The Absolute Sound vs Pleasing Sound

Thanks frogman these precisions about blind test improvisation and timbre perception had to come from a professional musician to correct hasty conclusions about the real value and limitations of blind test especially in this case...

There is not doubts that there is luthier genius today and the test has the merit to reveal one, but like you said it is IMPOSSIBLE to assess an instrument value in this kind of test and justifying irrational opinion like stradivarius reputation are ONLY biases....




My deepest regards....

Frog, what you said about great instruments, their complexities and unique character is applicable to people as well.
I have never heard any of those famous violins live.

The logical fallacy of blindtest, in audio or music, when they are used out of their narrow usefulness window function, to reveal the reality or deceptiveness of small change that are not evident at first, is that they suppose that a DEFINITIVE judgement is possible out of the normal context and habit where the judgement is produced usually...Like a violin stradivarius compared to a modern one...Or an audiophile assessing without stress a small change in his system in his room with his files...


The use of blindtest in statistical medical procedure is another story completely... It is there they reveal the most important facet of their power , eliminating the human biases from the medical experiment...But assessing the value of a violin ask to the player the exact opposite, a mastering of the instrument, using his experienced biases or learning personal experience, impossible in most improvised blindtest...The listeners also must be experienced and in his normal  circonstances or near them....

Wasn't that test about how audience hears it and not how the player feels while playing it? In any case, we can say there is too many variables and avoid going into the abyss of what is right.

Violins are slowly getting extinct and music these days depends on integrated circuits, resistors, and other things in similar direction rather than on a craftsman trying to surpass Guarneri. Same goes for the piano stores. Dwindling and dwindling for a reason. As sad as all of that may be. Once upon a time, harpsichord was a big thing, too.

Alas! there is truth in this change of world....