Paladin
-
Posts
114 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Forums
Events
Gallery
Posts posted by Paladin
-
-
Real physics shows real vinyl is better than 2600kbps. That's 30 bits at the molecular level x 44.1 KHz (just to be fair, and because it's really there) x 2 channels. I beleive it. That's why I laugh when I see/hear a 1411 kbps CD called ...
Interesting Honestly...that makes a lot of sense. IMHO vinyl played on good, properly set up gear does sound "better" than CD played on equivical digital gear. I can only attribute that to the fact that in some way the recorded audio sample on a vinyl LP has more of the original information from the source stored on it than is captured via PCM.
-
Goodness! That's an amazing set of articles by PWK! I spent most of my lunch reading them. Thanks for (re)posting them Gil!
I might look into seeing if these still exist in our archive (and why wouldn't they). Perhaps this is something we could add to the website for interested people to obtain.
-
Peak limiting compression like that article about the Rush example is terrible...
I remember liking Matchbox20 when they first came out in the 90's and got their CD. Just about every song was a good one except that the CD was mixed "louder is better".
I remember thinking it was bad in the car...I tried it on my dad's rig at the time composed of some Martin Logan Re-Quests and a Mark Levinson #336...sounded like pure garbage...white noise. I then took it to my system since At the time I was using an old Phase Linear AC-400 Amp that has LED peak meters on it. They proved to my dispair when I played the CD when they'd just hit the top and stay there. Crazy.
I wish the practice would stop...
Probably my favorite example of a good "quiet" CD is Dire Straits "Brothers In Arms" it's still one of my favorite albums to evaluate audio gear.
-
I forget what the bit rate of PCM is exactly but this might help:
From: http://www.puredigitalaudio.org/digitalcompression/faqs/WhatIsDigitalCompression.shtml
Audio Compact Disks store the audio data in files on the disk. The audio data is in a PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) format. Each minute of recording time consumes about 9 MB (Megabytes) of file storage space. A three minute song would occupy about 27 MB of file storage space, and a 5 minute song would occupy about 45 MB of file storage space. Not really that bad, a 650 Megabyte Compact disc can contain up to 74 minutes of PCM audio.
I mathed based on those numbers (using 1024KB = 1MB)... I got 1536kbps for PCM.
I agree with you too...mp3 is good for sitting at a computer or driving in a car. On a good home system however...the compression loss becomes apparent. MP3 and other high compression algorithims take away data for audio frequencies outside the range of "normal" human hearing, it also removes data for complex blended sounds that are hard for the ear to distinguish (meaning we don't really notice they're gone). However the point of "Hi-Fi" audio is to accurately reproduce the recording from the data collected in the studio/recording area...compression defeats that goal.
-
This is a really interesting discussion. Especially from people who obviously like the (Klipsch) horn sound.
While I'm fairly young...I've been into high end audio for at least 10 years...due in large part to my father's interest in high-end audio.
I've listened to a lot of speakers, a lot of different speakers. My dad has owned ribbon, planar magnetic, and electrostat speakers. That doesn't begin to list all the types I've heard in "boutique" audio shops including many horn loaded speakers including Klipsch.
All of them had strengths and weaknesses. And I think it all comes down to what you think sounds good.
I have Klipsch speakers (obviously) and the sound the horns impart is unique. All I can say is that I have a pair of RSX-5's (the compact Cinema-10 Reference series monitors) and they are amazing speakers. They sound like no other speaker I've heard in that size and I like what they do. These speakers have challenged my definition of what an audio system can and/or should sound like. They have also revealed what I can only call "inaccuracies" in the high frequencies of congruent (non-horn loaded) speakers that I have owned for many years. I was a percussionist at one time in school...I've never EVER heard cymbals, bells (aka Glockenspiel), high notes on pianos, things like this sound as good as I have through other speakers in the RSX-5's class...or on speakers that cost double, triple, or some exponential factor of the price range of the RSX-5 with better upstream electronics behind them than I can afford.
So I suppose they might be "colored" but not simply because they are horn loaded on the top end frequencies. Speaker Cabinents, Ports on them, grilles even...ALSO placement, room acoustics, things in rooms, can all "color" the sound no matter what type of technology is employed. It's how that sound is colored when it gets to our ears and if we like it that is important. In that I certainly disagree that Horn-loaded speakers are at any disadvantage to any other type of speaker. Unless you just can't decide what color of finish to choose...lol
I don't know about any other audiophiles (I noticed that's almost a bad word around here) like myself, but if someone claiming to be knowledgable about audio made a blanket stament discounting horn speakers based on the assumption of coloration I'd be tempted to show them my copy of PWK's little yellow BS badge
-
Hmm...I was just paruzing the forums looking for anything I might need
to address and this thread caught my eye...not because of any
administration task but the topic was generally interesting.
I read most of the posts...and I suppose that it all really depends on
what you like to hear. However I really liked the post by
mobile homeless
on the previous page to this one. I thought that was quite an eloquent
argument and explanation as to why one might chose not to have tone
controls in one's system.
Personally I agree with a minimalist approach. Adding more circuits to
the singal path seems to only cause distortion or coloration unless you
are using gear of the highest quality...I don't think I've heard any
gear with tone controls that I liked better when using said controls.
In my experience truly well designed speakers and gear, properly set
up, in a properly adjusted room, and properly chosen speakers coupled
with a subwoofer if/when necessary...(ie buy speakers with lower bass
response if that's the point...not blast the bass and switch in the
loudness on a pair of budget bookshelves with 5" drivers...they're
never really going to do 40Hz if they were designed to roll off below
72)...do more than
any tone controls can.
I know many use the controls or EQ's to dial in a recording...and it
makes more sense with digital, I mean with CD you kind of just have to
go with how it's mixed and
recorded or try with different DACs. However I know analog guys that
have whole lists of tone arm and cartridge adjustments that they dial
in for different LP's...just adjusting stylus angles can have huge
changes in frequency response of the recording...
Well...for me if tone controls are available on a piece of gear I audition
in my listening system...I generally don't use them and set them to
whatever is neutral (0, "noon" position, etc...) Currently my Aragon
18k doesn't have tone controls...and neither does my father's Chenin
pre. In fact for a while we went so far as to remove the necessity of a
pre from his system by using a Wadia CD player, which has the
ability to adjust the volume of it's outputs and can be coupled
directly to any amp.
However crossover tone controls on a speaker are a different story.
Often they must be set to some setting. I have an old pair of ESS
speakers that have Heil top drivers and they have a "brilliance"
control on the crossover...it only has three positions...and I do
adjust it to soft. There's no way I can get around it without removing
and replacing the crossover anyway.
Anyway I only take this approach on a system set up to provide a good
2.0 listening experience. On most smaller systems for general ambient
music I'll jigger with tone controls.
-
Probably someone that has experience with our in wall products in the architectural forum can help you.
Topic moved to Architectural...
-
Moved to Modifications...
-
Yeah, I think you'll enjoy using your HT setup for gaming. There are a lot of games that are even set up in surround sound. Looks like you might like the Final Fantasy games since your avatar is one of the characters. I know FF-9 (even back on the playstation) was encoded for 5.1 surround.
I've been using an Arcam Xeta-2 Surround processor and Aragon Amp/Pre in my HT for a while and with a lot of different speakers: e.g. Klipsch, ESS-Heil, A/D/S, Boston, Etc... Never had a lick of trouble (related to a console). Heck even a Super Nintendo sounds good in stereo with the surrounds switched out...lol.
Have fun gaming
PWK, BS, and Snake Oil
in 2-Channel Home Audio
Posted
About the BS badge...I have a little replica one with a card with the following info:
"Paul W. Klipsch was known for having many eccentricites, including his famous "Bulls#!t" motto. He started using the slogan after reading a competitor's loudspeaker ad that made claims of supposed "breakthroughs". After that, he wore a "Bulls#!t" button behind his lapel and showed it to anyone he felt was making an outlandish claim".
I think it's a pretty cool story. I suppose the nameless competitor was like you guys said, Bose. Also, on the Engineering level of the Klipsch building in Indy, there is a mural on the wall which depicts PWK wearing the button on his coat.