BAASnotes.com – Bay Area Audiophile Society

How musical are you – really?

Go to this link to take a very interesting “test” of your musical skills and proclivities.

You’ll also be helping the BBC with their research.

Hint: A couple of the tests take a while to load. Don’t do what I did and skip them. You will get a low score! (Like me….)

Enjoy,

Bob

Throw on some vinyl – literally

I suspect that many of our analog members are wincing….

Bob

Attend the California Audio Show and BAAS Membership is only $10

The California Audio Show (CAS) is running a promotion wherein BAAS members get a $10 discount on their 3-day tickets.

Since the membership fee for BAAS is only $20, new members can essentially join BAAS for free!

Just follow the link above to join, and I’ll send you the link for the $10 discount to CAS.

Great deal for Bay Area audiophiles….

Bob

“Dramatically New” Living Stereo Video

The Beginnings of BAAS

On 9/26/95, the notice below was posted on the rec.audio.high-end newsgroup by one of Dennis Davis’ officers. (Dennis was president.)

This current incarnation of BAAS was a restart of the earlier “Northern California Audiophile Society.” This, in turn, sent the “other BAAS” into a bit of a tail-slide.

Much more recently, BASS was used as the inspiration and template for the Shanghai Aidiophile Society.

Bob

Video Evolution of an Audiophile’s System

What percentage of components shown can you identify?

Bob

New Book from Ethan Winer Has Audiophile Appeal

Ethan Winer has been an outspoken critic of the more extreme — some would say mainstream (!) — aspects of our hobby. In fact, his (in)famous Audio Myths Video has been the subject of both scorn and admiration. The guy is certainly opinionated.

But he’s also knowledgable, passionate, and – it turns out – an excellent writer. All of this comes out in his new book: The Audio Expert – All You Need to Know About Audio.

Rather than go into details here, just read my short review on Amazon. Suffice to say, I think that many of you would find the book both useful and enjoyable.

Bob

The Beatles, Scotty Pippin, and Mr. Smith

Hilarious. For more like this, see Scott Gairdner’s web site. Enjoy.

Bob

(Thanks, DavidH!)

BAAS Audiophile Market Survey 2012 – Final Numbers

Final results are in, and they reflect a more balanced result.

In fact, it’s almost as if every vinyl enthusiast, concert-goer, and non-East-Bay resident went to the polls to retort.

Anyway, here they are….

Bob

Computer Audio and Audiogon Big Winners in BAAS Audiophile Market Survey 2012

Preliminary results are in, and “segment leaders” include:

• Computer Audio
• Audiogon
• California Audio Show; and
• East Bay (!)

The results also suggest that a third of members don’t attend live events, and half our membership don’t attend BAAS events. Many audiophiles mst be riveted to their home systems!

Complete results follow. I will update if trends changes as more members report.

Bob

Ultra-high-end MSB Digital Source Impresses

Don Naples of Wood Artistry called me last Wednesday and said that he had the gear from the Axpona show back and asked whether BAAS would like to use it. Initially I demurred…until I heard that the system included the superb MSB Signature line – optical player, DAC, clock, and volume control unit. A long-time MSB fan, I bit and we put together a quick event in record time.

I must say that the ~$30K MSB units looked great and sounded better. Complementing the MSB stack were six channels of PASS Labs amplification and the excellent Linkwitz-designed “Orion” open-baffle speakers.

The system came more and more alive as the 4-hour gig proceeded, thanks to both the normal warmup dynamics and some judicious room tuning. By day’s end, I dare say that we had reference-quality sound.

Many thanks, Don (and MSB)!

Bob

Copyright Math – What’s Wrong with Media’s Loss Claims

Circuitlab.com – A Boon to DIY Audio Everywhere

I’ve spent the last few evenings running through some circuit analysis using new web-based modeling software on Circuitlab.

So far, I love it! It’s fairly comprehensive, the GUI builder works well, and has nice graphical output. And it’s free.

Circuitlab is especially good news for Mac users, filling a void in application coverage.

The most “basic” use of the product is for passive crossover design, but active designs of all types are also doable.

So what’s stopping you?

Bob

Are High-resolution Music Downloads “Senseless”?

Ensconced in my office at Untangle this afternoon, I was doing my daily regimen of high-tech reading when….I see an article on “24/192 downloads”appear on my favorite techie news service – Hacker News (HN). I read the xiph.org post - provocatively entitled “24/192 Music Downloads …and why they make no sense” - and made a comment or two in critique. My surprise was compounded when the post rose to the top of the HN chart…and stayed there.

Not only stayed there, but elicited hundreds of comments – from programmers! And the comments were permeated with subjectivism vs objectivism, room treatments, and of course pseudo-science. Just like the familiar audio forums! Could all of these geeks be closeted audiophiles? (If so, why aren’t they BAAS members?)

I don’t know the answer, but i will say that the article is well worth reading if you have an interest in how digital audio really works. Setting aside whether you buy its core premise, it is technically well-researched (includes links!), thorough, and lucid. With one or two exceptions, it’s also technically accurate. I think its major flaw is in vastly overstating the “high-resolution is actually bad” argument - unfortunate. The other glitches are quite minor, usually errors of omission rather than commission.

Enjoy it and, if you dare, comment on Hacker news!

Bob

Notes:  

1. The Xiph folks are champions of open-source media formats (e.g., Ogg Vorbis and FLAC). They generally know whereof they speak.

2. For the purpose of this article, I have assiduously avoided stating my opinions on the value of high sampling and/or bit-depth in reproduction. Rather, I have tried to focus on the technical merits of the Xiph article.

From uPenn, 007 Theme via Helicopters

Null Testing and Listening Testing of “Mastered for iTunes”

In this video, Ian Shepard of Production Advice in the UK compares a CD track to both its “raw” AAC coded form and a “Mastered for iTunes” rendition. I think that most of you will jump to the punchline early on, but the journey is interesting (for audio geeks).

On a related note, I wish that the audiophile industry would do more null testing to answer simple questions like: “does this cable sound different from that one?” It’s really not that difficult.

Bob

Audio Primer: Training Your Ears

Continuing on our recent technical theme, here’s a great site for training your ears to detect and describe sonic anomalies. It’s harder than you think. If you like what you hear, please support the author by buying one of the products on Quiztones. (The Golden Ears material is the sine quo non of the field – it’s great.)

One more bit of knowledge that you need to make pronouncements like “the lower mids are muddy” is a working definition of “bass/midrange/treble.” I personally use the mental hook of dividing the audio range into three ranges, separated by two easy-to-remember “corner frequencies”: 150hz and 1500hz. Piece of cake. You can find a more elaborate definition in the graphic.

Finally, it’s fair to ask about how these map to the musical concepts that we know or learned in school. The keyboard graphic below helps with this aspect.

Bob

Audio Primer: How the Pros Use EQ and Compression

Audiophiles are taught that equalization (EQ) and compression are BAD. However, used judiciously, they are useful or even GOOD.

Joe Gilder’s “Home Studio Corner” web site is one of the best resources on the web for learning how good-sounding recordings are put together. No, Joe’s home studio is neither Skywalker nor Abbey Roads in sophistication. But it’s quite nice, and Joe is a natural and giving teacher.

The material on EQ is a good building-block for the room correction work that we’ll do. The compression video is also quite interesting, showing that the technique has uses beyond the “loudness wars.”

Enjoy.

Bob

Audio Primer: Why Pink Noise is the Best Test Signal

Pink Noise

Few audiophiles share my passion for listening to test signals when evaluating equipment. That’s quite understandable.

But all would agree – from JA on down – that test signals are vital in measuring equipment and rooms. When measuring, the most common test signal in use is “pink noise.” But why?

Common answers include:

• It contains all frequency components
• It’s easy to use/generate
• It contains equal power per octave, and humans “hear” power; and
• It is natural

All of these are, of course, correct. But there’s a reason far closer to the audiophiles’ world: the pink noise spectral signature closely resembles that of music. It’s just that simple.

"Fly Away"

Not convinced? Compare the pink spectrum above to that of this Corinne May song that I chose at random. Except for the bottom few octaves, they share similar 10dB-per-decade falling slopes. This is not a coincidence.

The relatively weak bottom end (compared to pink noise) of this song is typical. Many recordings do not match the pink spectra down low. I believe this is a combination of music lacking sustained bass, EQ choices when mastering, and some loss of resolution of the FFT. But I don’t know for sure.

Lest you lose all hope for bass on CD’s and digital analysis thereof, check out Cowboy Junkies’ “Helpless” and Sting’s “Fields of Gold” (at bottom). These tracks are two of my bass references. And finally, we come to Max Richter’s “Blue Notebooks.” I know of no cut in my library with more bass extension -it’s nearly flat to 15hz!

You’ll get to hear a bit of pink noise at our upcoming room correction events.

Bob

"Helpless"

"Fields of Gold"

"Blue Notebooks"

Coolest Stereo Ever (If Apple Existed in 1961…)

Just lovely. Designed by the inimitable Dieter Rams, it featured a 6-tube amp and cord drive.

Affectionately called the “Snow White Coffin” by some. I wonder why….

Bob