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From: ben@moncol.UUCP (Bennett Broder)
Newsgroups: net.audio
Subject: Re: A-B CD comments
Message-ID: <260@moncol.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 21-Apr-85 18:17:19 EST
Article-I.D.: moncol.260
Posted: Sun Apr 21 18:17:19 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 26-Apr-85 20:38:23 EST
References: <140@omen.UUCP>
Organization: Monmouth College, West Long Branch, NJ 07764
Lines: 43


>)i don't remember the type of headphones being posted in the original
>)article.  about the only pair of headphones that i am sure almost no-one
>)will dispute as a reference set are stax pro's.  having the good fortune
>)to know someone who owns a pair, i use them when i can.
>)
>)Herb Chong...
>
>They were comparing CD players, not speakers or phones!  Unless both the
>speakers and phones used block out the same portions of the audio spectrum,
>the DIFFERENCES should have still been audible unless all the listeners
>were total tin ears (seems unlikely) or the cat was meowing too loudly.

Wrong.  The problem with using the BOSE speakers is not one of
frequency response.  In fact, it would be foolish to compare CD
players on the basis of frequency response because they are all so
good in this regard.  The primary differences in the sonic performance
between various models is caused by phase anomolies introduced when
filtering out aliases and smoothing the signal.  Less successful
designs manifest themselves in a couple of ways:
  1. A harshness or hardness to the trebles, particularly noticable on
      female vocals and violin strings.
  2. A loss of precise and stable instrument positions in the stereo
     image.

The BOSE tends to be very forgiving of suboptimal sources, and might
lack the resolution to differentiate between the players. More importantly,
the quality of the stereo image cannot be judged with any pair of
headphones, and is all but impossible to judge with a direct
reflecting loudpeaker like the BOSE 901.  

Of course, the original poster of the comparison did not claim to be
providing a definitive review of the players, rather to report the
results of an informal comparison.  Readers with top quality
audiophile equipment might prefer to perform the comparison themselves
or to rely on a review done by a professional reviewer using reference
quality components.

                                Ben Broder
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                                ..vax135!petsd!moncol!ben
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