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Placebo Effect...a good thing?

I'm just a beginner into the world of the high-end (19 year old EE student), but the more I learn about audio and the entire culture surrounding it, I get more and more confused of the goals around creating the "perfect" sound system. I'm not an idiot, and I know that no matter how close an approximation is to the original event, be it vinyl, SACD, CD, multi-channel, or whatever, it is still only going to be an approximation. So then why try to recreate the original event at all? My best guess, and belief, is to capture the "magic" of that event in your living room. I've been reading a lot of articles by various giants in the audio field, and there has been a lot of talk recently about "snake-oil" in the audio industry. That is, no one can tell the difference in a double-blind test between two similar componenets; their guesses will be no better than chance. The only real differences people hear are due to the Placebo Effect: their brains generate a response, perhaps truthful in their own minds, that two similar products have completely different sounds. My question is, is that a bad thing? My experience from this comes from a power cord dilemma. My father auditioned a power cord from JPS Labs for his CDP. After it had burned-in a little, he asked me to listen to the difference and see what I heard. At first listen, I heard less brightness in the treble, and an overall ease of presentation that was not there before. So he arranged a simple double-blind test. It stumped me. I chose the cheap power cord, although the differences to me were so slight, they were near irrelevant. We discussed it for a while, and he ended up buying the cord anyways. Why? Because HE ENJOYED the system more with it in than out. Maybe it didn't effect the sound. WHO CARES? The point of a stereo is to listen to music. If you buy a 15,000 dollar line stage and you listen to music 15 more minutes a day because of it, isn't that an improvement? That's why I laugh everytime someone makes fun of a "tubehead." "Extremely high even-order distortions" they say. If you listen to music more because of a purchase you made, then you made a good purchase. If you don't, you didn't. PERIOD. I just get a crack out of all this finger pointing. Tubes vs. solid state. Vinyl vs. CD. If you buy a turntable to break out all the LPs you have sitting in your closet, and find you prefer the sound of analogue to digital, GOOD FOR YOU. I delight in people enjoying music, be it through a $500,000 wacko system, or a $150 JVC boom box. And besides, it makes me feel good to have a nice looking set of cables tying up my system. They may not sound any better (which I think they do), but I DO listen to more music because of them. Just a thought.
hueske
avguygeorge
2,300 posts
 
Been in this a few weeks now;
For Angela; Going to an amplified event isn't the thing one would use for a comparison. You would be listening to mostly their amps, and their speakers. Even if they may have a million and 1/2 watts. Un-amplified events would be the goal.

On recreating in one's living room; It's the only choice/ ---Can't fit LSO in my living room, or ACDC's drum set. Can't afford for John Williams to come over and play the guitar.

---Where's my placebo?? Where'd I leave that sucker? Can't remember to take my Ginkoba (to help my memory)
angela100
435 posts
 
hey, George, they say that MEMORY is the SECOND thing to go!

.....i forgot what the first thing is......
gregg_c
36 posts
 
Hueske, two comments: 1) You have excellent writing skills. I enjoyed reading your post. 2) You hit the nail on the head. If your deriving pleasure from your purchase and it makes you want to listen to more music, who cares if you can prove it is "better?"

I hope my two little boys are as astute as you are when they are 19. Best of luck!

Gregg
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lak
4,540 posts
 
I think after some people have been into audio for a while they become fixated upon tweaking a system here and there, upgrading components, spending large sums of money in the process. Their goal might be to create what they believe is a near to perfect system (in their mind) in there home. When they have completed their mission, something else new comes along and we are into a vicious spiral that might never stop. If that’s the way one wants to spend their money and they don’t have other habits that drain the finances (tobacco,drugs, excessive alcohol, gambling, etc.) then I say no harm, no foul! (DON'T FORGET THE WIFE ACCEPTANCE FACTOR):-)
p_mmk
70 posts
 
Great Post Hueske! A civil discussion on Double Blind, testing imagine that. Lak EE= Electrical Engineering something I know nothing about.

Anyway, some of the best comments on this topic I've read. I agree w/ you completely Hueske. I think Dbw1 hit the nail on the head. That "what if..." get you eveytime.

I have been very divided on this topic. The logical left brain side says if you can't pick it out in a properly run double blind test the differences can't be there. Being on the marketing/sales side of the pharmaceutical biz (no boos)where many studies are done this way biases me. However, my creative right brain says the opposite.

Macm that is the best explanation of why we may not hear the difference immediately. It even appeals to my left brain. So what if...

Paul
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