Playground for practical listening exercises

[beck]

Sitting at a piano playing along with your clips I choose 2 in all sets just because I can get the piano to blend in better with the performance........ :-)

[Paaf]

So this set of pairs is for matthias and Spannko:

1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/8i7igr7jpftu6 ... 1.mp4?dl=0
2. https://www.dropbox.com/s/oivahlxtbpc47 ... 9.mp4?dl=0

1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/nba1h175yjr51 ... 4.mp4?dl=0
2. https://www.dropbox.com/s/14gnt1h29oca7 ... 1.mp4?dl=0

1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/vtraj14na4h1p ... 7.mp4?dl=0
2. https://www.dropbox.com/s/115frao6y49ay ... 9.mp4?dl=0

In my ears, 2 is much more tuneful. Very impressed!

[matthias]

David,
what a great sounding system!
Number two is my number one for all pairs, the music makes MUCH more sense.
Thank you.

Matt

[lejonklou]

Thank you David for a very enjoyable comparison.

Perhaps these clips should be posted in the HAKAI section as well? In a new thread named "comparative clips" or similar?

If you could do that, it would be great! I think it could make a lot of people interested in building a HAKAI.

[Azazello]

Prefer 2

Hugh difference in presentation! To the point That I had to listen serveral times to convince myself it’s the same song!

[David Neel]

Fredrik, who told you which was which? Or did you cheat and look at the videos as well as listen?!

Yes, the first of each pair is my ADS/3, and the second is HAKAI. In the clips it has a N3050N-D2P motherboard, as the 3150 is suspect and the J3455 failed. It seems to have lost its earlier "thin" sound as burn-in continues.

Interestingly, this comparison was with the new powerstrip which failed so miserably on its last outing here. Today it had a 60 minute warm-up. Spannko's theory is being investigated, and I will reprise that comparison. I have also now noticed that checking the trimming on the Tundra Monos reveals that 30 minutes is the approximate time to recover from a quick powerdown.

I will try to work out a way of preserving these clips - my dropbox is only 2Gb, which is why I keep deleting the clips.

[matthias]

These clips show in an examplary way that the DAC has a low ranking in the hierarchy of a digital system.

Matt

[teatime]

I will try to work out a way of preserving these clips - my dropbox is only 2Gb, which is why I keep deleting the clips.

Why not record audio only? The resulting files would be tiny in comparison.

[lejonklou]

I will try to work out a way of preserving these clips - my dropbox is only 2Gb, which is why I keep deleting the clips.

Why not record audio only? The resulting files would be tiny in comparison.

This is due to a finding that is now several years old:

When using your iPhone (I don't know exactly how the situation is with other phones and their apps) to record clips, sound quality is always best when recording video. Sound recording apps do something to the quality which makes them musically poor and therefore difficult to compare with, while the video recording is surprisingly musical.

It was several iPhone generations ago (I think 5S) when I first experienced this and it appears to hold true for every model since.

[teatime]

sound quality is always best when recording video.

Wow, that's.. unexpected.

But surely extracting the audio stream post recording would work? A bit more work, of course..

[lejonklou]

sound quality is always best when recording video.

Wow, that's.. unexpected.

But surely extracting the audio stream post recording would work? A bit more work, of course..

That should probably work! I haven't tried it.

[Charlie1]

Same as everyone else, prefer 2. Easier to follow, more in tune. That's quite an achievement for a fraction of the cost.

[Tendaberry]

I agree, 2 is more tuneful. Especially revealing on the last pairing: in the first one it sounded like someone who was practising, in the second one it was a concert performance.

[Spannko]

David,

The 30 min re-warm period is really interesting. I'd have said 10-15 mins to re-stabilise, but it's clear that it takes a little longer and having the objective data to back it up is brilliant!

I must admit, I'm not finding the Akurate Vs Hakai comparison as clear cut as everyone else. I'm having a slight preference for the Akurate, but it's very close. So close that I can't rule out any cognitive biases on my part. It feels as though the Akurate is slightly more coherent and the Hakai slightly more dissonant - the sort of difference that would show up after extensive listening with a wide variety of music. It would be interesting to hear how you get on with the Hakai over time.

[David Neel]

The 30 min re-warm period is really interesting. I'd have said 10-15 mins to re-stabilise, but it's clear that it takes a little longer and having the objective data to back it up is brilliant!

Let me clarify: I found the multimeter reading on the Tundra Mono trim pot was still out after about 5-10 minutes, but spot on after about 30. I didn't have the dedication to test every five minutes, or check the interval accurately, so apologies if I'm being conservative.

[David Neel]

I must admit, I'm not finding the Akurate Vs Hakai comparison as clear cut as everyone else. I'm having a slight preference for the Akurate, but it's very close. So close that I can't rule out any cognitive biases on my part. It feels as though the Akurate is slightly more coherent and the Hakai slightly more dissonant - the sort of difference that would show up after extensive listening with a wide variety of music. It would be interesting to hear how you get on with the Hakai over time.

I've been through ups and downs with HAKAI. I relate to your comment about coherence/dissonance. You pointed out about previous clips (now deleted) that:

Both of the first clips sounded to me as though they were really struggling with the rhythm and tune.

- that was the HAKAI NAS you were referring to, and I have felt a bit of this too. But when I reassembled it as a streamer, it seems to now be burning in enough for this to have (almost) disappeared. When I stopped recording clips and just listened last evening, I thought it was performing a little bit better still than in the clips. I will report back after time, though.

[David Neel]

Can anybody describe the difference between these two?

1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/3wa12bxrjhlfh ... 1.mp4?dl=0
2. https://www.dropbox.com/s/phat3n5eujt35 ... 0.mp4?dl=0

[Charlie1]

The 2nd clips flows more easily for me. 1st clip feels like the brakes are on a little.

I can understand if someone said they preferred the sound quality of clip 1. Clip 2 is a bit more rough and ready.

Clip 2 seems a fraction louder but perhaps that's just perception due to the rougher sound.

[David Neel]

Thanks. The volume may slightly out on this pair, the second one may be a notch louder as you suggest.

[lejonklou]

Fredrik, who told you which was which? Or did you cheat and look at the videos as well as listen?!

Yes, the first of each pair is my ADS/3, and the second is HAKAI. In the clips it has a N3050N-D2P motherboard, as the 3150 is suspect and the J3455 failed. It seems to have lost its earlier "thin" sound as burn-in continues.

I didn't cheat on purpose, I just looked at the videos while listening.

[beck]

I must admit, I'm not finding the Akurate Vs Hakai comparison as clear cut as everyone else. I'm having a slight preference for the Akurate, but it's very close. So close that I can't rule out any cognitive biases on my part. It feels as though the Akurate is slightly more coherent and the Hakai slightly more dissonant - the sort of difference that would show up after extensive listening with a wide variety of music. It would be interesting to hear how you get on with the Hakai over time.

I am with you on it not being clear cut at all. My personal comments where only directed by the piano blend in. Listening through a PA system I do think that long term I would choose the Akurate...........

[Charlie1]

I am with you on it not being clear cut at all. My personal comments where only directed by the piano blend in. Listening through a PA system I do think that long term I would choose the Akurate...........

I'm hearing it the other way around now, preferring clip 1 :(

[Spannko]

The 30 min re-warm period is really interesting. I'd have said 10-15 mins to re-stabilise, but it's clear that it takes a little longer and having the objective data to back it up is brilliant!

Let me clarify: I found the multimeter reading on the Tundra Mono trim pot was still out after about 5-10 minutes, but spot on after about 30. I didn't have the dedication to test every five minutes, or check the interval accurately, so apologies if I'm being conservative.

Excellent, thank you for clarifying.

Has anyone else timed how long it takes their amps to stabilise after being turned off momentarily?

[Spannko]

These are getting hard! I think I would give it to clip 2 by half a head, the piano appears to sound a bit more sonorous and tuned compared to clip 1 - maybe!

[beck]

Can anybody describe the difference between these two?

1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/3wa12bxrjhlfh ... 1.mp4?dl=0
2. https://www.dropbox.com/s/phat3n5eujt35 ... 0.mp4?dl=0

This is one of the reasons why I feel lucky about being a vinyl freak. Digital work in very mysterious ways. I cannot give you a good answer other than they do sound different.

As with all your different clips and setups in the end you have to observe how YOU react when listening. Get out of evaluation mode and into enjoyment mode relaxing into the music. What gives you most plessure enjoying the music.