Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site tellab1.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!ihnp4!tellab1!etan From: etan@tellab1.UUCP (Nate Stelton) Newsgroups: net.audio Subject: Re: Re: Tighter bass and edgeless piano Message-ID: <597@tellab1.UUCP> Date: Mon, 23-Sep-85 14:09:06 EDT Article-I.D.: tellab1.597 Posted: Mon Sep 23 14:09:06 1985 Date-Received: Tue, 24-Sep-85 23:41:00 EDT References: <1636@druxu.UUCP> Reply-To: etan@tellab1.UUCP (Nate Stelton) Organization: Tellabs, Inc., Lisle, IL Lines: 43 Summary: In article <1636@druxu.UUCP> tlz@druxu.UUCP (ZrustTL) writes: > What is >meant by tigntening bass and taking edges off of piano as it relates >to things that happen to the specifications of audio equipment? >Since something must happen (changes can be heard by the "finest >and most sensitive instruments -- OUR EARS") then this obviously >MUST be measurable by any reasonable test equipment (which clearly is >less subjective and EVEN MORE SENSITIVE then our ears. tightening the bass: To me this refers to damping. When the bass player mutes his string, the speaker cone, due to inertia, does not come to a complete stop, like the bass string did. It tries to, though. There are damping specs on speakers and power amplifiers that reflect this. (Perhaps some kind expert could post some guidelines as to what the ranges to shop for are.) Poor damping results in mushy (i.e. "not tight") bass sound. No EQ in the world can correct this. taking the edge off the piano: Now this sounds to me like an EQ function. Doing this usually requires a thin notch filter set to the "edgy" frequency. Here's a different one for you: Can you hear the stick hit the cymbal? This is not always answered the same for every 20-20k system. I have 2 cassette decks that have the same freq ranges, but a cymbal hit by a stick sounds like a "tick" as recorded by one and "sshh" by the other. This is transient response, and can be illustrated by inputting a 20kHz square wave into the equipment in question and observing the output's rise time. Look for slew rate specs; a high number means that, among other things, a piano will sound more like the real thing. I could continue with phase, TIM, and harmonic distortion, and then on to room acoustics and still only scratch the surface concerning the measurable virtues of a good-sounding sound system that have nothing to do with frequency response. All can be measured with today's test equipment and be attributed to such things as mushy or smeary sound, or poor imaging or detail. >Is there another domain of sound reproduction that has escaped >detection by electronic instruments but is be obvious to the ear? I doubt it. Some people (including myself) are just not always able to relate these measurable parameters to what they hear. -etan Brought to you by Super Global Mega Corp .com