Art Dudley's column in November Stereophile


https://www.stereophile.com/content/listening-203

It seems to me there's some provocative stuff here.  I liked the contention that all systems in all rooms produce some kind of distortion, so our preference for system A over B has most to do with which distortions we prefer.

He also lays into acoustic suspension designs, and some other stuff.

Discuss.


128x128twoleftears
I didnt read the article slowly but I dont recall him mentioning the distinct advantages of sealed enclosures. I also object to him mentioning the recommended components list as some sort of objective tome by which you can judge anything. I would gladly give up some efficiency to get what I think is almost the universally better bass which results from a sealed enclosure. There other things that give me pause but I am just not in the mood to really get into this at the moment. Just an issue of differing sonic priorities I guess. 
Stereophile is currently bursting with excellent writers, and Art Dudley is the best of the best.  That rag is an absolute joy to read.
I couldn't tell if that article was being serious, or was meant to be a joke. Let's assume it was serious ...

On acoustic suspension .... that came across as an ignorant rant. The implementation matters not, only the results. Whose speakers measure the lowest distortion? Magico. What loading do they use? Acoustic suspension. Case closed, rant negated, article launched towards garbage can.

Class-AB or Class-D are idle much of the time, and even listening to your music loud, the average power is quite low. If you want to rant, rant against Class-A heaters, not against a speaker that is most of the time getting less than a few watts average power .... the article, now circling the rim of the garbage can.

I didn't record the grand piano in my room, I recorded it in a concert hall or studio. I am not trying to create the sound of a grand piano playing in my room, I am trying to recreate the sound of a grand piano playing in another room. That whole paragraph is just mindless bloviating in an attempt to look erudite and relevant. The article now drops fully to the bottom of the garbage can.

Page 2? ... no, already put the trash out to the curb.