Reviewers with trustworthy anechoic data produce far more reliable opinions
Evidence
Loudspeaker reviewers who have access to trustworthy anechoic data have an enormous advantage. The headphone equivalent is measurements on an industry compliant test fixture. Their data are stable and meaningful references: facts. Double-blind comparative listening tests may not be possible, but by listening before measuring, and comparing what is heard to the measurements adds substance the opinions being offered. This is a welcome development for the industry, because well-designed products can be recognized and get credit. Readers also learn that measurements are important information. — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1951
Categorization
Category: Craft and Method
Related
- Highly trained listeners can repeat subjective judgments with remarkable consistency (similarity 0.88)
- Subjective audio opinions can behave like facts when gathered under controlled conditions (similarity 0.86)
- Reliable subjective ratings are prerequisites for validating technical measurements (similarity 0.86)
- Subjective tests have no right answers because each listener’s perception is unique (similarity 0.84)
- Most listeners can recognize audio excellence when comparing loudspeakers side by side. (similarity 0.84)
- Measured data can challenge subjective impressions because conditions differ (similarity 0.83)
- Accurate anechoic data plus blind listening tests make psychoacoustic correlations emerge quickly (similarity 0.83)
- Roughly 75 percent of people have sufficiently normal hearing to make reliable loudspeaker judgments (similarity 0.83)
- Reliable panel listeners show low variance and wide rating ranges (similarity 0.83)
- Objective measurements routinely expose flaws that subjective listening reviews miss (similarity 0.82)
- Subjective experience dictates which measurements matter in audio research (similarity 0.82)
- Naive and trained listeners agree closely on loudspeaker quality ratings (similarity 0.82)
- Musicians make poor or unreliable subjective loudspeaker evaluators (similarity 0.82)
- Blind listening tests make subjective sound judgments objective and repeatable (similarity 0.82)
- Statistically confirmed listener preference for neutral timbre with deep bass (similarity 0.81)
Broader Connections
- Subjective audio opinions can behave like facts when gathered under controlled conditions
#expands(0.85) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 35 - Highly trained listeners can repeat subjective judgments with remarkable consistency
#expands(0.75) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1037