Dynamics at lower volume

[dr.karaan]

when i lower the volume of the speakers, the dynamics and the punch is all gone what to do to make it sing even at lower volume

 

[tuff]

Equalizers work well.

 

[rikhav]

Or loudness function if that option is there.

 

[Deleted member 15865]

There was a recent thread on the topic that went into five pages. A lot of theories and solutions were provided. Doubt much remains uncovered. And I doubt the FMs will converge onto one reason on this. So it’s upto oneself to choose and/discover what works.

P.S. Though I initiated the thread, over the last few months my sound priorities changed significantly and low level clarity (and other audiophile considerations) got substituted by ‘emotionality and musicality’ as prime objectives. And I’m glad that happened.

What makes a system sound good at low volumes?

Firstly, I couldn’t figure out which forum to post this under, so posted here. Kindly move to a more appropriate forum if there’s one. I want to know what goes into making a system sound good (by that I mean clear, detailed and balanced, without losing certain frequencies) even at lower...

www.hifivision.com

 

[Beast_of_burden]

when i lower the volume of the speakers, the dynamics and the punch is all gone what to do to make it sing even at lower volume

The Loudness button found on Japanese integrated amplifiers was precisely meant for late night quiet listening. Ofcourse it's a tone control and purists scoff at those. The Loudness button on the Denon PMA 1500 is very well done, I believe it's a parametric eq applied over a certain range of bass frequencies.

A 2A3 SET with Klipsch speakers does this rather well. Klipsch are rather well endowed in the dynamics department, as we all know. I suspect Tannoy or Triangle would also be good at this.

 

[dr.karaan]

Hi Dr karaan , for two stereo ad simple 8 inches passive subwoofer & radiator , you get good amount of low frequency , 2 channel , 2 , eight Inches passive subwoofer each channel

yes this may work for low frequency

 

[thedude]

The Loudness button found on Japanese integrated amplifiers was precisely meant for late night quiet listening. Ofcourse it's a tone control and purists scoff at those. The Loudness button on the Denon PMA 1500 is very well done, I believe it's a parametric eq applied over a certain range of bass frequencies.

A 2A3 SET with Klipsch speakers does this rather well. Klipsch are rather well endowed in the dynamics department, as we all know. I suspect Tannoy or Triangle would also be good at this.

I had experience with loudness feature only on luxman 505UX MK2 and it was bad. Never used it

 

[anirban420]

when i lower the volume of the speakers, the dynamics and the punch is all gone what to do to make it sing even at lower volume

Auditory perception of Human does not work equally for all the frequencies. By default, we perceive lower frequencies, i.e. Bass at less intensity, it is also true to some extent to high frequencies (Treble) also. Our listening sensitivity is mostly concentrated on the mid-range. For this reason, the dynamic range of music hampers during low volume listening. Hence, some gadgets use the "Loudness" function, which boosts low and high ends of the frequency spectrum a bit at a lower volume. The effect gradually diminishes when the volume is increased. For more information, please google "Perceived Loudness" or visit Wikipedia here.

 

[dr.karaan]

Auditory perception of Human does not work equally for all the frequencies. By default, we perceive lower frequencies, i.e. Bass at less intensity, it is also true to some extent to high frequencies (Treble) also. Our listening sensitivity is mostly concentrated on the mid-range. For this reason, the dynamic range of music hampers during low volume listening. Hence, some gadgets use the "Loudness" function, which boosts low and high ends of the frequency spectrum a bit at a lower volume. The effect gradually diminishes when the volume is increased. For more information, please google "Perceived Loudness" or visit Wikipedia here.

ok so if there is no loudness function in my amp, i hv to deal with my current scenario. yes but ur explanation makes sense.

 

[anirban420]

if there is no loudness function in my amp, i hv to deal with my current scenario.

You can use tone control, if available. Increase the bass and treble in low volume. Bass pot should be higher than the Treble pot. Lower the volume, larger the increment of bass/treble from centre position of the pots. Alternately you can also use an equalizer in your chain

 

[Passive_audio_enthusiast]

This is a question which baffled me always. The question is is the highs and lows not strong enough at this loudness level to reach us like the midrange or is it a psychoacoustic effect that we don’t perceive the bass and treble in relation to the midrange at this loudness level.

If it’s really the former, it can be solved by having loudness as it can compensate the decay.
But the problem with loudness and just tone control is they are restricted to a very narrow band. A narrow band where most popular frequencies of instruments we are familiar lies. Theoretically it would not compensate the problem in a linear way.

But our mileage varies with what the speaker and what the room alters before it reaches us. As a last variable our hearing is important. Humans are more sensitive to mid range due to evolutionary reasons. So when hearing ability degrades over time, the last thing to stay would be always the midrange. So a younger person in 15-20 age group may perceive it more dynamic than me(us?)

 

[anirban420]

But the problem with loudness and just tone control is they are restricted to a very narrow band. A narrow band where most popular frequencies of instruments we are familiar lies. Theoretically it would not compensate the problem in a linear way

Tone control or Loudness button is a makeshift approch to compensate the nonliner auditory perceptibility of human. A true linear reproduction system is impossible to make because this non-linearity varies between individuals, also with the age and race of human.

So a younger person in 15-20 age group may perceive it more dynamic than me(us?)

Yes. Younger humans are capable of hearing more dynamic sound. Over the age, perception of upper frequecies suffers first, because it is somewhat "useless" to us. Our auditory perception is mostly sensitive to those frequencies in which we communicate, and to those frequencies in which those animals bark/growl from which humans are threatened.