pacific_island_audio

Responses from pacific_island_audio

In Whose Ears Do You Trust Most?
Yes, good point Shadorne. I should clarify "disinterested" as someone who has enough experience to make sound judgments, but with no vested interest in a particular system, and therefore able to be more objective in the evaluation. 
In Whose Ears Do You Trust Most?
I trust my ears, but only to a point. We all must trust our own ears, yet it is far too easy to lose objectivity—we need external validation from other disinterested ears, and from empirical measurements. Both are important to confirm or disconfir... 
Speakers for an installed system.
You might consider omnidirectional speakers. You get excellent dispersion for better balance and good sound quality throughout the room. On a budget, check out the Mirage Omnisat or OMD-5 with a sub. Reviews have been very good. Test results are a... 
Subwoofer Advice For Stereo Music System, Not HT
Definitely go with a sealed sub—better damping and hopefully a lower Q. Don't overlook kits. Sealed sub kits are available for well under $1k, very easy to assemble, and will give you higher performance for your dollar.Powered subs have line level... 
3-d sounding headphones.....
If I understand your question, there are two factors coming into play. First is the recording. Binaural recordings may help the imaging, or other recordings where the microphones were set up specifically for headphone or earphone playback. The oth... 
Headphones vs loudspeakers
A small (single) driver can do many things so much better than larger drivers. Less mass means faster response times, less resonance (ringing and/or stored energy), and because the sound is being delivered very close to the ears, SPL levels don't ... 
dynamic range -the good and bad?
It does sound like many recordings of concerti have the soloist separately and more closely miked. This changes the perception of presence, not only making the soloist sound louder than would be in person, but also sound closer relative to the orc... 
dynamic range -the good and bad?
To my knowledge there isn't a single classical recording that has been compressed. That's why classical CDs or LPs usually require the volume knob to be turned up so you can hear the very soft parts, and then, the very loud parts really hit you, j... 
Source or speaker
Perhaps "when the signal is there," it's the recording, not the playback medium. I find recording quality is far more important than LP or CD.And speaking of a distortion perspective, consider the contributions of the stylus, cartridge, platter an... 
Has anyone had success converting friends?
Nope. I have a friend who is a major musicophiliac. He listens to more music than I do, has close to 3000 CDs, hundreds of DVDs, gets all wet over high-def TV, and yet, he's perfectly satisfied with his satellites and "bass module" audio. Go figur... 
fine tuning speaker placement
Frequency variation with small changes in position is normal in the high frequencies. If all you have is the 3.6 kHz dip, you're doing very well. The front and side wall spacing you've calculated should be working nicely for you. I doubt half way ... 
Speaker position question?
Yes, symmetry is important. You might try toe-in that focusses the on-axis just behind the listening position, rather than in front. But, this won't fix your center image problem. Try setting the balance at the preamp—a mere quarter or half dB cou... 
Hi end ear buds
There is nothing worse than cheap ear buds, but good earphones have changed my opinion about personal monitoring and listening. With the soft, ear-conforming flex sleeves that seal well, quality earphones are comfortable, provide excellent ambient... 
Second harmonics distortion?
Chances are that you would not notice second harmonic distortion until it gets extreme and then it would sound like an octave divider. That guitar overdrive sound is more than just second harmonic, it's a whole spectrum of harmonics at very high l... 
speakers for classical music
Loudness is certainly subjective. 80 dB is loud, but not LOUD. If I were trying to have a conversation, 75 dB is too loud. For rock 80 dB is mezzo-piano. It's all relative.I have thought about taking an SPL meter to the symphony many times, never ...