Phil Leigh;232525 Wrote: > Pretty much any headphones are capable of revealing more about a > recording than speakers can. You can hear things on phones that simply > are not apparent otherwise, which is why they are an invaluable > recording/mastering tool. > As far as the limitations of the Stax set that I own...you might accuse > them of being a bit light in the bass. > > With regards to "soundstaging"...aside from a few well defined > circumstances (dummy head etc) "soundstaging" is in the mind of the > listener. It can be influenced by the mic techniques used (assuming > that we are not talking about multitrack stuff, in which case it is > completely artificial) and the ability of the replay chain to > accurately recreate what was recorded in terms of ambience, levels > etc. > > Remember that the ONLY tool one has to alter soundstaging is level. You > can make a signal louder or quieter on the right channel compared to the > same signal in the left. I'll ignore phase manipulation and EQ because > those are "effects".
Yes headphones are a valuable tool in the recording studio. But they are not the only device used. recordings are mixed down through studio monitors also. Many sound engineers have a variety of systems they use to evaluate the final mix. headphones have their own set of strengths, but are also limited in their ability to present the spatial complexity of music. Personally I am not a fan of them, I dont like the in your head feel to the music. I have to disagree with the point of soundstaging being in the mind of the listener. More than one person can listen to a piece of music on a system and accurately describe the position of instruments and vocalists. It is repeatable. So therefore the phonomenon exists within a recording. How it is achieved is a different issue. Sure some of it is artifical, and at other times it is due to skilled recording techniques. Never the less it is part of the recording, and can't be reproduced by headphones. It is possible to hear the amount of reflection or ambient information in a recording, but the spatial scope of the recording is lost. As you may guess, I am not a fan of headphones. In theory they should eliminate alot of issues. Room reflections are taken out of the equation. bass response has a unique texture to it that loudpseakers cannot replicate. Each ear is fed the precise signal, so it should be better. Yet the scale of amusic presentation is lost. Or the illusion of a musical peformance. So that is why I am not a fan of them. This is a long post. But I am reminded of another matter. A couple of years ago I bought a pair of Acoustat 1+1 speakers. Wonderful condition, and well regarded electrostats. I didnt't keep them because the longer I listened to them, everything sounded the same. Recodings that should have sounded different did not. All music had the same feel or signature to it. I dont know if it was due to the thicker nature of the mylar sheet that Acoustat used. Or if it was due to the transformers that comprised the crossover network(actually more of a filter system). But I do know what I heard. Recordings that should not have sounded the same did. Now it can be construed that I am using the "something is wrong with your gear since you cant hear what I hear" arguement. Thats a valid point. All I ask, if possible is this. If you listen to the same tracks on a decently set up pair of speakers, are your experiences replicated. I am not sure that headphones are capable of displaying the differences between the two formats. Or at least it makes it harder to hear. This is a long post, but thanks for taking the time to see it to the end. Al I am trying to do is hold an intelligent discussion of what people experience. Not just what is theoretically possible. Some of the posts in this thread have gotten boarderline nasty, although I understand the posters point of reference. I may not have he technical background to understand how the software behind the SB works, but in the end I know what I hear. Personally I would prefer it if the lossless system worked as well. It would save me disc space, and make transfering music to IPODS even more convenient. But in the end, all I want is the best sound possible. Regards Mister Pig -- mister pig ------------------------------------------------------------------------ mister pig's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=12566 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=38258 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/audiophiles
