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Shifting absolutes

I read Mr Valin's recent review of the Raidho 4.1. Previously, I was under the impression that the absolute sound was based on neutrality and fidelity to the source material. Now I read that the ultimate loudspeaker incorporates various distortions (bass bumps, damped highs and the like) designed to enhance the sound of the source material. As per Mr Valin, if we obtain these speakers, we will likely need to install extra bass traps and play with port plugs, in order to tame the distortions that were intentionally incorporated into the speaker design. This is all presented so logically and with such confidence. Am I missing something?
psag
zd542
5,339 posts
 
If your reading that from an audio magazine, its more likely that they are missing something, not you. As far as I know, the absolute sound in audio is referred to an actual instrument, voice, etc being played live. So if you are somewhere listening to someone play a piano, the piano itself is the absolute sound. If you are trying to reproduce the absolute sound, the idea is to get the sound as close as possible to the live event; nothing added or taken away. Anyway, that's how I've always understood it.
stringreen's avatar
stringreen
5,112 posts
 
Yes but everything sounds different in different venues. I am a violinist, well acquainted with the sound of my instrument, but in each hall I play, it sounds like a different instrument. There are no absolutes
ngjockey
1,042 posts
 
Bass bumps are typical for any speaker in any room, depending on the listening position. Hard to avoid. Maybe those bass bumps were better for his room/position.

Wouldn't be surprized if anyone who thought his system was "neutral", or even "bright", then actually did some measurements found that it was tapered off by 10 dB or more by 10 kHz.

The more measurements I do, the more I realize that frequency response is just the tip of the iceberg and often fails to describe the sound. Certainly not absolutely.
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