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Why shouldn't there be differences?

Give the same recipe to half a dozen different cooks and you get 6 different tasting dishes. Oh yes, there will be a basic similarity, but they will be different.

The same applies to electronics and every aspect of audio. Amps seem to converge in their sound quality as prices go up, but do speakers? If perfect frequency response and phasing, and timing were the goal of every speaker designer, one would think that at a certain price point, say at $25K, for example, there would be a convergence in sound. That is not the case. Even at $100K there are large differences in sound, and readily apparent ones at that.

What does this mean? I would submit that it is one of several things: 1. listeners do not recognize 'natural and accurate' sound; 2, listeners simply do not care; 3. manufacturers are not seeking 'natural and accurate.' The fourth option would be that there is no such thing as a 'natural and accurate' sounding speaker system. I would like to believe that is not true, though.

Now if most speaker manufacturers are not seeking 'musical truth', how does one expect to hear subtlety from a wire change in his system? If one simply uses price as a guide, you may end up comparing apples to apples, as I have seen cheap coax, and some very expensive ones. That would be akin to comparing apples to apples, and yeah I know there is a difference between a Golden Delicious and a Granny Smith. There would be greater differences in comparing a twin lead to a coax.

For wires, if you understand how the LCR parameters affect sound, check out Kimber's thick product brochure where those specs are given for every model in their line up. Makes for interesting reading, at least for me, and it shows that there is science and empirical testing involved.

If you have a flawed speaker design, though, evaluating such subtlety would be akin to drowning your food with Tabasco (which I like, BTW), and then trying to compare the use of sea salt to regular salt in your dishes. Much of the subtlety, which is an integral part of all music, may be washed out by the predominating flavor.

'The reality can hurt sometimes,' you once stated. That statement can also apply to everyone, and be careful as it may apply to your own pronouncements.


Stu


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