Not another boring audio review, I don't set out to write a me-too story the world isn't short of. Even if it's controversial, I want to write something of my own. Read with a grain of salt I ask of you. I'm not here to please anyone, anyway, nobody can please everyone. We are living in a polarized world as we've never been, learn to live with the diversity of views with a caveat, and don't believe all the information and reviews on the net not without due diligence. There are good and bad advice, good and bad tips, as always.
When sound is concerned, the absolute result counts. No if and but. I'm a practical guy. As opposed to linear thinking which employs a series of sequential steps, the description by itself renders thinking inside a box. It limits the possibility. Because they measured well, they should sound well. Because the speaker placement is well ratioed to the room, it should sound best. By rationalizing the system cost, the sound should be optimized and etc. It's common that a cable comes along that elevated the sound to the next level and throws off the cost ratio equilibrium. What then? It becomes a critical component and a cost component. These rationales have no place in sound. It's okay that you don't intend to blow the budget, don't be cowed down to the system cost ratio for it has no bearing on the sound, to say the least. To those who insist on measurements, measure the sound not before you've attained a good one. And most certainly not with individual component measurements, I tell you why. Equipment that measures right, a room that measures well, what is the odd the in-room sound is good? Are you serving your head or hearing?
Fresh from the maiden Gelombang 2022, Kuala Lumpur, I'd give the show a thumb. Overall, the sound in all exhibitor rooms was largely devoid of standing waves. As it is, we go to audio shows to check out what's new, the current trending, to catch up with long-lost friends and to find out our fellow audiophiles' system progress. A visit to follow up probably?
I spent an hour listening to a live show at Gelombang 2022 Kuala Lumpur on a hot lazy afternoon. Kind of odd listening on a bright-lighted afternoon, that's why I listen in the dark for the mood. The sound emitted from PA speakers, the grainy highs, dull, lacking life, and the mids weren't rich as I'd like, I observed the sound tuned at the request of the performing artist and was glad to find we were on the page on how the sound should be sound. Respect. Despite poor tonality, I immensely enjoyed the performances and found my body rocking along to the tunes. The secret is immediacy. Get-up-and-go, no dargging. I bet many audiophiles don't really mind immediacy because they listen to mainly succulent vocals.
Time to complete my visit, I moved on to the showrooms and couldn't help with the stark contrast of live music against listening to the boxes. The realism of musicality has left the room. I was struggling to settle down. This discontentment diminishes along with time, isn't this real with our audio passion? We're happy living with a little more highs, a richer mid and a beefen low or in any of the combinations of those. The findings I was able to take away from the live show are the reverbs as in harmonic distortions, directness and ambience. Take these elements away, the sound losses its charm. I object to an acoustically dead room, some championed that you should listen to the direct sound from the speakers aka an anechoic chamber fashion. This is unreal because we've never lived in an environment like that. I don't listen to sound effects for music appreciation, that's me. Play classical music if you will, the purity of tone and music rightness will heighten your listening skill. Dare I say classical music is the highest form of music composition?
The fact that we were able to accustom ourselves to the sound of our system over time. Every system has its strength and weakness, we must learn to embrace the differences and cherish the colour of the sound. We learn to appreciate how others voice their sound, an art in its own right if they do it right, of course. New audio purchases excite us. Through them, we keep the passion burning. Not to undermine small tweaks, a small step to a big improvement in sound.
OK, the recordings are black art. Aren't we listening to the recordings more than anything else? Even on some tracks within the same studio recorded album sounds different. I much preferred AAD or ADD format recordings over the modern DDD format recordings for the analogue-ness. To illustrate, they don't produce holographic Harry Belafonte back in Carnegie Hall album-like anymore these days. The wonderful ambience as if you were there. Cinematic picturesque versus laser sharp projection, sure, this is the sound of your preference. Whenever I work on a system, I always fall back to live music as the cornerstone of sound, but classical music is my gold standard. The higher the resolution, the soul-less the sound, and resolution is the current trend of audio. I prefer the texture, the warmth and the adequate resolution, take Harry Belafonte back in Carnegie Hall for example. What's not to be liked? Enough said, your mileage may vary.
In short, it's through the recordings we distinguish the character of a system. The way we set up a system in our room contributes to the unique sound of our system. No system sounds the same even with the same electronics and speakers. This goes to show that the room is a colourant. Different philharmonic hall different sound, makes sense to you? Managing your room goes a long way to extract the best sound from a system, even more so than the equipment sometimes.
