Amir and Blind Testing

For those who are interested, Paul McGowan has put together a video on the PS Audio forum that explains what the P12 regenerator does and how to measure it correctly.

It was completely predictable that PS Audio's damage control video would miss the point.

These companies always make claims that attaching your gear to their product "dramatically improves the SOUND of X, Y and Z in your system."

But they never DEMONSTRATE any measurable - or audible - change in the SIGNAL COMING OUT OF GEAR ATTACHED TO THEIR PRODUCT.

It doesn't matter much if you are "correcting" for problems that are either generally corrected for in the design of lots of gear (e.g. amps) or that are not audible in the first place.

THAT was the point of Amirm's review.  Amirm showed that, yes, the power plant DID regenerate and regulate the power IF YOU JUST MEASURE at the power plant.  The question was "But what BENEFIT are we likely to see when you attach an amp?"    That's what Amirm did, showing there was essentially no benefit likely to make any audible difference.

This is, of course, precisely the issue the new PS Audio video avoided.   They just did the usual "Look how our device alters the power" and then IMPLIED that this has the audible benefits they claim.  It's that last bit they are missing.

Prof, with all due respect, Amir's approach still assumes that he is measuring everything that matters in terms of ultimate sound quality. I think that is unlikely to be a valid assumption. If Amir's assumption of perfect measurements is invalid, then the importance of human listening cannot be excluded from any evaluation of a product designed to improve the sound quality of reproduced music. 

Amir talks up the value of unbiased listening tests, but then admits that he is clearly biased and unwilling to go to the trouble of setting up any unbiased listening tests himself. That is the bit that is missing from most of Amir's reviews, including his P12 review. 

Amir's approach still assumes that he is measuring everything that matters in terms of ultimate sound quality

I don't see that, he's measuring the DUT and seeing if it does what the manufacturers claim it does. 

Amir talks up the value of unbiased listening tests, but then admits that he is clearly biased and unwilling to go to the trouble of setting up any unbiased listening tests himself.

Why would he set up BDX testing of a component that doesn't do what's claimed? It isn't his place to conduct a DBX but those who claim the component does things the measurements clearly show isn't possible. 

People are missing the point of these reviews. Amir tests the Product, shows the measurements are the same or different from like products or engineering standards . Explains hearing thresholds and says in HIS OPINION there likely is no or little difference in music reproduction and places the product on a scale of similarly measured products. It's not his job to tell you what to buy or if you can hear a difference but if you claim to hear a difference in similarly measured products the only way YOU can rule out YOUR inherent biases is with a properly controlled test.