Audio Ignorance | Stopping The Audio-Ignorance

Blog Transferred to TheAudioIgnorance.co.cc

2012-05-18T22:01:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since i wrote to this blog,i'm thinking what the heck am i doing here,but anyways.

The Blog will stay up on a new address which is www.TheAudioIgnorance.co.cc which wont put me into paying fees,and if the Ads go good it may or may not go again on a proper TLD.

It started as an Encyclopedia about the most Misinformed Topics on Audio and that's what it does,although it gets outdated on some suggestions by the time.

If you read this for the first time go ahead and search the Archive,it will partly get any Questions away.

Blog is gonna get Archieved

2011-12-07T10:28:00.001-08:00

The Domain name of the Blog is gonna need a renew procedure in February of 12,since i don't have anything else to say for the moment,i might simply not renew it or leave it as blogspot.com.
In the first case i'll Archive the blog in a PDF File and offer it for free of charge as a link in my Youtube Page,and maybe Translate it to another Languages.

As i wrote a few things before like a year ago,i still think it's better to be widely available.

Criticizing "Snake-Oil" Criticists

2010-12-21T17:15:00.000-08:00

In this post i will criticize the audiophile criticists,the one who criticizes everything and turns everything into "Snake-Oil".

Anything you read expresses only my personal opinion which i got up with after ACTUAL testing that took up many hours for a single thing,and not whatever i've been told or talking in theory,or with what i believe like the anti-cable guys.

From what should i start? Cables? Biwiring?

I'm starting from Audiophile Speaker Cables:

I was an Anti-Cable guy before long time,i was believing anyone who was talking about difference in Audio Cables was crazy,till i decided to change my cables to get better as i changed my Speakers and i didn't wanted to have some 0.5$ Chinese ones on them.

The cable i got wasn't anything great but an Ixos Biwiring Cable that costs about 5$ per meter.

Once i put it on the one speaker i decided to keep the other one with the cheap cable and then test other cheap cables.

Notice: The Cables were having identical length,the old ones had ~30cm difference,the old ones were 0.75mm and the new ones 4x1mm if i remember right.

I played the songs that i know how they play on those speakers and this time on Mono.

Did i noticed any difference? With simple words,more than "a" difference!

The effect i got was almost as great as getting a better DAC,the sound really got lighted up instead of being dead and muddy,the detail of the sound improved but not magically,mostly because the Frequency Response changed so i boosted up frequencies i couldn't get,and i got mass in the whole range those speakers can play.

My Conclution: Three Cables - Three Sounds.
The difference in Sound between Audio Cables isn't necessarily an improvement even if you pay 10k for Cables,it really depends on the Sound you're looking for,but it can be a great improvement most times with a low budget like i managed to do with my setup.

Listening people saying i'm crazy and there's no difference because they believe there isn't really disturbs me.
If they say there's a difference but expensive cable doesn't worth the cost i will respect their opinion,if they say there isn't any difference and i'm crazy,i might be crazy but they are DEAF!

Biwiring:

Having the Biwiring cable i mentioned,i tested that too,and i also tested it Biwiring it with other different cable.

When the one speaker was Biwired and the other not,i clearly had a feeling that they were sounding the same,but the Biwired speaker's tweeter was more bright and more noticeable.

My Conclution: Biwiring sure does a difference when the same cable is used but it's not necessary,there are Singlewiring cables that can "sound" better than Biwiring cables.

Audiophile Powercords:

I really have no clue on that,i haven't made a test as all the amplifiers i owned or currently have,had or having unswappable power cord.

My Theory: There might be a difference and i have a lot of possible reasons of why.
For example if a cable is shielded it can deliver clean power (as clean as it gets on the outlet) than get dirty by interferences or by possibly tune to frequencies.

That's also the work of a Power Filter.

Sand in speaker stands,spikes,and such stuff:

Sand in speaker stands is being put to be heavy to reduce vibration/resonance.

Spikes bellow speakers because the smaller area that has contact with the floor,the less vibrations are transmitted.

Actually those are the most serious reasons,there are many others in which some of them will sound like a paranormal scam,and many of them that i admit i don't know.

Speaker breaking in,Cable breaking in:

I didn't noticed if there was any improvement after the theoritically breaking in period of Cables,in theory it supposed to have less skin effect,but discusing about Speaker Breaking in is at least stupid as everyone should know and have faced the truth.

After the speaker work enough the thiele/small properties are getting changed,that means it can produce lower frequencies as a breaked in suspension allows the cone to moves freely and the FS (Resonance Frequency) is going lower,sound more smooth and more detailed as the tweeter is being breaked in too and losses the dry,sharp annoying or even hassling sound that has on the start.

If you want to test it,grab a cheap woofer,test how "low" it sounds,record how far the cone-suspension goes with a voltage (for example 20v) and a frequency (for example 50hz),then after the "breaking in" period retest it under the same circumstances and you'll see much more excursion and more low sound.

Blind Tests:

Most people says that in Blind-Test no one can notice difference between Cables,DACs,or even speakers.

That is just silly,i'm used to the sound of my setup,if you change the DAC or something that will change the sound i will notice it and i can as i already tested it.

It's like saying if you're blindfolded or having 100 persons behind a curtain talking one at the time,you wont be able to identify a family member's voice,which is as i said,silly.

So where's the Snake-Oil and Scam?

There's everywhere and nowhere.
Cable manufacturers are often exploiting people selling overrated Snake-Oil which doesn't do anything more than a regular cheap cable for lights,but that don't mean any "expensive" or inexpensive cable wont be different because there are scammers out there.

Sand,wires,speaker breaking in are not scam,but you have the right to do the right thing: Make your own tests,believe your own ears,and come up with your own opinion as you should.

Using Xonar Essence STX with Edifier S550 or 5.1 Systems

2010-11-09T15:11:00.000-08:00

I saw a search query on the stats on this matter so i'm starting a post to give information about it,just in case anyone needs it.

So this is how to and when you can use a Stereo Sound Card/DAC like Xonar Essence STX with a Multichannel System like the Edifier s550 for Surround Sound.

When you can use it to get Surround Sound:

If your Sound System has an Integrated DAC (look for Digital Input) like the D Models of Edifier,Logitech,etc,for example Edifier s730D,so it can Decode Surround Sound Signal through SPDIF (Tosling or Coaxial).

When you CAN'T use it for Surround Sound:

If your System doesn't have a DAC to Decode Multichannel Signal unfortunately you can't.
All you can do is enable the Virtual Surround with Xonar or a DAC that has the same abilities,or listen to Stereo,or even use your Onboard Sound Card for Multichannel Sound and the for example the Xonar with a Switch that Switches the Front Inputs.

WARNING: Keep in mind that if you want to listen to the Card's Abilities in Stereo,after you watch movies or play games,remember to turn the Source back to Analog - Stereo,because using the Sound Card/DAC to send Digital Signal to Sound System/Amplifier's Integrated DAC,in fact don't use the Sound Card/DAC but the Integrated DAC,so the Sound will be Bad compared to Xonar or other aftermarket DACs.

Btw before you get a DAC like Xonar Essence STX for use with a Multimedia System,you might be interested to read my opinion about such action in the Asus Xonar Essence STX Review.

Asus Xonar Essence STX - Review

2010-11-04T20:24:00.000-07:00

There's a while since i got my Asus Xonar Essence STX,so after listened to it enough to judge it,i decided to write a Review about it,well i already had requests though.

Asus Xonar Essence STX

So let's start with the basics.

Here is the link of the Sound Card's Page in Asus.com:
http://www.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=zCDHPnfR1jymHK2f&templete=2

I suggest you to visit it because if i post the important properties here,this post will end up bigger than i'm expecting.

Let's now proceed with (i hope) Detailed Photos.

Sorry for the quality,i used a Nikon dSRL but unfortunately i didn't had time to play the Photographer and take proper Pictures (the Camera itself does nothing) as i couldn't wait to put Xonar on my Computer.

That's the pack you're going to see once you get Xonar.

That's what's printed bellow the cover.

And that's the Xonar... Into the box!

Unboxed,kind of...

Just what the box contains,you can notice the Drivers' CD on the right.

The Book of secret aka Measurements Book.

For more detailed view of this card you can visit the following link which has Xonar Photos to see the rest of the unposted photos.

http://s817.photobucket.com/albums/zz95/truebassb/Asus%20Xonar%20Essence%20STX/

What the Box Contains is:

The Sound Card,
Quick Start Guide and Drivers' CD,
Some Xonar Posters (two actually),
The Luxury Looking Measurements Book,
Cheap Stereo (Dual) RCA to Stereo 3.5mm Jack,
A Gold-Plated 3.5mm Stereo Jack to 6.35mm for Headphone connection,
Toslink to Mini Toslink adaptor.

Software Interface and Abilities:

The main expanded window.

Its main abilities:

Monitoring and selecting output volume,

Monitoring DSP Mode,EQ Mode,Active Output Devices and pretty much everything you can see on the photo.

It also has a Spectrum Analyzer with 10 Octaves and a sort of VU Meter which measures the average value of the frequencies' db level from -20db to +20db.

Its accuracy? Unknown...

Abilities of this tab:

Audio Channel selection,

The Sample Rate,

SPDIF enabling/disabling,

Virtual Surround Options,

Tab number two: Mixer.

This tab has Controls to configure channel's volume for both playback outputs and recording inputs.

Tab three: Effect.

This is a self explanatory tab,but if it's not,it enables the user control the Environment's effect,for example to add Echo on the sound by setting "Stone Room",or make the sound sound like on a hallway,big room,small room,and etc,but in my opinion such effects are ruin the sound.

The Equalizer of the whole thing is also located on this tab with many presets and the ability to configure it with custom settings.

Fourth tab: Karaoke!

This offers the following options: Key Shifting,Vocal Cancellation and Microphone Echo.

Tab five: Flexbass.

It has a Subwoofer Crossover and ability to set the speakers as Small (to start where the Sub Stops) or Large (Full Range).

Tab sixth: Vocal Fix.

It offers options for Voice Improvement for Video Games Intercommunication and VOiP.

Notice: I guess a tab is missing,the Headphone Amplifier tab,but i can't enable it as i don't have Headphones.

I guess it will appear just by plugging the Jack Adaptor on Headphones' Output,but nevermind.

Time For Listening Conclusions: ...And how does the beast sound?

Listening Equipment:

Amplifier: Denon AVR-3802,
Speakers: Quad 11L (BiWired),
Speaker Wires: Ixos XHS-213 2x2m,
Interconnects: Belkin Pure AV RCA 1.2m,
PC Power Supply: Corsair VX550W 5v rail @ 5.1v Idle.
Measured with regular Multimeter,it might be 5v and not 5.1v,but whatever,we definitely have stable 5v going in the Card.

General:

Till now i have heard a lot of Sources,Sound Cards (Internal DACs),and External DACs,but i was using the Integrated DAC of the Amplifier(s) i was and currently using,getting fed by Onboard Soundcard's SPDIF at 96khz.
Since those DACs and the Onboard Sound Card (ALC888,which sounds close to how a cheap X-Fi does) are what i have heard for long time with this Setup,i'll compare the Xonar with the DAC of the Denon AVR-3802 but i'll be more trying to explain how it actually sounds than make silly comparisons.

The speakers i have are rich in the Mid-Range Frequencies' Area with natural and flat sound,but however having my first touch with Xonar,i end up with the conclusion which says:
What i was listening to was lacking of Mid-Range Frequencies cause of the DAC.
Xonar's giving a big improvement in Detail and improves Frequency Response aswell.

Having listened to Jazz,Jazz-Blues,Jazz Fusion,good old Pop,and from old Acid Jazz like A Guy Called Gerald performing Voodoo Ray to Shakira,Xonar has its improvements everywhere.

With Jazz Fusion i could easily notice the detail between the organs and specially the drums.
I could notice what else was playing behind the Xylophone while with the Integrated DAC all those was looking-sounding like it was one thing.

Even on Treble-Rich or Bass-Rich Songs it had nice separation of the Vocals from the Music too.

And talking about voice,the way it sounds warm makes the voice sound natural,not dry,not treblish,not boomy.

The Xonar Essence STX with simple words:

A lot of Detail which stays a "Detail" even on the most weird situations and songs,warm and natural clean sound,tights up the Bass and makes it more controllable,and gives a transparent feeling.

As i was lowering category level i noticed that it was helping less,less,less,and more less.

From the 1500$ Multichannel Denon AVR-3802 Amplifier,to the 600$ Denon AVR-2105,the abilities of this Card are getting shrinked.

The AVR-2105 lacks pretty much of everything compared to the AVR-3802.
It has weak Low Frequencies and the Mid Range Frequencies aren't all that great,dirty i can say,and the High Frequencies are pitchy.

Listening with that Amplifier and the Xonar there was still HUGE improvement but Xonar is just a DAC,nothing magical that patches everything and makes it perfect.

Other Systems (Hint: Multimedia):

Logitech z-5500:

listening to Can't Get You Out of My Head by Kylie Minogue i noticed that the how the rythm goes from the mid to the high frequencies had something sweet which doesn't existed listening to the same song by using the Integrated DAC

The same goes for various jazz songs i've listened to with this system.

Edifier s730:

Having a fast listening with various songs and this system too,i noticed that the Xonar Essence STX compared to the integrated Edifier DAC was giving detail aswell,and made the voices sounding more quite making the sound look Flat instead of playing random Frequencies loud,while the Integrated DAC was making the voices non-natural,pitchy and able to cover the midrange frequencies,which (the midrange frequencies) wasn't that noticeable with the integrated dac.

The song which i noticed that enables you to hear that difference more clear than other is: Voodoo Ray by A Guy Called Gerald.

Conclusion on Multimedia Systems:

I'm NOT saying it didn't improved them,but even with the Xonar those systems are still not sounding great,because as i said before: Xonar is just a DAC,not a miracle,nothing magical and it can't make a system sound excellent at the time it's not possible.

Ok it sounds nice,i got it... Does it worth it?

At the price of about 150-200 Euros i can say i like more the sound improvement i got from Xonar Essence STX than what i spend to get it,so i will recommend it to anyone that has a similar budget to check it out,test it-listen to it,compare it with other options and then make a choice.

When you should get it: When you have a proper Stereo System or a proper Multichannel System and want nice sound in Stereo.

When not: If you have a Multimedia System then it's totally overkill.
Get a midrange Professional Sound Card or if you want Multichannel Sound,get an Asus Xonar DX,it's still a great low budget choice.

Things i didn't tried:

Headphone Amplifier,
Sound Recording.

Unfortunately i have no idea about Headphones and Headphone Amplifiers,and i don't have a Studio Microphone to test the Recording Quality and compare it to something else.Sorry.

I guess that's the whole review,i'll check it up tomorrow to see if i wrote anything wrong so i can fix it.

Criticizing Subwoofers! Useless in Music...

2010-10-27T17:08:00.000-07:00

Sunfire True EQ-12

I have heard a lot of people saying that if your system doesn't contain a subwoofer,woa,it automatically sucks!
For no reason! What the...?

This is why best sounding systems are getting underated.

In my opinion a Subwoofer for Music Listening is one of the biggest mistakes ever!
Except cases like there's a need of subwoofer like HUGE rooms like Party rooms in which PA Equipment gets place,and the owner have done measurements to set it right.

If you think you know,and that's why you have a Subwoofer,well i DON'T say that you DON'T,but most people doesn't even have an idea.

Let's see some examples:

Example 1:

You have speakers that are going down to 50hz 0db,and something like 45hz with -3db.

Your speakers are going as low as a Subwoofer of the midrange category,there's NO need for a Subwoofer under normal circumstances,if you think they don't have bass,you should place them differently.

Example 2:

You have small bookshelve speakers or satellites,they aren't going bellow 100hz and you really want to listen to bellow.

As bad as it sounds,here you might need a Subwoofer.

You should get one depends on room's size and something that will match the sound of the speakers... How can you find that? Try to listen to it with the same speakers if that's easy or get one,try it,and if you don't like it you can give it back and try another one.

FAQ you:

Question: I have a Subwoofer that goes to 20hz -3db,why not?

Answer: Because 20hz are useless in Music,there's no Music that goes that down except of Bad Recorded Music and Bass Tests.
Plus adding a Subwoofer isn't as simple as you think and most times is useless,and 20hz are needing big space to get produced,and if you don't have the luxury option of measurements your Music might become DIRTY.

Questions:
1) My speakers are going low but there's no much bass like when i have a Subwoofer!

2) You can't listen without a Subwoofer,there's no Low Frequencies!

Answer: You have the right to like bass and listen to Music as you like,but your opinion is in the world of High Fidelity... WRONG!!!

The best is to have a system that has a FLAT Frequency Response and produce the sound close to how recorded and sound natural.

If you have a system and while you are listening to it you can notice that has Low Frequencies that can get noticed more easily than the other Frequencies,or with simple word the Bass is loud,it's.... WRONG!!!

If you add a Subwoofer because you want to have an available Bass Knob to crank it up and cover the other Frequencies,is.... WRONG!!!

If you can listen and say there's a Subwoofer,and there's a lot of Bass cause of that,that means the Subwoofer isn't set properly!!!

Of course,again,i don't say you shouldn't listen as you like,but your system wouldn't go for an Audiophile Prize.

Facts Time:

Fact 1: No matter what,you don't need a Subwoofer in Music if you have proper speakers that are going decently low,and if not,try to get bigger ones,or if you're planning to get some,get something that will fill your space.

Otherwise you can make a wise installation of a proper Subwoofer,just to fill the range that can't produced by the speakers and not to go BOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOM!!!

Fact 2: If you have speakers that can go as low as a Subwoofer without any problem,for example bad Frequency Response between Octaves,if you add a Subwoofer which is matching the sound of the speakers and is set correctly so the Frequency Response of the whole system will be FLAT (excluding the room's anomalies in this example),you wouldn't notice that there's a Subwoofer playing,because the speakers there self supposed to play the same!!!

So having Subwoofers everywhere makes you look ridiculous except of ignorant,unless you like what you're doing,not that it's right!

In my opinion there's no "Right" and "Wrong" in Sound except of some Rules,but there's what YOU like.
However i don't give you the right to criticize my System,my Friend's Systems,Audiophile Systems,and give bad reputation to people's stuff and say you can't listen to those Systems because they suck and they don't have a crappy Subwoofer...
Because having a Subwoofer booming around,judging with the Rule of High Fidelity,Sound Clarity,Audiophilia,and what's good and what's not,isn't helping a system come close to the Natural Sound,but allows it to sound DIRTY by getting far away of the Flat Sound and makes the Low Frequencies vanish the other Frequencies.

Here my friends we are talking about the High Fidelity of Sound,MUSIC (Not bad Composed Noise) IS NOT Composed only with Low Frequencies,people look just ridiculous having NO MidRange and bad High Frequencies but still have their minds on how the Bass Is!

Logitech z-5500 Facts by Fanboys

2010-10-19T12:08:00.000-07:00

So this is a week in which i'm getting tired because of the fanboys... again...

This is something like FAQs with a bit of rant.

Let's start.

Fanboy: Logitech z-5500 is 500w,beat this!!!

Well,even if we say the 500w wasn't a HUGE lie,do i look like i give a damn?

Most of fanboys doesn't even know what a Watt does and how important is on a Sound System,because if they knew,they wouldn't bother to have fights for 10-20w like we say a million Watts!

Fanboy: At this price you can't get anything better.

You wish!!! Wish more and who knows what's going to happen... Nothing i guess.

Fanboy: Man all those systems can't go dat low and hit 20hz like logitech!

Which low? Even my 5.25" Woofers of my Quad 11L can hit "dat" low which is 50hz.
A cheap Yamaha or Koda Subwoofer will provide better clarity and most of them will go lower.

Fanboy: You must be kidding,that Yamaha is 130w,z-5500 is 180w!!!

Logitech is 140w max with 10% THD,an 100w Subwoofer compared to one that has the same sensitivity and gets powered by 200w will have only 3db difference.
Put your Subwoofer on a corner or adjust your low frequencies on your equalizer and you'll have them,or get one that has lower Wattage and higher Sensitivity,or both,but not only Wattage.

Fanboy: Logitech z-5500 is the best system i have heard!

...And that means you haven't heard anything else than z-5500,or at least you haven't heard a real one.

Fanboy: Get a better Sound Card and connect them with Optical or don't talk!

Dude,i'm an Audiophile messing with low level High End Equipment,my DAC is better than every single Sound Card you know and/or have,for example those sucky Creative X-Fi XtremeGamer things,i don't really need a better Sound Card to say they sound bad compared to other systems at there price,those even connected to the most good sounding and most expensive Pre-Amplifier ever wont get better as you can't patch a speaker that can only produce high and low frequencies and between 100hz and high frequencies there's nothing!

Just for the record... You don't want to get a good sound card and connect your speakers/amplifier with Optical/Coaxial,it's waste of money,use Analog connection or don't get anything!

Fanboy: I want deep and loud bass and loud sound and only z-5500 can give that to me.

The z-5500 wont give deep bass and loud sound,they aren't loud,if you think they are,i can show you some PA Speakers that i have which connected to 10w will blow you and the z-5500 away.
Those systems i'm suggesting will satisfy everyone better than z-5500 in terms of both quality and loudness,or at least the Non-Fanboys!

Fanboy: I bought the z-5500 and a good sound card and this system owns with its quality!

Wait a minute... Did you got the z-5500 and a good sound card? Here the local price is 350 euros and let's say 200 euros for a good sound card,that's like 500 to 550 euros!

If you have got some cheap home theater speakers like the first suggestion on this post and an Amplifier like the Pioneer VSX-418 you could had a better system for less that connected to your Motherboard's Onboard Sound Card would sound better than the z-5500 connected to the super duper ultimate audiophile after market Sound Card!

Fanboy: Why are you doing this?

Because i'm tired of Fanboys and Ignorance.Simple as that. :)

I think that's enough for now,having my daily conversation with Fanboys will allow me find out more facts to add them here.

Systems that can kill Logitech ones

2010-10-18T07:10:00.000-07:00

With simple words... Let's open fanboystic eyes that are thinking the z-5500 and the z-2300 are the only one out there because logitech claims high wattage (and ignorance) at the time that there some of the worst sounding compared to the systems you can build!

*Koda SL-601FSCW (Unlisted in this post) - 350 Euros

Let's go...

5.1 Surround System number one:

Koda AV-900S

A/V Receiver: Pioneer VSX-418 - 200 Euros.
Front/Center Speakers: Koda AV-900S/C - 70 Euros.
Surround Back Speakers: Koda EX-686S - 50 Euros.
Subwoofers:
1) Koda SW-1000 - 100 Euros.
2) Koda SW-10A - 120 Euros.
3) Yamaha YST-SW030 - 100-130 Euros.

Total Cost: Approximate 420 Euros.

Logitech's z-5500 Local Price: 350 Euros the Lowest Average,380,420,450 Euros Maximum.
Difference with the Lowest: 70 Euros.

*Note that the Koda Speakers might not be available in your area,but in case you live in Europe there can be found more than easily.

5.1 Surround System number 2 (with All-In-One set):

A/V Receiver: Pioneer VSX-418 - 200 Euros Speaker set (Front,Suround Back,Center,Subwoofer):
Pioneer S-V50-G - 250 Euros

Total Cost: Approximate 450 Euros

Difference with the lowest price of the z-5500: +100 Euros.

5.1 Surround System number 3 (with All-In-One set):

A/V Receiver: Pioneer VSX-418 - 200 Euros Speaker set (Front,Surround Back,Center,Subwoofer):
Teufel Kompakt 30 (TOP Buy) - 150 Euros.

Total Cost: 350 Euros.

Difference with the lowest price of the z-5500: 0 Euros

5.1 Surround System number 4:

A/V Receiver: Pioneer VSX-418 - 200 Euros
Front Speakers: Yamaha NS-B210 - 40 Euros
Center Speaker: Yamaha NS-C210 - 40 Euros
Subwoofer: Yamaha YST-SW030 - 100-130 Euros.

Total Cost: Approximate 380 Euros.
Difference with the lowest price of z-5500: 30 Euros.

More Expensive 5.1 Systems,for someone who wants and can afford way better stuff:

5.1 Surround System number 5:

A/V Receiver: Pioneer VSX-418 - 200 Euros
Front Speakers: Magnat Monitor Supreme 100 - 75 Euros.
Center Speaker: Magnat Monitor Supreme Center C250 - 60 Euros
Surround Back Speakers: Magnat Monitor Supreme 100 - 75 Euros.
Subwoofer: Yamaha YST-SW030 - 100-130 Euros.

Total Cost: Approximate 500 Euros.

5.1 Surround System number 6:

A/V Receiver: Pioneer VSX-418 - 200 Euros.
Front Speakers: Roth Oli 1 - 95 Euros.
Center Speakers: Roth Oli C2 - 115 Euros.
Surround Back Speakers: Roth Oli 1 - 95 Euros.
Subwoofers: Yamaha YST-SW030 - 100-130 Euros.

Total Cost: 600-610 Euros.

Multimedia 5.1 Systems that are better and not more or a little bit expensive than the z-5500:

Edifier s550: 250 Euros.

Teufel Concept E100: 180 Euros.

Teufel Concept E200: 230 Euros.

Teufel Concept E300: 280 Euros.

Teufel Concept E400: 350 Euros.

Xoro HXS-614: I have heard about this system that costs bellow 150 euros,but unfortunately i haven't tested it to offer my opinion about it,i guess for its price will be a z-5500 killer.

You can find a link to buy it Here,and photos by Alton right Here.

Now let's go for a lot Stereo 2.1 and 2.0 Systems:

Amplifier: Pioneer A-109 - Approximate 100-110 Euros.
Speakers: Yamaha NS-B210 - 40 Euros.
Subwoofer: Yamaha YST-SW030 - 100-130 Euros.

Total Cost: Approximate 250 Euros.
Logitech z-2300 Local Price: 170-180 Euros and goes to 200 Euros.
Difference: 50 Euros.

Very nice system for its price,it can also suit with a T-Amp 2024 that has a starting price at 20 Euros and will provide great sound and it will drive the speakers decently for its size but however not even close to what you'll get with the Pioneer.

Stereo System number 2:

Amplifier: Pioneer A-109: Approximate 100-110 Euros.
(Tower) Speakers: Koda AV-900 (dual 6.5" Woofers,88db Sensitivity): 120 Euros.
Subwoofer: You don't need one i guess,but a Koda SW-1000 can feat with +100 Euros cost.

Total Cost: Under 250 Euros without Subwoofer.

This post will go far so i'm not continuing suggesting setups because i will finish next year,i just wanted to show some systems that are as cheap as the z-2300 - z-5500 and better aswell.

If you have any doubt about the loudness or the quality compared to Logitech,i'm challenging you to get them and test them yourself.

Frequency Response Of Speakers-Subwoofers

2010-09-25T00:40:00.000-07:00

Did i started talking about the Frequency Response of the Marketing? Not really because the things will go far,but sometimes you have to go far.

Well,except Watts the manufactures are also faking the Frequency Response of there product,so you'll think a speaker will go lower.

A Frequency Response stated by a manufacturer will be trustable only if the manufacturer state how it's measured.

For example we have two Subwoofers.

The one says: 18hz-300hz (manufacturer states -12db or nothing).

The other one says: 45hz-300hz (-3db).

Which will go lower? Of course the other one... Or maybe both will be the same "low".

The 18hz which is stated by the manufacturer of the first will be:

1) The Frequency in which the Subwoofer will produce a signal with -12db loudness,so it wont be useable at that Frequency,with the useable Frequency Response being a lot higher,maybe close to the other that states 45hz with -3db (useable).

Or

2) The Frequency in which the Subwoofer will completely stop responding so that statement is completely useless.

Now the other one which states 45hz is trustable because the manufacturer states that goes to 45hz with only -3db.

When you see 0db or -3db measurements,it means that the stated Frequency can be produced.

The only problem is that a Speaker might be flat and useable from 100hz to 20khz,with an ability to play 50hz audible and useable,but nothing between 50hz and 100hz,so the manufacturer can state 50hz-20khz and trick the customer,that's why you should listen to the Speakers you want to get before you get them,and maybe check a Frequency Vs SPL graph if there's available.

Let's see an example:

The so called "Audiophile" Logitech states for the z-5500 a frequency response of 33hz-20khz but they don't say on how much decibels is measured... It's a top secret i guess... NOT!!!

Here's a Review of the Logitech z-5500 by Techlabs.by (Link)

If you scroll down you'll see a Frequency graph,it's not much trustable because it's Smoothed to 1/3 Octave so big jumpy lines and gaps are shown as "Flat" nice lines.

The 100hz are produced with approximate 138db or 139db,50hz with 135db,and bellow 50hz the SPL goes WHOLE 5-10db per 5-10hz!
*Note the SPL shown is not real,they probably used 135db as base instead of 0db probably because they measured with a Microphone that isn't calibrated to measure SPL.

So... Do you see any USEABLE 33hz there,as Logitech stated? NOOOOT! Bellow 50hz,all i see is deadly silence.

Why not? Because they didn't said "Useable" and they didn't even mentioned the -/+ Decibels of that measurement,they just stated a crazy impossible Frequency Response for Marketing reasons,like many companies of course.

My advice is to always trust your ears and your own Tests,and not what they say unless there's evidences like trustable Frequency Graphs.

Also,the Low End Frequency Response is nothing,you're placing the Right Horse for the Right Course,your bright desires of having 1hz might not be that bright if your room says no,YOU WILL Stick with your 150hz and YOU WILL Forget about 10hz if anything bellow that will be unuseable and cause you more problems!

Do not forget to also read this article: http://www.theaudioignorance.info/2010/09/low-frequencies-cant-be-heard.html

More Speakers - More Volume... Ahmm NOT!

2010-09-14T09:38:00.000-07:00

In the knowledge of many people,more Speakers = More volume,the double Decibels,or whatever... Not really...

This Article should be read after you read one of the previous Articles called "Explaining The Watts" because we are also messing with Watts here,and i'm sure i'll hear someone saying 2x100w = Double Louder than 1x100w.

More Speakers = The same volume,but why they sound louder?

Picking up a 5Channel system instead of a 2Channel just because you think it would be louder if it has 5 Speakers is a big mistake,except if you need a surround system for Movie Watching or Extended Stereo for Music Listening and better Room Covering.

If you have a 5Channel Power Amplifier that really can output 100w in 5Channel Program and only two Speakers,if you add another three you basically have about the same volume as two.

More Speakers even if they are weaker and can output less Decibels than a Stereo (2Channel) Pair of Speakers,they are "Covering" and filling the room with Sound better than two,and giving a more "Complete" feeling,while they output about the same SPL as two with the same specs driven by the same amount of Power.

That's because each more speaker will add one or maybe two Decibels more,so if a single speaker is outputting 100db at 1 meter,adding another one that is also outputting 100db,the total SPL will be about 101-102db max at 1 meter,but at the ear will sound louder not because two are dramatically louder than one,but because as i explained two will fill the Room better than a single one.

Amplifier Wattage Ratings - Traps

2010-09-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

In this post i will explain what's the matter with the output Wattage of the Amplifiers.

After i explained what's happening with the Watts in the article called "Explaining The Watts",i think it's time to face the truth about the marketing tactics and the fake rates on the Amplifiers.

Every single Amplifier out there (well... not the chinese) are having Power Ratings like Watts RMS,Maximum,or even Peak Power.

Here you can find the explanation of the above and some of the other rates:

Watts RMS: This term is used to describe the amount of the average continue power (Long Term Power in Speakers) that an Amplifier can output playing 20hz-20khz Sine Waves and is rated with a Distortion limit (to see the "clean" power output) and an Impedance like "100w 20hz-20khz on 8ohms @ 0.05% THD (Total Harmonic Distortion or "Clipping")".

Watts RMS rated @ 1khz: Marketing trick even if the THD is low... Almost all the Amplifiers can give more power to 1khz than on other frequencies,so the manufacturers are using that rate instead of 20hz-20khz average rate for reasons that i think you can understand.

Maximum Wattage: Some people are thinking that this and the Peak rates are useless,but both in fact are extremely useful.
The Maximum Wattage rate is the maximum amount of power that the Amplifier can output most times with super high THD.

Peak Wattage on Amplifiers or "Short Term" in speakers: The amount of power that can be given only for just a moment.
This is important because 300w Long Term rated Speakers that can handle a Peak of 600w,can be blown by a 300w Amplifier that can Peak by playing Music to 700w for example.

Music Power: The amount of power the Speakers can handle or the Amplifier can give by playing Amplified Signal (Music).

Everything plays its role here.

For example an Amplifier rated to 70w on 8ohms with 0.05% THD is actually capable to give like 150w with way higher THD (Distortion) or even 200w,in case the Power Supply can provide that power to the Amplifier and the ICs aren't out of there limits.

If you have an Amplifier rated at 70w (Continuous Average Power) at 8ohms with 0.07% THD,and speakers that can work with 70w continuous power,and can be damaged with 120w,like the Jamo Studio 160 that are rated at 70w Long Term (Average Watts RMS or more correctly: Average Continuous Power) and 120w Short Term (the amount of power that melts the coils),you might can actually damage the Speakers even if the Amplifier - Speaker rates are matching because if you play Music loudly the output Wattage will be increased (not just Peaking) at least by 50% of the Continuous Rate,most times with heavy Clipping that can lead the Speakers to damage.

Some Amplifiers are rated at 10% THD which is an insane level of distortion in order to look more powerful.
If an Amplifier is rated at 100w (20hz-20khz,8ohms) with 10% THD (20hz-20khz),the maximum "Clean" and fully useable amount of power will be less than that rate.
If we say that Amplifier can give 50 "Clean" Watts (the real useable) with low distortion level like 0.05%,the 100w with 10% THD could easily be something close to its Maximum output level and not a "Watt RMS Rate" which describes the maximum clean output with distortion bellow 0% or 1%.

Notes:

You basically don't use more than 0.5w for your daily listening,but cranking up the volume on an Amplifier that has High THD will result to bad annoying sound.
It's not nice to listen to Squared Sine Waves.

Some manufacturers are giving out wrong values that some times are Peak values or rates on 1khz just to make their equipment look powerful.

Rates on entry level and midrange 5-7Channel Amplifiers are only on 2Channel Stereo Mode and not the amount of power it can give to 5-7Channel.

Rates on Stereo Amplifiers from trustable manufacturers like Yamaha are most time real because they don't have anything to hide,for example the use of cheap power supplies like on cheap Multichannel Amplifiers that have to power 5 Channels Amplifiers with High Wattage (let's say 5x100w) which is impossible.
This isn't happening with Stereo Amplifiers.

Rates on PA Power Amplifiers are always real,but manufacturers like Behringer are providing the Maximum Power Output (which is still useable) instead of the "Clean" Average Power,but you can always find the truth by checking on the manual or datasheet of the device (Behringer and others are having available all the measurements on the manuals).

I think that's all for now,let's hope i didn't make any mistake.

Speaker Impedance Varies!

2010-09-12T17:38:00.000-07:00

Huh... The impedance's on the plate ready to be served.

I guess most of you while you're reading this don't know that your 8ohms speakers are also 4ohms,6ohms,10ohms,and maybe 50ohms aswell.

No? That's what i guessed... Continue reading...
Most of the manufacturers are rating their speakers with the most common values that are 4ohms,6ohms,8ohms and 16ohms and those values are either useless DC or Nominal-Average AC Measurements.

The Audio Signal is made by thousands of frequencies in sine waves that are passing through AC (Alternate Current),and the impedance of the coils of the speakers varies to the frequency.

To make you understand,here i have a Tangband woofer driver.
It's rated at 70w (long term) and it has 8ohms Nominal Impedance on AC,6ohms on DC (the one you can measure with a multimeter) which is useless because you can't use a speaker on DC unless you want to blow it,7.9ohms on 100hz,and about 75ohms on 38hz (Resonance Frequency).

So as you can understand Nominal or Average Impedance is only a rate to help you design a Crossover Network or take a taste in order to find an Amplifier that can drive the corresponding load.

High loads can lead the Amplifier to Overheating or serious damage.
This is happening because if we have an Amplifier that can provide 100w on 8ohms only,if you put 4ohms load it will ask the Amplifier to give the double power which can't be done.

Here's a Calculation:
28.4V x 28.4V / 8ohms = 100w
28.4V x 28.4V / 4ohms = 200w

The rated load of 4ohms might be minimum low like 2ohms or high as 20ohms,so if you want to get an Amplifier for high load,be sure to be aware that your load might be worse than you expected.

Most of the big modern Stereo Amplifiers that can provide a decent amount of power will even work at 2ohms without any problem,and most of the 5-7Channel Amplifier will work too (at least in 2Ch Stereo Mode),so if you are looking an Amplifier to drive heavy load,look for PA Power Amplifier or something BIG for Home Use.

Known myths of the Impedance: The speaker will be better than another if its Impedance is lower or higher.

Actually... Not...
Power Rating,Impedance or Loudness aren't making a speaker good.
We (at least i hope) all know that we judge a speaker from its overall Quality and nothing like the Impedance.

However High Impedance in some cases can admit that the Coil of the Speakers is cheap,but there's cases like in Car Audio in which some speakers are made to have High Impedance (as low as 2ohms) and huge Wattage Rating so they can suck up more power from the Amplifiers making the owners thinking there speakers are loud,but that's another story which is explained in the post called "Explaining The Watts"

Low Frequencies Can't Be Heard

2010-09-12T16:52:00.000-07:00

If you enjoyed the previous post and it opened your eyes,trust me,you gonna love this!

Now if we say that after splitting blood you've made a subwoofer or bought one that really can produce 20hz... What now? A question... Where you actually gonna place it and what you gonna play?
Don't say car,bedroom or even a regular living room because i'm gonna throw out an uncomfortable laugh and show you this article.

Sound unlike the Visible Frequencies is Invincible Waves,and those waves are going by frequency.
Let's say in an understandable term that 50hz or cycles are 50 waves per second,or 50 x 60 = 3000 beats per minute.

The low frequencies are needing free space to be produced... I'm clearly not the right person to talk about rooms,but i know some things about the required room size.
As far as i know 20hz are needing about 17m length to be produced properly,according to the Wavelen.

The wavelength is λ = c / f,the λ is the Wavelength,the C is Speed of Sound which is 345m/s on 20 Celsius and f is the Frequency,in this case 343/20hz = 17.15 Meters.

So 20hz in a car or a small bedroom and frequencies bellow 50hz are totally useless except if you want dirt in your music.

What the lowest you can properly have in your Car (with many problems cause of the infinity reflections) is,if we say an SUV has an internal length of 3 meters,then we do a few times with a few frequencies the Speed Of Sound / Frequency which ending us having about 115hz,because 343m/s / 115hz = 2.98m.

In a small room if you try to play really low frequencies with a big subwoofer the whole sound will go BOOM and you will hear a BOOM full of dirt instead of the frequencies that you played and everything will tune to it,so the result will be really bad,but some people don't understand that what their Rooms decides for the frequencies they can play into and NOT Their speakers!

You are having some Satellite Speakers that goes to 120hz with -3db in a Bathroom Sized Bedroom,they lack of bass,because you have the bright desire of having extended bass response,you're placing a Subwoofer that let's say produces easily 20hz,you think the Subwoofer actually makes a nice difference but most times it causes MORE Trouble,and still you have nothing useable near 20h.

If you have a big room and a good subwoofer you pretty basically can have 20hz,but there's no music that can go that down,except if you are talking about Bass Mekanik or a sort of mainstream music without a clue of instruments that is made to go boom-boom and nothing else...
Here i'm talking about a right setup'd and placed system,sound accuracy,and quality,so i exclude those cases and the Logitech's bass heads too.

The things aren't so simple as you expected as i'm explaining them,and you have the right to do everything you want,but i have warned you about the result.

What i didn't mentioned: The Acoustical Response of Rooms,Reflextions,that even if the room is properly for Low Frequencies they will make your room a Dirt Addition to your music.

Tuning Frequency Mistakes

2010-09-12T14:59:00.000-07:00

This is also a matter which if was a lesson on your school,it would be definitely in the Grade 12th of the NonKnowledge.

This is a very common mistake mostly done from those who are making subwoofers and more deep in detail,car subwoofers.

You're pretty basically getting a random woofer driver that is rated at 100000w and making calculations for a ported box that can tune as lower is possible at crazy frequencies like 10hz? 20hz?

If you are one of those,this article seems that is written and dedicated to you.

So i wont go far with this post because it has a pretty simple explanation,but... There's a lot of details.

As you probably already know i'm considering this as a huge mistake and that is correct.
Why this is happening? Because it's wrong and leads you with a useless subwoofer while you're thinking it blows out 10 Grand of (useless) Watts and it can tune on 5hz.

The speaker drivers are having a Frequency Response,and there useable frequency response can't be extended using a cabinet that tunes lower.

For example let's say i have a JBL Professional Woofer Driver which is made for vented cabinets and it's useable from 60hz to 4khz while it might be heard on 50hz but much quitter (at -6db or maybe more) and it has FS 48hz (the frequency in which resonates).
If i want to use it properly i should read the manual or datasheet to see its specs and maybe the suggested cabinet size in volume so i can make a corresponding box with tubes that can tune from about 50hz to 60hz.

Tuning the box to 50-60hz = Great sound,and tunes to 50-60hz which can be produced by that driver.

Tuning the box as low as 20hz without having a clue about what you're doing = Lose sound,bad accuracy,the driver exceeds its Xmax easily and resonates similar to Free Air.
Everything will sound bad,and if a miracle happen it might produce those 60hz we were talking about,but nothing bellow than its driver's capabilities,and also it will have very bad midrange frequency response.

Also another extremely HUGE mistake is when someone's putting a driver made for example 150hz sealed boxes into a vented one that tunes lower.

Clearly,it will not only tune lower,but it wouldn't sound like a normal speaker at all... Imagine how your woofer will sound working in free air on the corner of your room and take that for example.

You should also remember that you can't build up a speaker that wants to be called "High Fidelity" only by buying a random driver that looks good and make some calculations to build up a box,but you can try to take driver's best result by taking the advice of the manufacturer and put the driver into a proper box.

Explaining the WATTS!

2010-09-11T09:55:00.000-07:00

Watts... Watts? Most people will ask you "How much watts can blow out?" just to see how loud it can go.

If your Hi-Fi system has a 10000w amplifier and 10000w speakers will it be loud?

The answer is YES and NO at the same time!

Watts means the amount of power on many things including speakers,but before we talk about power ratings we should mention the magic word --> Efficiency.

Speakers are having Efficiency too.The Efficiency of the speakers is actually called "Sensitivity".

Is getting measured in the labs of the company that makes the speakers by playing a sine wave of the frequencies that the speaker can play with the speaker running on 2.83v (let's say 1w @ 8ohms) and measuring the average SPL (Sound Pressure Level) with a calibrated SPL Meter.

Behind the Sensitivity there's also some other properties that can determine if a speaker will be loud or not,like the Non-Flat Frequency response.

If a speaker has an average Impedance of 8ohms and Sensitivity of 90db with 2.83v,there might be a trap on the Frequency Response of the speaker itself or the Amplifier.

For example if we say a Subwoofer has 95db average sensitivity it might be able to produce 100db with 2.83v at 100hz,but 90db with 2.83v at 50hz,so if we take an spl measurement on 50hz (90db) and 100hz (100db),the average sensitivity will be 95db,but there's a 10db difference between the 50hz and 100hz.

That's why they do a Frequency (20hz-20khz) VS SPL @ 2.83v or a Pink Noise measurement with the speaker and they not measuring the SPL on 2.83v only on a single frequency (for example 1khz).
This is unfortunately happening by many companies that are just looking to sell more and more.

With simple words the higher sensitivity you have,the higher the volume will be with less Watts,but only if the Sensitivity measurement has been done properly.

Let's see some examples and calculations:

Well in this calculation i have a PA Subwoofer with 105db properly measured sensitivity @ 2.83v running on 100w.

While i have a super high efficient Subwoofer,you currently have a Car Subwoofer with 82db Sensitivity running on 10000w.

With some fast calculations that i've made my maximum SPL will be: 125db @ 1 Meter.

If you have a subwoofer that has 82db Average Sensitivity running on 10000w,you can only output maximum: 122db SPL @ 1 Meter.

And remember:

When we are talking about Speakers with same Sensitivity,there's no noticeable difference in real use between "differences" like: 35w and 40w,25w and 50w,70w and 120w,120w and 140w,140w and 180w.

To get fully noticeable difference in SPL you need to give like 10 TIMES the power.
For example,if you have a 100w amplifier playing on the max with a speaker that has 87db Sensitivity (with 2.83v @ 1m),it will output maximum something like 107db,and 108.8db with 150w,so to get 10db more (noticeable difference) you need 1000w to output 117db.

If a speaker is loud that doesn't meaning it's better than a weaker one.
We are judging speakers from there quality,not loudness,high loudness can be given even by a chinese speaker,but quality is unique and rare.

Don't be so sure that your 5000w sound system is louder than my 10w one,because even if your watts aren't a marketing trick and they are real,your system might not even come close to me on an SPL Battle.

If for some reason you are not believing me because you don't know how to calculate this,there's some automated calculators on the Web that can do the trick,just search for "Sensitivity Watts Calculator"...
And before you start blaming the calculations if you see you can't blame me,if everything on your equipment is measured properly,they are an accurate approximitation.

As you can understand we are picking up speakers that are sounding good to our ears,and an amplifier that can drive our load properly without any problem (speakers),not what just mentioning on the box that can output 1000w or something like that.

Introducing...

2010-09-11T07:32:00.000-07:00

Well you probably know who i am but in case you don't know,i'm Truebassb from Youtube.

This is a blog in which i will try to write some things to make you lose your Audio Ignorance in case you're ignorant and talking about Watts all the time,or give you knowledge in case you don't know so you can be smarter than a marketing fish.

No i'm not going to be into blogging,i hate blogs,i just needed a whole mine place to write and archive some things instead of writing them on Forums and watching them going to the bottom of the pages after a while.