Overcoming the Perception Problem
Reply #14 – 2012-10-09 12:35:33
The only people I know of to shun DBT method of testing audio equipment are those that live off them in some way (editors/writers of hifi magazines, hifi salesmen) and people who themselves believe in their superiority over the common plebs in terms of hearing. The first kind knows that utilizing DBT in their reviews would result in sales plummet, and the loss of income through payed reviews and advertising. Second ones are often technologically disabled, and are more prone to explain things to themselves (and, more dangerously, to others) through pure magic and rituals, than to actually learn what is going on, because the bubble they live in would burst. Now, you say DBT testing would somehow influence the listener and he wouldn't hear the difference because of reasons . Bear in mind that these people often claim the "sky-earth" difference between two DACs, for example, so I hardly believe that testing that difference over the course of time (a month, a year) would involve any stress, and that they wouldn't hear even the tiniest difference, if it really exists. That argument is so invalid - if you are so easily affected by switching buttons form A to B, X to Y, than I am sure that every listening to the same song is a new experience, and it sounds different altogether and that difference, either is there or is not, that difference does not exist only when we are casually listening to music. Humans can't telepathically effect the bitstream in DACs or optical cables yet. It doesn't care what are you feeling, it just - streams and decodes, over and over again, every time you play the song. I really don't care how the ABX testing in medical research works - I'm not into medicine at all, and for the hydrogenaudio's sake, it shouldn't matter. Only thing that matters is audio ABX test, which serves to individuals to see if they really can hear difference between two codecs, or two DACs, if they have equipment to set this up. Individuals set up the testing environment as they prefer (I like drinking cocoa, for example), and the test is straightforward in the results - either you can hear the difference, or you can't. If you can't, that doesn't mean there is none, it just means that you can't hear it. Someone else might. So, why do you try so hard to convince us that ABX isn't valid method?