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Auricle Publishing Number 1 1999 5 High Fidelity Revised 2003 A p p roach To “Premier Issue” Home Music his introductory issue of the Audio Pe r fe c t i o n i s tThe sound from the speakers and the sound from the R e p ro d u c t i o n T J o u r n willa l present the basic philosophies and room must be considered separately. precepts which will become the basis for all J o u r n a l a rt i c l .e It s will lay the foundation for the info rm a t i o n The article Equalization Can’t Fix Your Room that will be presented in future issues. A c o u s t iis c thes first in a series about getting the best sound from the components that you already own. It In this first J o u r n we’lla l discuss some of the misin- debunks the popular idea that all your acoustic prob- 8 fo rmation that is rampant today and I’ll offer logical lems can be electronically corrected and explains E q u a l i z a t i o n arguments to refute this propaganda. As a prelude to why room acoustics must be corrected acoustically. It the articles on speaker placement and room treat- lays the groundwork for future articles about both C a n ’t Fix ment that will be included in Journal #2, we’ll lay out system components and room acoustics by explain- Your Room some specific goals for assembling an audio system ing why these two major aspects of sound—system that can provide lasting musical satisfaction and we ’ l l and environment—must be treated as separate enti- A c o u s t i c s discuss some of the problems that music lovers may t i e s . encounter in their quest for that satisfa c t i o n .T h e s e iesr of J o u r n athat l s fo l l wo will suggest solutions There are two major elements of the sound that you to the problems and provide info rmation to help hear from a home audio system: the sound that a c h ive e the goals presented here. comes from the speakers—which is influenced by the quality of the system components—and the sound 1 4 The foundation of the Audio Pe r ectionistf Journal i s that comes from the environment in which the system my high fidelity approach to home audio. This philo- resides—which is influenced by the room acoustics. High Fidelity sophical position is presented in the article titled “ Th e These two major elements of sound can be further A p p roach To High Fidelity Ap p ro ah cto Home Music Rep ro d u c t ”i o n . divided into two parts: bass frequencies up to about All info rmation in the Journal is based on the high 140Hz and everything else. Speaker placement and Home fidelity approach which requires that a home audio room acoustics will be covered in future Journals but Theater system accurately reproduce the recorded signal. first we have to establish some fundamentals. Before A u d i o Proper system set-up is integral to the high fidelity I suggest where you should place your speakers, you approach and proper set-up starts with the prepara- need to know why they should be placed there. tion of the listening room. Before I suggest how you should treat your room, you should understand the goal. Your listening room is a fundamental element of your home audio system and the acoustics of your room You are wasting your time spending big money for 1 7 must be considered even before you start to choose small improvements in component performance H o m e audio components to accurately reproduce the before you’ve realized all the performance possible recorded signal in that room. Room acoustics cannot from the equipment you have now and the room in T h e a t e r be corrected by electronic gadgets that alter the which that equipment is used. A screwed up system M y t h s recorded signal and the response of the speakers. in an untreated room may prevent you from hearing www.audioperfectionist.com Introduction the improvement that an expensive component upgrade of f e r s . No Advertising But when you insert a better-sounding component into an opti- While the Audio Pe r ectionistf Journal expresses opinions like mized system, a subtle sonic improvement becomes a signifi- a magazine, it is not funded by advertising. The importance of cant advance in fidelity and satisfaction. this distinction cannot be overemphasized. You’ve read far too much about products that are overpriced yet perform poorly The article titled The High Fidelity Approach to Home T h e a t e r and you’ve seen far too little information about those products proposes that a high fidelity audio system that accurately that provide true, state-of-the-art performance and good value reproduces the recorded signal can be effectively utilized for for money invested. This is largely due to the fact that the man- home theater, too. If you want to really hear what the filmmak- ufacturers of the overpriced products virtually control the maga- ers intended, you’ll want to hear the signal just as they record- zines through advertising revenue and equipment loans. ed it. Selling new products is the sole aim of the industry and the publications that support it. Telling you how to get more per- The popularity of home theater has been responsible for the formance from the equipment that you already own, or how to biggest setback in the cause of high fidelity music reproduction save money when you upgrade components, is considered since the introduction of the compact disc. T h a st ’because the subversive. It may seem to be subversive to the magazines marketeers decided to offer a false paradigm as the standard which are supported by advertising but you’ll find facts and for home theater fidelity in order to license and sell more prod- unbiased opinions in the Audio Pe r ectionistf Journal a l o n g u c t s . with advice that is based on real-world experience. The article Home Theater Myths describes this false paradigm and explains why it has caused a division in the ranks of audio What the Journal Won’t Do enthusiasts that really makes no sense at all. The Audio Pe r ectionistf Journal won’t profess that a product is superior just because it costs more. Many of the components This article presents arguments that counter the many heavily that provide the best possible sound quality are fairly priced promoted “truths” about home theater performance that go and many of the components that sell for a king’s ransom are largely unchallenged today. If you love music and want an mediocre performers. Magazines that rely on advertising rev- audio system that serves double duty for music and movies, enue generally assume that the most expensive components this article is a must read. are the best. They can’t risk insulting advertisers who make expensive products that are outperformed by components that Home theater is a lot of fun and there is no reason that music cost less. The J o u r n doesn’ta l rely on advertising revenue and lovers have to be at war with home theater buffs. High fidelity can tell you the truth about performance and value. sound is what the Audio Pe r ectionistf Journal is all about. There is no caveat about what that sound has to represent, The J o u r n won’ta l assume that you already know how an and there is no rule that says we have to use our hi-fi systems audio system works or that you understand the meaning of only for music. We can have it all if we get our priorities technical terminology. The first 8 J o u r n awill l s explain in the s t r a i g h t . simplest terms possible how components work and how they function in an audio system. Terminology will be carefully Future articles will describe how to use your high fidelity audio e x p l a i n e d . components for home theater sound without sacrificing musical performance in any way. We’ll discuss the fidelity of film sound C o n v e r s, thee l y J o u r n won’ta l assume that you are an uncul- and I’ll tell you how to add home theater capability to your tured idiot and talk down to you from a lofty perch. I won’t audio system without wasting money on components that claim spend any time telling you that I can hear things you can’t to deliver more than the film medium allows. because I’m more “culturally sophisticated” than you are. I won’t ask that you simply take my word on matters of sound q u a l .i tI’ll y tell you how to listen and decide for yourself. 2 www.audioperfectionist.com Introduction What the Journal Will Do reproduce the signal that is on the recording but should deliver I conceived the Audio Pe r ectionistf Journal as an instruction- sound that is reminiscent of live music.

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