Perception of a sonic event, or a train of sonic events is fundamentally a signal to noise experience or us. Refined listening aspects such as musical quality, soundstage and imaging come after and are entirely dependant on clarity in our perception of a sonic event. How much we can perceive is almost always determined by the sound masking effects of the event’s signal to noise ratio.

When we get great equipment and fire it off and hear no improvement. Is the dealer a crook? Not really. Is the manufacturer selling snake oil? No, usually not. Most of us work very hard and sincerely to capture, transmit and deliver great signals. But our perception of these great signals is clouded by the accompanying noise floor.

The human listener is helpless to differentiate between the direct signal and the early reflections that arrive within about 35ms, after the direct. It’s called the Haas Effect or Sound Fusion Time Window. The listener hears the sum of the direct + early reflections and is unable to separate them apart. It’s about our listening reaction time, and similar to how our eyes work, and why movies run at 24 frames per second. Clean early reflections are additive to the direct and helpful. Reverberant or otherwise phase distorted early reflected energies are not simple clean early reflections that add to the direct, they are scrambled up versions of the direct and as such create a masking noise floor that blocks our ability to perceive the direct. All this is going on within the first 1/30th second.

When we can’t perceive good sound, it’s because there is a noise floor blocking our view. This noise floor is usually an uncontrolled high speed reverberation build-up in the front of the room, where the sound is being created and while it is being created.

Uncontrolled low end buildup in the front of the room produces sound masking self noise floor that typically is louder than the direct signal, and both come from the same speaker. So when you can’t hear what you think you should be hearing, it’s no one’s fault. Don’t take the equipment back. It’s just that you reached the threshold of perception in your room. You were hoping that the front of your room would react faster and with more stability than you’ve provided for. When you can’t hear the electronic upgrade, it’s time to make the sonic upgrade, in the front of your room. Better sonics leads to percieving better electronics. In the communication world, it’s always the signal to noise ratio. The only question is who’s making the noise? How loud is it? And what can we do about it?

The concerned elderly husband went to the doctor; his spouse’s hearing was growing worse with the years, and he was looking for a humane way to convince her that, perhaps, a hearing aid was needed. After discussion the doctor advised that they must first determine by some means or other, the degree of hearing loss. The doctor suggested that the husband asks his wife a question from decreasing distances, until she shows hearing by replying.

Thus intended, the husband waited until his wife was preparing supper in the kitchen one night, stood at the end of the corridor and asked in normal voice: “What’s for supper, dear?”

No reply.

He went somewhat closer, repeating the question. Still no reply. This is bad, he thought. At last he was within 3m from her: “What’s for supper, dear?!”

She spun around, looked at him quizzically, and said:

“John! Whatever is the matter with you tonight? For the fourth time: CHICKEN!”

All a matter of hearing …..

another disease is called as an upgrade bud .. it never ends.. and we are never satisfied..

to the question… young people are audiophiles… i believe it .. i am one..

and there are many.. and will love to share experiences..

more words for what ? its all in there … 😀