When it comes to speakers, you can read all the reviews and study all the
performance metrics you want. But, at the end of the day, what matters
is whether the speakers are pleasing to your ears when playing the
kinds of music you like to hear.
The science of human biology
and speaker specifications don't always mesh.According to wikipedia, the
average human range of hearing begins as low as 12 hz and goes to
20khz. Dogs can hear from around 40 hz to 60 khz. Cats can hear from
55hz to 79khz. Now, I don't know if Best Buy will allow dogs and cats
into their listening room. It's too bad because I'm pretty sure that our
dog wants me to buy better speakers. He'd probably like me to buy JBL ES20 bookshelf speakers since they have a dynamic range of 60 hz to 40 khz.
There is no real evidence
that audiophile ears are any better than the ears of the general
public. Claims to special hearing by audiophiles are likely to be due
to what researchers call "The Hawthorne Effect." Some writers claim
that sounds we can not hear may still play a role in your brains
processing of sounds from a stereo. Words like presence, soundstage,
and "boominess" all play a role in speaker selection. Unfortunately, all of
these speaker describing words are subjective. I know I've missed
having deep bass with my bookshelf speakers. If you are looking for bass in a bookshelf speaker, these Polk Audio TSi100 go down to 53 hz which is pretty deep for bookshelf speakers.
I won't dispute
anyone's anecdotal evidence that premium speakers are worth the extra
money. It isn't my role to diminish anyone's enjoyment of this hobby.
However, the science is compelling enough to help us protect our
wallets. Don't let anyone compel you to buy any stereo equipment on the
basis of any claim that you cannot directly and distinctly hear and
experience for yourself without prompting. In the world of speakers,
science can defend our wallets from preposterous claims, but our
speakers still have to be bought from the heart.
No comments:
Post a Comment