Whatever Happened To The Audiophile?
.
http://www.npr.org/2011/03/05/134256...the-audiophile
"There are still people willing to drop a large chunk of their income on the best audio equipment available, says music professor Mark Katz. "That said," he adds, "the landscape — or perhaps soundscape — has changed."
Then came the barbaric revolution.
Loudness became more important than clarity. The richness and warmth of a recording was replaced by tinniness and splash.
My contribution to the NPR thread
I have learned from these comments that there are many NPR fans who can think for themselves. Nice range of comments. A few of mine...
It seems the multitasking lifestyle, that is not sitting down and listening to music by itself, does narrow the demographic for high fidelity music enjoyment. You don't need hifi for background music.
You also don't need it to reproduce junk carefully. It speaks volumes that the industry was astonished when a lot of frequently downloaded music started to cost something and sales vanished. People will eat a so-so meal for free but won't pay restaurant prices for it, if they know anything about their choices.
The loudness war sure demonstrates the lack of knowledge and experience among listeners. No one cares when no one knows the difference.
Analogue, it should be remembered, is equivalent to about 13 bit resolution. It has its charms, but GOOD well done digital has much more potential. I too lament the apparent death of the technology behind SACD, the Sony DSD system that Telarc was using. Megahertz capture beats analogue tape every time. For a system that came about as a response to theft it sure sounds nice.