical listening and engagement are not mutually exclusive. Both critical listening + engagement are used to evaluate components for potential purchase, engagement is what I seek in my everyday use in my audio chain.
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@phusis I agree with you about different types of speakers needing different types of room acoustic treatments. The apogee duetta 2 speakers I own sound better with little to no room treatments, though I do have them 82" from the wall behind them. My dynamic speakers sound too bright without some room treatments. |
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