Playground for practical listening exercises

[springwood64]

I've listened again to the clips to ask myself which I prefer, setting aside my experience in the room.

I prefer 'after' (B), so I think the clips convey some of the changes in the room.

Tonally I think I prefer A, but I find B more engaging. In the room, tonally and soundwise I definitely prefer current to before, and also find it more engaging.

I don't think I hear what you're hearing Spannko, so I will try to dig out some older recordings for another comparison. I also can't hear what you describe, Fredrik.

I'm listening on my PC through headphones, so I wonder if you are both listening to the clips on something more revealing?

[Spannko]

I think Pete should believe in his humming family!

There’s a lot to be said for this, beck!

[lejonklou]

I’m listening with iPhone 15 Pro and AirPods Pro 2.

I hear the same thing when listening through the phone speakers. For instance the timing of the tuba. On A it’s syncopated (I hope that’s the correct way to describe it), on B it just blends in with the whole, likely causing a sense of elevated tempo.

[beck]

The tuba is on the beat the whole way through (not syncopated) therefore together with the rest.

[lejonklou]

Yes, on the beat. So syncopated was the wrong word.

But what I’m talking about is exactly where he is on the beat, which to me differs. Timing.

[beck]

I get you but we have to agree to disagree. To me B er the more natural timing.

[lejonklou]

OK, so you hear the difference.

I’m not entirely convinced of which is more natural or accurate. What I hear is that it tilts the song in different directions. I prefer listening to A but do find some things better in B. So the choice is not clear cut to me.

My guess is that the multiple changes consist of both positive and negative contributions. This would cause the mixed feelings and also the split of the votes. If I may guess further, I think the new position of the speakers is positive and bungs in the ports negative (although they may remove some in-room nastiness).

[Charlie1]

Yesterday, for the first time I found myself appreciating the sparse but compelling bass line of Police's Tea In The Sahara. I've owned this album (Synchronicity) for 40 years, and yesterday was the first time I enjoyed that track.

Great song - might be my fav on that album :)

[springwood64]

My guess is that the multiple changes consist of both positive and negative contributions. This would cause the mixed feelings and also the split of the votes. If I may guess further, I think the new position of the speakers is positive and bungs in the ports negative (although they may remove some in-room nastiness).

Well, that's easy to test with some more clips.

[tpetsch]

On B the bass notes sound sharper like quick out of time fart bursts, whilst on A the notes develop more fully and freely better developing/integrating into the more natural & tuneful musical performance of the two, but I can hear why B may sound better in a frequency response sort of way for some listeners.

[beck]

I think hifi is a good but flawed attempt at playing music. We all have to choose our preferred compromises.

[springwood64]

But what I’m talking about is exactly where he is on the beat, which to me differs. Timing.

Yes I can hear that difference on my phone speakers too.

On B the bass notes sound sharper like quick out of time fart bursts, whilst on A the notes develop more fully and freely better developing/integrating into the more natural & tuneful musical performance.

I hear that sharper definition.

When comparing clips I have not listened for those sort of differences. I think my comparison is more emotional, and less forensic.

I sing along and consider my response to the music and how much I want it to continue.

Perhaps that's why I'm easily lead astray!

[Spannko]

How long has your system been in this final configuration Pete? The BBC used to think that it took about 4 weeks for the cracks to start to appear, so if you’re still enjoying your new sound after about a month ……….. 😁

[springwood64]

How long has your system been in this final configuration Pete? The BBC used to think that it took about 4 weeks for the cracks to start to appear, so if you’re still enjoying your new sound after about a month ……….. 😁

Oooh - just over a month. Too early to say then 😁

[Whatsmynaim]

If you decide to experiment further then remove the bungs and instead put foam on the wall directly behind the rear facing port.
So whatever noise is caused by the port could be lowered quite a bit. Well, hopefully.

[beck]

Pete: “I sing along and consider my response to the music and how much I want it to continue.”

To me that is the only sensible way to do it.

[lejonklou]

Thank you Pete/springwood64 for being so open minded and not rejecting our impressions of the clips that you post!

This is grand and the sign of a truly scientific mind in my opinion. It would be much easier to say ”I hear what I hear and the clips don’t capture it”. But the clips, with all of their flaws and reductions, do have something of significance to tell: The fundamentals are all that’s left in those distorted recordings. And although the in-room impressions might differ, the fundamentals are still there and turn out to be very important.

Pete: “I sing along and consider my response to the music and how much I want it to continue.”

To me that is the only sensible way to do it.

Yes, I agree from an enjoyment perspective. But in order to reach further heights, one needs to be both emotional and ”forensic”. I believe this is what the Tune Method is all about: Enjoyment and analysis.

Enjoyment alone can sometimes be the result of a change of character. It brings out new perspectives but sadly it doesn’t last for long. Many of us fall into this trap and after a while we need another change to spark our interest. But the interest should come from our understanding of the music and not from how it’s presently being tinted. We need to look beyond that.

Analysis alone will quickly lead you astray, as you will find the perception of ”more information” as positive, ignoring that the musical enjoyment has actually decreased, even if ever so slightly. Slightly more chaos is often perceived as more information or a bigger soundstage, but it detracts from our overall understanding and enjoyment of the music. So it will, as well, leave you soon wanting something new.

Music properly reproduced becomes a reward in itself, leaving you invigorated and wanting more of it. And any well performed music will make sense, no matter how unfamiliar it may seem or how bad the recording is.

Thank you all for participating in this enlivening discussion! I appreciate it a lot and find it very inspiring. No matter what your opinions are on the specific topic at hand.

[markiteight]

Perhaps this is a discussion for a separate thread,

I agree! Perhaps this one would be an appropriate place to continue this discussion. Personally, I would love to see an ongoing conversation about peoples' interpretation of the Tune Method, how we use it, and how we can improve our techniques.

I'll split the thread here and move the responses to springwood64's post to the More Tune Method Talk thread. Let's pick up the discussion there!

-Moderator

[Errol]

Now and Then

R https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NvQDd3 ... sp=sharing
L https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pJBIWI ... sp=sharing

Getting better?

[lejonklou]

Yes!

[Charlie1]

Yeah, miles better for me too.

[beck]

Yeah, miles better for me too.

+1

[springwood64]

Yeah, miles better for me too.

+1

[matthias]

Yes!

+1

[tpetsch]

Yes.