Amp reviews online with aides

[AJM1981]

In my personal opinion a speaker should do the work and an amp should color as little as possible. Power differences aside.

Now I stumbled up some "reviewers" and 'sound demonstrators' who compare amps while one amp has turned on all kind of aides like some minimal surround effect and an equalizer and the other doesn't. And they give great praise to those amps with aides while making the other amp which is on neutral settings appear like it doesn't do as well.

Use aides if you like but it is not how the producer intended it.

Just a note for everyone who is planning to get an amp. 😉

 

[Al ears]

Anyone who buys an amp using online reviews alone deserves all they get..... 😎

 

[AJM1981]

Anyone who buys an amp using online reviews alone deserves all they get..... 😎

I do it mainly for scanning useful overall functions and to get an impression of the design. Some reviewers are more credible than others in pinpointing things. But this was a missed opportunity for a review.

 

[Al ears]

Understood. The type of reviews I pay heed to are those of similar items in a group test compared by a group of reviewers.

 

[insider9]

In my personal opinion a speaker should do the work and an amp should color as little as possible. Power differences aside.

Hmmmm.... really depends. Many people look for colour from amplification, even if they don't realise it. Particularly as colour from amps doesn't affect frequency spectrum as it does with speakers.

If we were all perfectly happy with no colour at all then class D modules such as Hypex or ICE would've long overtaken the market. And their reputation wouldn't be of sounding "clinical" but sounding "right". Somehow that's not the case.

 

[AJM1981]

Hmmmm.... really depends. Many people look for colour from amplification, even if they don't realise it. Particularly as colour from amps doesn't affect frequency spectrum as it does with speakers.

If we were all perfectly happy with no colour at all then class D modules such as Hypex or ICE would've long overtaken the market. And their reputation wouldn't be of sounding "clinical" but sounding "right". Somehow that's not the case.

I get it within these signatures. A perfect flat response on paper is not how the ear and brain perceive it as flat. And spicing a little here and there is fine. The result in this is probably not that amp y is day and night with amp b. Then one is always far off from how it was intended. Doubt differences to this degree would also be really noticable in let's say a test video in which the listener uses headphones. Perhaps being there live in a room.. it would make a bit of a differnce.

The EQ and the enhancer that the Yamaha Wxa50 has enabled on default makes a difference even played on a demo video using phone speakers. The auto EQ increases the treble and really pulls basses to a dip and the enhancer creates a sparkly stereo effect. That package of effects is a big plus in store- and online demonstrations.

 

[Gray]

Hmmmm.... If we were all perfectly happy with no colour at all then class D modules such as Hypex or ICE would've long overtaken the market.

Give it time.
I suspect any reluctance to go with (the better forms of) class D may currently be more to do with price rather than a dislike of its sound.

 

[Deleted member 116933]

It’s all a conspiracy.



In all seriousness I have yet to see a ruler flat response from anything, from all points of view, off axis graphs and so on once in the average joes room it really doesn’t matter all that much especially if they’re setup sub optimal and I’ve seem that more than I care to say, even some of boys here could do with a look at there setups.

I don’t look for neutral I look for natural and there’s a big difference. And if a little bump here and thereincreases my listening pleasure I’ll take it.

None of my equipment ( with the exception of my chord dac) measures well and I couldn’t be happier. I went down the “every thing must be perfect” route and I just wasn’t enjoying it.

It’s like building a pair cycling wheel there’s an art to it and a fine balance between compliant, weak and aggressive. You need all three but only experience can tell you what you what’s right.

I guess what I’m saying is unless you have a perfect room dedicated to it from the ground up there’s just so much more to worry about.

 

[AJM1981]

It’s all a conspiracy.

Marketing is not conspiracy

In all seriousness I have yet to see a ruler flat response from anything, from all points of view, off axis graphs and so on once in the average joes room it really doesn’t matter all that much especially if they’re setup sub optimal and I’ve seem that more than I care to say, even some of boys here could do with a look at there setups.

I am not looking for perfection in settings, quite the opposite. Leaving it flat or neutral means also that at least no sort of EQ is applied and you can leave it to how the music is produced and mixed. There are a lot of harmonics and dynamics in a track and some aids tend to trade those off for more bass and treble, and if that is ones thing I am not going to stop it. The challenge comes when a producer created a mix that has a similar effect inside the music itself, having the aides on will then double the effect which basically kills it.

I don’t look for neutral I look for natural and there’s a big difference. And if a little bump here and thereincreases my listening pleasure I’ll take it.

I wouldn't disagree on anyone who has a personal preference in the way something is tuned and describing that preference as natural.

 

[TrevC]

Anyone who buys an amp using online reviews alone deserves all they get..... 😎

If only What Hifi did reviews of amplifiers. Maybe some day.:O)

 

[TrevC]

Hmmmm.... really depends. Many people look for colour from amplification, even if they don't realise it. Particularly as colour from amps doesn't affect frequency spectrum as it does with speakers.

If we were all perfectly happy with no colour at all then class D modules such as Hypex or ICE would've long overtaken the market. And their reputation wouldn't be of sounding "clinical" but sounding "right". Somehow that's not the case.

I usually end up with a black one.

 

[Gray]

I wouldn't disagree on anyone who has a personal preference in the way something is tuned and describing that preference as natural.

I would.
Of course, there's nothing wrong with anyone having a preference for a certain type of sound.
But (and it's a big but) If anything is deliberately tuned away from neutrality, it cannot possibly be described as natural.

 

[RoA]

I can only speak for myself but I nowadays appreciate tone controls and (more so) DSP with tone controls.

Having spent years with 'direct is better' and how the 'creator' intended it I can't be bothered anymore with listening to s**** recordings which take my ears off or are just so bad that I would otherwise avoid listening to them.

Another benefit of tone controls or a loudness function is low level listening.

I want to enjoy music not be irritated by it.

 

[AJM1981]

I would.
Of course, there's nothing wrong with anyone having a preference for a certain type of sound.
But (and it's a big but) If anything is deliberately tuned away from neutrality, it cannot possibly be described as natural.

I agree but I wouldn't start a discussion about what someone else perceives as natural because the term is not fetchable.

'Natural' in a literal sense is for example a recording of bird sounds.

Natural in the sense of an opinion is whatever someone prefers; as in "this is natural" ('suits my taste') . And starting a discussion on taste is interesting as I am always interested what his or anyone's taste is but that is a different topic.

Natural can also mean something like when 'accoustic' instruments sound like the way someone believe they sound best. As one can hardly take electronic music as a subjective benchmark in this.

And then it all comes to flat respone and flat EQ.

Just to put it in the simplest way. When one has been witnessing recording processes in studio's that listener trusts the ones who have produced, mixed and mastered a track. They have already laid out their preference and keeping things flat will just ensure that one leaves the picture to the artist and the reproduction isn't miles off.

If they have added a certain bass signature that they think serve the balance and blends well in, there is no need to pull this balance away at home 'in my opinion'.

Following the mix of pros is the least one can do. 🙂

 

[Gray]

I agree but I wouldn't start a discussion about what someone else perceives as natural because the term is not fetchable.

'Natural' in a literal sense is for example a recording of bird sounds.

Natural in the sense of an opinion is whatever someone prefers; as in "this is natural" ('suits my taste') . And starting a discussion on taste is interesting as I am always interested what his or anyone's taste is but that is a different topic.

Natural can also mean something like when 'accoustic' instruments sound like the way someone believe they sound best. As one can hardly take electronic music as a subjective benchmark in this.

And then it all comes to flat respone and flat EQ.

Just to put it in the simplest way. When one has been witnessing recording processes in studio's that listener trusts the ones who have produced, mixed and mastered a track. They have already laid out their preference and keeping things flat will just ensure that one leaves the picture to the artist and the reproduction isn't miles off.

If they have added a certain bass signature that they think serve the balance and blends well in, there is no need to pull this balance away at home 'in my opinion'.

Following the mix of pros is the least one can do. 🙂
[/QUOTE
The thread was about amps though. The stated aim for many designers is to get as close to 'a piece of wire with gain' as possible, so that nothing is added to, or taken away from the sound - to allow you to hear all the unnatural things that have been done during the recording - without adding any unnaturalness of its own .
Again, if someone prefers some colouration to all their sound, fine. They can describe it as natural if they want, after all maybe it is natural for them.
But how many versions of natural can there be?

 

[Gray]

I agree but I wouldn't start a discussion about what someone else perceives as natural because the term is not fetchable.

'Natural' in a literal sense is for example a recording of bird sounds.

Natural in the sense of an opinion is whatever someone prefers; as in "this is natural" ('suits my taste') . And starting a discussion on taste is interesting as I am always interested what his or anyone's taste is but that is a different topic.

Natural can also mean something like when 'accoustic' instruments sound like the way someone believe they sound best. As one can hardly take electronic music as a subjective benchmark in this.

And then it all comes to flat respone and flat EQ.

Just to put it in the simplest way. When one has been witnessing recording processes in studio's that listener trusts the ones who have produced, mixed and mastered a track. They have already laid out their preference and keeping things flat will just ensure that one leaves the picture to the artist and the reproduction isn't miles off.

If they have added a certain bass signature that they think serve the balance and blends well in, there is no need to pull this balance away at home 'in my opinion'.

Following the mix of pros is the least one can do. 🙂

The thread was about amps though. And the stated aim for many designers is to get as close to 'a piece of wire with gain' as possible, so that nothing is added to, or taken away from the sound - to allow you to hear all the unnatural things that have been done during the recording - without adding any unnaturalness of its own .
Again, if someone prefers a coloured amp, fine . They can describe it as natural if they want, after all maybe it is natural for them.
But how many versions of natural can there be?

 

[AJM1981]

The thread was about amps though. And the stated aim for many designers is to get as close to 'a piece of wire with gain' as possible, so that nothing is added to, or taken away from the sound - to allow you to hear all the unnatural things that have been done during the recording - without adding any unnaturalness of its own .
Again, if someone prefers a coloured amp, fine . They can describe it as natural if they want, after all maybe it is natural for them.
But how many versions of natural can there be?

it is basically not a useful term.