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What the heck do these terms mean?

I read a lot about audio equipment and some descriptions come up occasionally about the components sound qualities that to me are confusing. Most of the time I regard these descriptions as by someone with little knowledge about audio equipment that are trying to sound impressive.

Most of these terms are used in describing speakers but I have also seen them used on cables, amps , electronics of all sorts etc..
So, can someone help define these common descriptive terms?

1. Treble/ bass is dry- Huh? What does this mean?
2. Treble/bass is wet.- Huh? Again, what does this mean?
3. Organic sounding- Huh, huh?
4. Musical sounding.- What? Compared to non musical sounding?

The last one can be used with just about any description of any component or speaker performance.

There may be more...

ozzy

128x128ozzy
jond's avatar
jond
5,706 posts
 
ozzy the lack of reviewer consensus is why it's good to find a reviewer you like, and stick with that person. That way you get to know their biases and what they mean when they describe something.

In terms of obscure recordings not sure if you stream but these days I can often find the recording a reviewer is using on Qobuz or Tidal.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,939 posts
 
I think those terms are often used to describe differences heard with harmonics. 
fabemond2010
3 posts
 
Like wine.....

mammothguy54's avatar
mammothguy54
935 posts
 
I remember, from the mid-80s, "Chocolate Mid-Range and Butterscotch Highs".  It actually made sense, back then.  It's funny, now.

As long as the hi-fi system sounds good to me, I am satisfied. 
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,313 posts
 

It's all about timbre and the timbral reproduction offered by the system. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/pronunciation/english/timbre

Timbre is what enables us to distinguish a violin from a viola, and a Stradivarius from a Guarneri.  Adjectives to describe the particular timbral reproduction of a given component can be hard to come by, beyond the most obvious ones.  Most languages are fairly impoverished, lexically speaking, on their literal level, so we have recourse to figurative descriptors.  This can easily get out of hand (qv. most wine critics).

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