Insanely Expensive Audio

[andreasmaaan]

Strange that they couldn't get the audio mixing right on their own video.

 

[Soniclife]

Strange that they couldn't get the audio mixing right on their own video.

Indeed. They boast of 25 years of recording experience and obsessive attention to detail, yet the opening spoken word part is a horrible recording, hugely bettered by most youtube videos recorded on phones.

 

[andreasmaaan]

Indeed. They boast of 25 years of recording experience and obsessive attention to detail, yet the opening spoken word part is a horrible recording, hugely bettered by most youtube videos recorded on phones.

I don't know how they've managed it, but what seems to be the problem is that they have the left channel leading the right channel by a few milliseconds (Haas effect). Definitely not deliberate - it's the last thing anyone would want to do to a mono speech recording.

 

[Soniclife]

I don't know how they've managed it, but what seems to be the problem is that they have the left channel leading the right channel by a few milliseconds (Haas effect). Definitely not deliberate - it's the last thing anyone would want to do to a mono speech recording.

Did you analyse it to find that, or was that obvious to you from listening? I assumed it was a terrible acoustic and bad mic positioning, but playing with the balance I can hear it is more than that, one channel is louder than the other as well. Maybe it's an in-joke to see how many of their customers notice.

 

[andreasmaaan]

Did you analyse it to find that, or was that obvious to you from listening? I assumed it was a terrible acoustic and bad mic positioning, but playing with the balance I can hear it is more than that, one channel is louder than the other as well. Maybe it's an in-joke to see how many of their customers notice.

It was obvious from listening, but I've used the Haas effect in mixing so am familiar with the sound.

But now I've also checked it lolz. Turns out the left channel is leading the right channel and the right channel is slightly higher in level.

In retrospect, this explains why the voice seems to be displaced more to the left, and the reverb more to the right. The Haas effect is stronger on transients, so it is perceived as affecting the direct sound more while having little perceived effect on the reverb, whereas the level mismatch pans the reverb more to the right.

Not sure how they managed this. If it had been as simple as a stereo mic pair with the left channel mic closer, that might explain the time difference, but then the left channel would also have been louder. So I think they've taken a mono mic recording and mangled it in the mix somehow.

EDIT: or more likely actually, they recorded in stereo with the left mic channel leading the right, listened back to it and mistook the effect for a level imbalance, then panned to the right to try to compensate for it.

 

[Soniclife]

Not sure how they managed this. If it had been as simple as a stereo mic pair with the left channel mic closer, that might explain the time difference, but then the left channel would also have been louder.

Maybe the cameraman was sitting on the left channel mic

 

[Ron Texas]

I underestimated the response to this integrated amp. The vertical format of the product is odd. How is it supposed to fit in with other gear. Is it supposed to go on the floor? How in heaven could it be worth $150k? Prima Luna makes lovely tube integrated amps for under $5k. Not cheap, but something an upper middle class enthusiast could afford. Who buys this wildly expensive stuff anyway?

There are all kinds of people. On Kauai (part of Hawaii) I met a guy who drove a Range Rover. There is no dealer on the island. I asked him how he gets it fixed. He told me the vehicle is transported round trip to Honolulu by boat. My impression from how he acted was he was an aging trust fund baby who wanted what he wanted and did not care about the expense. It would have been a lot more convenient to own a Toyota Land Cruiser, but that made too much sense.

 

[NorthSky]

It's a "statement" piece (cost-no-object audio gear). That one goes on the floor, like a car goes on the road...nice car for $150,000

 

[NorthSky]

Strange that they couldn't get the audio mixing right on their own video.

You noticed that too from the young man @ the beginning and along with other people's comments. It is an art to build exquisite quality sounding audio gear, it goes with the art of presentation. Some are good @ it, others need better mics or set the levels so that we can hear clearly. Experience and dedication count in the presentation, very.
It's like a leader pitching his narrative, agenda, philosophy, and execute.

Insanity is in the eyes and ears of the readers, the listeners, the viewers...all of us including the presenters and designers and manufacturers and dealers. The Art of the deal.

Flying around the moon and come back to Earth is getting more accessible than back in 1969 in the age of Aquarius, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead and Woodstock, flying and spinning on our turntables with the Stones, the Beatles and John Coltrane.

Mercedes Benz, Rolls Royce, Rolex, Memorex, Bugatti, Lammborghini, Ferrari, ...they exist because they are solid high preformance statement pieces for solid people with solid money looking for solid Hi end status. Beats going to jail for a crime we didn't commit. Better look from above than below. ...Like in real physical life, not in the imagination and envy and jealousy of the brain. A healthy body inside a healthy bank account. Better have more money and don't know what to do with it than have no money and know what to do with it. It shows best with a better statement.

What is good for one is not automatically good for another one.
What is bad for one is robin hood for another.

Equilibrium. Apple vs Microsoft. Tubes vs solid state, analog/digital, mechanical rotors and belts <> motors and lasers, summer/winter, sun/Siberia, yin and yang and yoga and yogurt and ping pong Jong, junk and King Kong and funk music fusion.

Live hard die hard. It's fine to be normal in a normal world. Insane people belong in asylums. And not all asylums are painted green or white.

 

[maverickronin]

Mercedes Benz, Rolls Royce, Rolex, Memorex, Bugatti, Lammborghini, Ferrari, ...they exist because they are solid high preformance statement pieces for solid people with solid money looking for solid Hi end status.

That's not really a good analogy.

People will generally admit that they buy expensive cars for the for the coolness factor or for a luxury interior coupled with high performance as opposed to bare bones high performance. Occasionally people will even admit that they buy them for the status. Nobody's afraid to admit they bought a Lambo or Ferrari instead of a Corvette because it's cooler and more luxurious even if the Corvette is faster and easier to maintain.

How often do people admit that they paid considerably extra for measurably equivalent or often inferior gear just because they though it looked cooler or were impressed by it's immaculate fit and finish? They almost always insist that they bought it because it sounds better, not because they like Nice Things and have money to burn.

If both the buyers and sellers of this this kind of stuff would just admit to themselves that these products are basically just luxury squared then these kind of threads wouldn't generate the endless chorus of WTF which they currently elicit.

 

[cjfrbw]

I'm wondering if there is a market for expensive, bottled audiophile air for bluetooth and Airplay. Just open and release for better definition, clearer, highs, more resounding bass etc.

 

[DonH56]

Years ago a company was selling an ionizer claiming it would improve the sound by "energizing the air in your listening room" or some such. Maybe it would, maybe it wouldn't, but it produced unacceptable ozone levels and was pulled from the market.

Those who've been around long enough remember the Tice Clock...

 

[maverickronin]

I'm wondering if there is a market for expensive, bottled audiophile air for bluetooth and Airplay. Just open and release for better definition, clearer, highs, more resounding bass etc.

There is this hilarious and sad triumph of marketing so I think you've got a good shot.

 

[DonH56]

O4? What the heck?

 

[cjfrbw]

My branded air would have aerosolized quantum dots, not negative ions. There's a big difference. Anybody who doesn't agree will be hearing from my corporate legal team.

 

[NorthSky]

That's not really a good analogy.

People will generally admit that they buy expensive cars for the for the coolness factor or for a luxury interior coupled with high performance as opposed to bare bones high performance. Occasionally people will even admit that they buy them for the status. Nobody's afraid to admit they bought a Lambo or Ferrari instead of a Corvette because it's cooler and more luxurious even if the Corvette is faster and easier to maintain.

How often do people admit that they paid considerably extra for measurably equivalent or often inferior gear just because they though it looked cooler or were impressed by it's immaculate fit and finish? They almost always insist that they bought it because it sounds better, not because they like Nice Things and have money to burn.

If both the buyers and sellers of this this kind of stuff would just admit to themselves that these products are basically just luxury squared then these kind of threads wouldn't generate the endless chorus of WTF which they currently elicit.

It wasn't an analogy, it was an essay.

The reality is that we all want to be healthy, good looking, rich, popular with our kids, family, friends, enemies, we all want equality for all, we all want justice, independence, freedom and happiness forever after.
Money doesn't buy happiness and love, it just helps a little in the corners we cut in everyday's life.

Equality for the rich is acceptance from the poor.
Equality for the poor is acceptance from the poor.
Might as well be rich and accept it.

 

[Ron Texas]

https://www.stereophile.com/content/sonus-faber-aida-loudspeaker

Some pretty floor standing speakers for $130 a pair. Since they weigh 364 lbs each, they are a real deal, by the pound. I wonder how these would stack up next to a $9k Goldenear Reference. You would have enough left over for a Porsche 911.

 

[NorthSky]

@ $130 a pair I take two. @ 130K a pair I take only one.

* They are very nice. They would match my decor and artistic flair perfectly.

 

[Ron Texas]

@ $130 a pair I take two. @ 130K a pair I take only one.

* They are very nice. They would match my decor and artistic flair perfectly.

Not as crazy as that $150k integrated tube job, but too big for my room. Perhaps an alien spaceship replica like a KEF Blade 2 would work here

 

[Soniclife]

https://www.stereophile.com/content/sonus-faber-aida-loudspeaker

Some pretty floor standing speakers for $130 a pair. Since they weigh 364 lbs each, they are a real deal, by the pound. I wonder how these would stack up next to a $9k Goldenear Reference. You would have enough left over for a Porsche 911.

I've often wondered how people cope with such heavy speakers in the real world, do they just stay where your dealer puts them until you sell them?