Any BARF Audiophiles?
- Thread starter DReg350
- Start date
russ69
Backside Slider
I can't reproduce AC/DC concert levels at home nor do I want to. Measurements at volume levels I use in the home are very useful.
johnkol
Well-known member
These levels are not rock stadium exclusive; all the local clubs (Bottom Of The Hill, Great American Music Hall, Independent, Slim's, etc.) play music at this level.
The reason you cannot reproduce those levels is because audiophile speakers place the emphasis on accuracy, not power handling, so they distort heavily long before they reach those high pressure points. Professional speakers (typically horn) can easily reach those levels with minimal distortion, but they are not very accurate. Speakers that can play loud with very high accuracy are very rare.
The problem with low listening volumes is that the human ear is increasingly frequency-inaccurate as the sound pressure level drops; if you care about accuracy and correct reproduction of the music signal, you have to play at high levels.
TerryM
--/\~
^^^ Yeah, I can sympathize with most of that. If I use a dB meter (phone) at a concert, like a symphony orchestra or even a jazz combo, then mimic the dB level at home it sounds pretty bad. Horn loaded speakers seem more at ease - less constricted, but I prefer non-horn sound and just play them at less than realistic levels. It's all trade-offs.
JesasaurusRex
Deleted User
Edit, wrong thread
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russ69
Backside Slider
I'll argue that point. You don't HAVE to play loud. You just have to tune your system to sound good at the volume levels you like. My sweetest 25 watt tube amp isn't going to play loud anyway (unless I match it with some efficient horns). I am totally satisfied playing at low levels. I still have my 400wpc big Mac but I seldom use more than 1 watt of it.
Yakoo752
USN
I take it I should pass on a free-ish subwoofer?
https://www.elac.com/series/elac-powered-subwoofers/
https://www.elac.com/series/elac-powered-subwoofers/
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I didn’t respond cause, well I don’t have a sub anymore. The last one I had was a powered Velodyne around 96ish. Unless it’s trashed you should take it. Especially if it’s free. If ya don’t like like it you can always drop it at Goodwill. Might get you started down the sub trail and help figure out what you’re looking for. :dunno
GAJ
Well-known member
I should have including a :laughing to suggest i was being facetious
with the ascends I don't think I "need" one but yeah, free is free right
The owner is a family friend, they offered... it would be rude to not, right
That is a very nice subwoofer with a built in EQ app.
It reaches down to about 25hz so will definitely add an octave or so to the bass extension of your Ascends.
GAJ
Well-known member
A good subwoofer should be "transparent" in its performance if that makes any sense.
If you can easily point to where the sub is when listening it is either poorly set up or just a crap sub in the first place.
Look forward to your impressions.
My wife is bass sensitive but my 1250 watt sealed servo 15" subwoofer is "transparent" in normal use and only becomes "apparent" when called for in certain movie scenes.
With music you'd never know it was "on."
GAJ
Well-known member
My point is that it should add depth to the bass while playing music in a transparent fashion without drawing undue attention to itself.
It should be so seamless you don't realize what it is bring to the party until you turn it off and you certainly shouldn't be able to locate where it is positioned with your eyes closed.
Too many subs announce their presence during music but some folks like it that way.
russ69
Backside Slider
In many hi-end systems, the woofer towers face forward to eliminate localization or more likely to minimize the effect of localization. I prefer this arrangement. While large sub-arrays don't have localization issues, they do energize the room so you do know when low frequency information is present.
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GAJ
Well-known member
What sub did you get and what receiver are you using again?