Does your system sound better than most demo's?

In one of the rooms at the recent Chicago show, a dealer and an equipment rep were talking as if they were presenters at a brain surgery seminar about how the rep made the CD that was about to be slid into a $40k CDP. The dealer summed up the obviously planned conversation saying with great authority… so were talking about integrating pro equipment valued at well over $100k to transfer this music from your turntable to this CD we’re about to hear… the rep smiles… pushes the play button… and seconds into the music a wave of people hit the door.

Sales involve a bit of showmanship but some dealers forget the sophistication of their buyers, especially in audio. Many years ago I witnessed a salesman at a high end salon doing his level best to convince a potential buyer of what he was hearing compared to what he was hearing. It was just the two of them up front and I was at the back but well within the better listening area which allowed me the luxury of moving around as the salesman spoke. What was described as a very wide and deep soundstage with great dynamics and extension had all the size effect of a TV screen. I had to bite my lip and walk out before the urge to say anything overwhelmed me.

The poor customer just sat there, nodding with his head but his face betrayed the motion and I think the salesman had a sale that day. We're talking Martin Logan speakers and AR separates with exotic cabling in an optimum set up in a room dedicated to stereo and it sounded like crap. So when I hear of problematic room set ups at audio shows I take that with the smallest grain of salt as there are others at the very same shows under the very same conditions that can sound fantastic. I believe that near field listening can pretty much help in determining the potential of most systems but in the end, you'll never really know until you hear it in your system.

As to B_limo's point, yes, I experience that most of the time. Even when I hear something markedly better that would require a sacrifice, of sorts, I'm quite content with what I have, in the context of where I listen, and wonder what all the fuss is about.

All the best,
Nonoise

Funny, had just that same conversation with a friend leaving the NYC audio show last weekend. We're both running relatively rarified – and very different – gear, but both adjourned to the bar thinking that there really wasn’t anything we’d heard that we would trade for what we had.

I have always found that surprising. I’ve been to three large shows in NYC, and have never really heard anything that blew me away, including any of the $1/2 million+ room-bruising monsters. Last weekend, thought there was really only one setup that came even close, and it was not the one I would have expected (although it did leave me with an abiding infatuation with Raidho speakers). Never did put my finger on why, but the why of it all has come to concern me a whole lot less. All in all – biased or no – just about the best reaction I could hope for. Hope it keeps up.

Perhaps the reality is just this.... there is essentially NO correlation between cost of a stereo system and the performance of the system... at least after a certain level.

I have heard (at shows) $100-200,000 systems (dozens of them)that, on average, do not sound any better than did the average of the 25K systems (again dozens of them). And some 10-15K systems equaled or bested some 200K systems. There are limits to this... but generally, after a 20K system or so... there is no correlation between cost and sound. Cost is, at that point, not correlated any longer to performance... or at best a 2-3% (subjective) improvement doubles the cost. A typical 25K system is 97% of the way of a 50K system and 94% of the way to a 100K system... something like that. And that is on the average... so much variation occurs that again... no correlation.

A couple of comments and observations.

I have always thought that show exhibitors would do better to present modest systems. If a room is showing very pricey gear with unobtainium cables and lots of room treatments and isolation tweaks and whatnot, it had better sound damn good. And as many of you have remarked, it usually doesn't. So what impression does that leave the show-goer with regarding those brands? But if you are getting good sound out of a modest system, you've got my attention.

In the best case, you might get 60% - 70% of audiophiles to agree that a system sounds really good. So it's understandable that some people might be thrilled while you are puzzled.

I think my system sounds good most of the time. I've rarely heard good sound at any dealership. I've heard disappointing sound in some audiophiles' dedicated, custom-built rooms. I've listened to many systems whose owners were proud of the sound but which left me cold. Just as I'm sure that many people find my system unremarkable.

I'm not sure what the takeaway is from all of this, but it's always useful to remember that what we like in audio is very subjective and personal. Different strokes indeed.