Blind Test

[stefanom]

Many of the best studios of the world are wired with high quality cabling. For example Abbey Road Studio Two, which was The Beatles second home in the 60s, is wired with van Damme cables. If cables don't matter why don't they use cheaper cables?

 

[TrevC]

Many of the best studios of the world are wired with high quality cabling. For example Abbey Road Studio Two, which was The Beatles second home in the 60s, is wired with van Damme cables. If cables don't matter why don't they use cheaper cables?

Who said cables don't matter? Van damme make reasonably priced pro cables, which is probably why they used them.

 

[Gaz37]

Many of the best studios of the world are wired with high quality cabling. For example Abbey Road Studio Two, which was The Beatles second home in the 60s, is wired with van Damme cables. If cables don't matter why don't they use cheaper cables?

Who said cables don't matter? Van damme make reasonably priced pro cables, which is probably why they used them.

He has a point.

Surely a studio would use directional cadles costing hundreds or thousands IF they made a difference

 

[Craig M.]

'Blind tests' ...

Honestly, IMHO They are as pointless as any current Labour Manifesto.

That may be your opinion, but when it comes to identifying small differences this would indicate it's probably the best way http://audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/aes-paper-digest-sensitivity-and-reliability-of-abx-blind-testing.186/#post-4178

 

[davedotco]

In the same way as your sense of smell is when choosing a TV

It's been done...*biggrin*

 

[Electro]

In the same way as your sense of smell is when choosing a TV

It's been done...*biggrin*

It has indeed. *yes3*

https://gizmodotest.wordpress.com/2010/12/01/smell-o-vision-coming-to-a-tv-near-you/

 

[NSA_watch_my_toilet]

We had knowledgeable comments on the first page, so, please, take good not of them.

The only thing I could add, is that a blind test should have a person that is controlling that nobody cheats, and control the sampled results. You can naturally make "light" blindtests, that can have a form of use if you are open minded.

 

[davedotco]

We had knowledgeable comments on the first page, so, please, take good not of them.

The only thing I could add, is that a blind test should have a person that is controlling that nobody cheats, and control the sampled results. You can naturally make "light" blindtests, that can have a form of use if you are open minded.

I find informal ("light") blind testing, providing it is done with reasonable care, to br a real eye-opener for anyone who has not tried it. Sure you need someone to run the tests, but it can be pretty straightforward, you are not doing academic research here, just having a bit of fun and learning about our hobby.

Even well known components, ones that you 'know' sound different, can be incredibly hard to pick when level matched and listened blind, just how hard tends to surprise every enthusiast taking part.

 

[Gaz37]

How many people could identify their own system, in a blind test, out of say five systems?

I would love to see this done

 

[steve_1979]

ABX is trying to found if you can determine which from which.Does sound quality not count as different. I think you guys should be politicians. My point here is that cables sound different but not enough to detect in a blind test just like it will be in the case of hifi boxes.

 

[steve_1979]

We had knowledgeable comments on the first page, so, please, take good not of them.

Don't be silly, this is a hifi forum. That sort of thing dosen't happen here.

 

[steve_1979]

In the same way as your sense of smell is when choosing a TV

I prefer to choose a TV based on flavor and can spend hours in John Lewis brows-licking the tellys.

 

[Native_bon]

It seems when something simple and logical is put across people just feel the need to be very sensitive about it. Accumulatively ever aspect of a system counts to get maximum performance.

No one knows it all, not even the so called experts. Most seek to get maximum performance from any system, within a price point, this may differ from others. This is a hobby to me, at the same time in my case brings me pleasure of music and movie. The sensitive nature of some here is quite worrying. It begs the question if they actually enjoy music and the hobby as a whole.

 

[steve_1979]

I was aiming for humor rather than grumpiness.

The problem with forums is we're only communicating by text and without body language and tone of voice the message often gets lost in translation.

 

[ID.]

An ABX is basically only used to check if you can hear any difference at all.

That is not quite right. It tests if one can distinguish components from the sound they emit. This is not the same as a person hearing a difference. For example, if a person has trained themselves to hear different sounds with two different cables they are likely to hear one or other of these different sounds in a blind test when they know one or the other of the cables is being used. But if the difference in sound emitted is below the audibility threshold then they will fail to correctly identify the cables. It is an important distinction because people may genuinely hear a different sound with different components even when the sound emitted is not distinguishable in a blind test. The perception of sound by the brain involves more than just the sound hitting our ears.

fair point. I've "heard" differences in power cables (and heard them disappear). Just knowing something is different or has been changed can make the listener hear a difference, even (especially?) if there is not audible difference.

 

[Native_bon]

I was aiming for humor rather than grumpiness.

The problem with forums is we're only communicating by text and without body language and tone of voice the message often gets lost in translation.

 

Was not aimed at you in particular. Just generally speaking. Smiles.