Hello friends,
When it comes to selecting audio gear for our listening tastes, there can be myriad permutations and combinations in any budget. The higher the budget, the more complex it can get. While avoiding every mistake is not possible, there could be common pitfalls, which can look obvious to the experienced hand, but not so much to the new entrant and can be avoided. This can help him/her in saving money, energy and the frustration that can build up in building a system that was not sounding right.
This is a general purpose thread to sort of highlight the pitfalls which can be avoided while going for 2-ch (or 2.1) audio gear. I don’t use a home theater for movies, so I can’t add anything there. From my limited experience with 2-channel audio, I can add a few pointers to start with.
Relying heavily on reviewers opinion: While magazines like Stereophile, What hi-fi, sound on sound etc can be good resources for initial shortlisting, exercising caution while taking their reviews and star ratings would be a good practice. It’s possible that reviewers can be biased to a specific manufacturer with whom they have a financial agreement and they can use much more expensive gear to evaluate a mid-fi component (eg:- $500 speakers being hooked onto $5000 worth of electronics). Since the evaluation of audio is subjective, the reviewer’s state of mind, his tastes and expectations all can skew the opinion
While auditioning at the dealer: While it’s arguable that the dealer’s demo room might be well treated acoustically, and the components are going to be different than ours, thus sound quality can be different, it’s the best possible way to get an understanding of the sound signature of each component (other than listening at a friend’s place or better still, a home audition).
Spending very less time auditioning. Around 30-45 mins should be ideal per combination of amplifier and speakers. Also disable any sort of DSP on the electronics chain while listening. Dealer’s are likely to switch ON equalizers to make the sound more exciting than it is normally.
Forming an opinion of the new system too soon: Normally it takes around a month of continuous listening to adjust to the new sound signature. Some call it burn-in of components and some term it psycho-acoustic in nature. Whatever you call it, give some time before jumping to conclusion and selling the new gear which you painstakingly put together.
Being a newbie in this hobby, my experience is also limited, but I’m sure respected members will be able to pitch in more ideas here. The unfortunate folks who are located in remote places with no access to good dealers to demo their gear of choice will have lesser options, so these pointers might not help them.
Best wishes and happy listening
When it comes to selecting audio gear for our listening tastes, there can be myriad permutations and combinations in any budget. The higher the budget, the more complex it can get. While avoiding every mistake is not possible, there could be common pitfalls, which can look obvious to the experienced hand, but not so much to the new entrant and can be avoided. This can help him/her in saving money, energy and the frustration that can build up in building a system that was not sounding right.
This is a general purpose thread to sort of highlight the pitfalls which can be avoided while going for 2-ch (or 2.1) audio gear. I don’t use a home theater for movies, so I can’t add anything there. From my limited experience with 2-channel audio, I can add a few pointers to start with.
Relying heavily on reviewers opinion: While magazines like Stereophile, What hi-fi, sound on sound etc can be good resources for initial shortlisting, exercising caution while taking their reviews and star ratings would be a good practice. It’s possible that reviewers can be biased to a specific manufacturer with whom they have a financial agreement and they can use much more expensive gear to evaluate a mid-fi component (eg:- $500 speakers being hooked onto $5000 worth of electronics). Since the evaluation of audio is subjective, the reviewer’s state of mind, his tastes and expectations all can skew the opinion
While auditioning at the dealer: While it’s arguable that the dealer’s demo room might be well treated acoustically, and the components are going to be different than ours, thus sound quality can be different, it’s the best possible way to get an understanding of the sound signature of each component (other than listening at a friend’s place or better still, a home audition).
Spending very less time auditioning. Around 30-45 mins should be ideal per combination of amplifier and speakers. Also disable any sort of DSP on the electronics chain while listening. Dealer’s are likely to switch ON equalizers to make the sound more exciting than it is normally.
Forming an opinion of the new system too soon: Normally it takes around a month of continuous listening to adjust to the new sound signature. Some call it burn-in of components and some term it psycho-acoustic in nature. Whatever you call it, give some time before jumping to conclusion and selling the new gear which you painstakingly put together.
Being a newbie in this hobby, my experience is also limited, but I’m sure respected members will be able to pitch in more ideas here. The unfortunate folks who are located in remote places with no access to good dealers to demo their gear of choice will have lesser options, so these pointers might not help them.
Best wishes and happy listening
