Reference

Sidebar 4: Acid Tests for Musically Refined Electronics

My colleagues have noticed over the years that, with refined audio electronics built to be musically satisfying,

• The worst room acoustics can be conquered or at least greatly ameliorated.

• Music can be played effortlessly at extreme SPLs without ear pain or stress (see my "Earlash" in the June 1995 Studio Sound).

• Threshold shift is absent—when a 130dB peak SPL sound stops, birdsong is as audible as if nothing loud had happened.

• In people with previously damaged ears, tinnitus is not triggered at SPLs up to 30dB greater than would have triggered it formerly.

• At any reasonable sound level, you can listen for hours without "listener fatigue."

The list continues with the familiar observations of audiophiles: revelations of unsuspected shades of tonal nuance and sonic detail; appearance of sounds not heard before; what sounded like a piano turning out to be a harpsichord; etc. With skilled listeners, the changes have little or nothing to do with the common pitfalls of listening tests sternly mentioned by some HLOs, such as fractional loudness differences, or because a piece of music is still being "learned."—Ben Duncan