Because true music (Live) has distortions, good ones and bad ones. once recorded, they may NOT be captured and when reproduced, that "good distortion" is now gone
If Warmth Is a Distortion, Why Do So Many Audiophiles Still Defend It?
Hi everyone, this is my first post here. If it stirs some emotions — that’s not a bad thing. It means we’re all still passionate about this hobby.
As AI becomes capable of recreating any sound signature — warm, tube-like, analogue, ultra-wide, hyper-detailed, and everything in between — I’m starting to think the real future of audio lies in neutral, transparent, dynamic, and accurate hardware, while many of the “flavours” we chase may soon become software choices.
Over time, a few things have stood out to me:
• Warmth is pleasant, but it’s still coloration.
Beautiful, yes — but not accuracy, not transparency, and not always the artist’s intention.
• Warm gear enhances some tracks but softens accuracy in others.
Especially vocals, piano, violin, guitar, and other acoustic instruments. Some people hear this, some don’t, and some just prefer it that way.
• Modern Class D deserves more respect than it gets.
Many older audiophiles dismiss it based on outdated assumptions. But the latest designs are already extremely neutral, fast, and precise. I’m not sure how much longer Class A/AB will remain relevant beyond nostalgia and brand loyalty.
• Price reflects real quality only up to a point.
Beyond that, it becomes about branding, house sound, and personal bias. Preference is fine — but preference isn’t the same as absolute fidelity.
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⭐ Why I May Not Respond Immediately
This post is meant as a sharing of thoughts, not a debate I plan to defend point by point.
If I don’t reply right away, it’s because I’m taking time to read, think, and learn from others’ perspectives here.
Posting in good faith — looking forward to all views, supportive or critical.
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Dear @coronado2 @ghdprentice @hkcharlie :"A live orchestra typically sounds warm Yes if you are seated at 15-20 rows from the Orchestra but live MUSIC in a Hall or not is everything but warm. To really appreciate live MUSIC we have to seat at near field position.In this way MUSIC is has extremely faster transsient intruments response from where all MUSIC harmonics are developed and guess wha tMUSIC is/with: powerful dynamics natural color, natural brigthness, natural agressivity and even sometimes with harsness and ovbiously accurated and never " calm/warm/sweetness.
You just try to do it as hear a horn at 2-3m or a piano or even a violin at live SPLs.
Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS, R. |
@rauliruegas Very well expressed. He and I are perhaps the only posters on this thread who value high fidelity to the real thing. The others are in the preference anything goes camp. What is live music? Sure, it can be heard from the 20th row. But objective measurements and educated listeners confirm that there is much loss of musical info at that distance. HF in particular are dramatically lost via absorption of small wavelengths and many ambient reflections so the 20th row and even the 5th row is warm. Everything is mush compared to the 1st row. As a musician, I am privileged to experience even greater musical detail from the stage. Listening to my stand partner, I am amazed at the raw clarity I hear from him/her, precision of bow attacks, nuances, etc. When I bring my friends to hear live musicians from a few feet away, the honest ones say their audio systems are dull by comparison. Only a few years ago, I heard what a golf club hitting the ball really sounds like. It is bright, aggressive, hard, not at all sweet, unlike the muffled sound I heard from TV. I doubt if anyone with even a SOTA home theater system hears this clarity when he watches golf matches. Understand that musicians produce sound by scraping the string, hitting the taut string of the piano mechanism with a hammer, or creating turbulence blasting the air from brass. From the 20th row, you hear almost none of this. You are missing most of the subtleties of real music. As a child, I heard all these real sounds of nature and musical instruments close up. I wasn't corrupted by the dead sound of most audio systems. As an adult with rudimentary audio, I felt I could never experience this natural excitement. I have come quite close to true high fidelity by these experiences and selection of electrostatic speakers, accurate SS electronics, etc. I encourage the preference crowd to take a break from audio, go out into nature and find reality. Listen to the crisp leaves as you step on them, various bird calls, car tires on a dirt road, the raw-scary bark of a big dog close to you, the delicate sounds of deer running thru the grass. In the kitchen, listen to running water, utensils and pots. On the driveway, note the harsh sounds of power tools. None of these sounds are sweet, but they are coherent and smooth. |
Some posters seem to be confusing the noises performers can make with the music they make. Audience members are not the conductor. The conductor is actually supposed to hear everything, but the audience is not. The audience is supposed to hear the music of an ensemble played in an acoustic space. That sound can be warm or not be warm. A question to all -- do you want a recording to capture all the sounds of a live performance, say an orchestra. The sounds coming from the lobby when the doors are opened/closed, audience member coughing/sneezing, score pages turning, chairs squeaking, someone snoring, HVAC noise, etc. As always there are exceptions. Cage's 4'33 is all about the sounds you hear. |
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