Audiophile View of Two LED Brands

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@sp5it

Does not make any sense to me. Light can be measured precisely and effects are repeatable no matter person or place making it while audiophile judgement is just middle age superstition. Mike

I'm not MIDDLE-AGED! ...Oh, wait...

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@Rayoui

I’m an audio guy and I can see what you’re doing. You’re comparing the subjective qualities of the audio and LED experience and making connections with the type of “atmosphere” they induce.

Ding, ding, ding! Exactly!

[Lightbringer]

@chops728

You mean I wasted my money on Nordost $7k speaker wires ——- LOL

Hey, don’t laff.

I flat-braid my own oxygen-free Cu magnet-wire into multiple caduceus-pairs to insure zero stray inductance or RF pickup, and get the cleanest crispest PWMed light available on the market from my F13 hosts, bar none.

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@ChrisGarrett

There are plenty of objective measurements of audio equipment, which are repeatable under scientific conditions.

Absolutely correct!

Now what we like and seems to be the best for us, the user/listener is affected by the variables such as marketing, aesthetics and ultimately "How does it sound in the room it's installed?" I think the standard for a good company is to let the consumer try it out in their listening environment.

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@ChrisGarrett

@Omega_17

@ChrisGarrett

There are plenty of objective measurements of audio equipment, which are repeatable under scientific conditions.

If you look at scientific double-blind tests, most stuff in hifi are fake and a tremendous waste of money. Its so easy to manipulate how we perceived things.

I know a lot about double-blind testing and audio gear. What people don’t realize is that ‘critical listening,’ much like other human endeavors, is often times a learned skill and most people don’t possess the skill. Get a bunch of professional musicians, recording engineers, piano tuners and conductors in the same room and get back to us. Standing in a BestBuy and listening to some mass produced HT system, not so much so. Chris

I have to be honest with you guys. I have many years of experience as a musician. In my family, we have 3 generations that I have first-hand knowledge of, performers and teachers on wind instruments, piano, guitar and voice. Please excuse the additional sharing of my resume as I really don't want to impose an ego on anyone. I'm just saying I am learned. (place nerd face here)

[jeff51]

@Lightbringer

@chops728

You mean I wasted my money on Nordost $7k speaker wires ——- LOL

Hey, don’t laff.

I flat-braid my own oxygen-free Cu magnet-wire into multiple caduceus-pairs to insure zero stray inductance or RF pickup, and get the cleanest crispest PWMed light available on the market from my F13 hosts, bar none.

Oh crap,
I sure hope what’s his name from Monster Cable doesn’t read that.
Cost of lights is going to triple.
All the Best,
Jeff

[jeff51]

@tammap

I’m looking for:

LED = Thiel

Can be driven hard to shine

Any recommendation?

One where the PWM extends to 40kHz?
And the mode changes must always be in correct phase?
Nod, Nod, Wink, Wink,
All the Best,
Jeff

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@chops728

Most professional musicians can’t hear from years of playing I was joking about the speaker wires–I stopped at 3k in 1996 — It’s an affliction like any thing else --racing etc But there is definitely differences in cables-tubes-components – you get more out of components for sure In 1996 around tax season I sold all my high end gear --paid my taxes then I bought old stuff --It’s amazing – 1959 EV speakers --bottlehead preamp and a set of SET amps

I went to a small, high end shop back in the early nineties and listened to a version of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game on CD and then on a turn-table. OMGOODNESS!!! What an enthralling experience!

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@sochi111

… Some speakers are just eye openers, when a friend of mine played some music on his Pioneer speakers from the 70’s, the whole room just “lit up” . I was like “wooh I have been listening to these songs for years and I never saw that there was a whole row of instruments in that back row” .

I used to take my favorite instrumental recordings (CDs) to high end shops to hear everything my home system may not have revealed. One shop even allowed me to set up my home-made Vifa mid/Audax tweeter based satellite speakers to compare to retail brands. Paradigm speakers were just coming on the market at that time. My speakers gave me goosebumps in the mid to higher range.

BTW, to extend my analogy, Paradigm output would be more in the neighborhood of the Samsungs.

[jeff51]

McIntosh tube amps with output transformers.
AR speakers of old (AR3a) the New England sound.
Warm Smooth Incandescent lights.

JBL of old, 120Hhz BBC audiophile hump. Horn tweeters.
The California Sound.
6700K Crees with plenty of glare.
All the Best,
Jeff

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@Lightbringer

@chops728

You mean I wasted my money on Nordost $7k speaker wires ----- LOL

Hey, don’t laff. I flat-braid my own oxygen-free Cu magnet-wire into multiple caduceus-pairs to insure zero stray inductance or RF pickup, and get the cleanest crispest PWMed light available on the market from my F13 hosts, bar none.

What would be your brand name if you sold this product?

[jeff51]

@Nachtfeuerzeug

@Lightbringer

@chops728

You mean I wasted my money on Nordost $7k speaker wires ——- LOL

Hey, don’t laff. I flat-braid my own oxygen-free Cu magnet-wire into multiple caduceus-pairs to insure zero stray inductance or RF pickup, and get the cleanest crispest PWMed light available on the market from my F13 hosts, bar none.

What would be your brand name if you sold this product?

LinnSondekFire?

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@jeff51

McIntosh tube amps with output transformers. AR speakers of old (AR3a) the New England sound. Warm Smooth Incandescent lights. JBL of old, 120Hhz BBC audiophile hump. Horn tweeters. The California Sound. 6700K Crees with plenty of glare. All the Best, Jeff

Boston Acoustics were my first love! Never owned them but enjoyed when I could go to a shop that sold them.

I got an incredible deal on these JBL SVA1800 years ago:

They could play at theater SPLs (in a large room), not only in the tweeter range but at the bass frequencies as well. It was very hard to push these into mechanical clipping before I just couldn't handle the volume level. The neighbors, three doors down were grateful, too!

These have cloth dome tweeters but the horns provide such a sparkling experience.

[jeff51]

K-Horns, 105db at one(!) watt input.

Don’t know what to compare them to.
But only 3 watts gets you 10,000 lumens.

The IRS 1B

A flashlight if you move your head too much, you can only see out of one eye?

[Lightbringer]

@jeff51

I sure hope what’s his name from Monster Cable doesn’t read that.

Ah, yes, Josephiah “Joe” Monster.

[Lightbringer]

@Nachtfeuerzeug

@Lightbringer

@chops728

You mean I wasted my money on Nordost $7k speaker wires ——- LOL

Hey, don’t laff. I flat-braid my own oxygen-free Cu magnet-wire into multiple caduceus-pairs to insure zero stray inductance or RF pickup, and get the cleanest crispest PWMed light available on the market from my F13 hosts, bar none.

What would be your brand name if you sold this product? :laughing:

FairytaleFire.

“When it costs the most, you know you got the best!”

[roostre]

@Nachtfeuerzeug

… Any audio folks out there in BLF with observations over a similar time frame? …

My two observations:

1) Product reviews for stereos and lights:

Years ago (but some things never change with time), I was comparatively listening to various speakers at a stereo-only store when a customer holding a magazine dedicated to high end stereo equipment and pointing at a page with a speaker review said to the salesperson, "I want these speakers".

After the salesperson had them listen to those speakers along with other similarly high priced and even some lower priced speakers the customer then said, "Those speakers I thought I had wanted sure sounded a lot better in the magazine than they do in person".

2) Size and quality matter for stereos and lights:

When I was younger, I coveted the very best, most powerful and largest stereo equipment even if I could not afford it.

I saved my money and over time obtained four Klipsch speakers (two Heresy and then two Cornwall) and eventually my dream Crown DC 300A amplifier with Crown IC 150A preamplifier.

After almost 50 years have passed, I still have all four Klipsch speakers which sound good even by today's standards and miraculously have never needed any maintenance or repairs but I sometimes wish I had waited and saved a little more to purchase the Klipshorn speakers instead.

But now as a senior I prefer the smallest sized affordable stereo equipment and flashlights that will do the job but I will still pay more for simple elegant designs with reliable quality that hopefully can last a long time.

I also still buy inexpensive "throw-away" flashlights that I do not need and do not understand exactly why except maybe to use as decoys (for my more expensive lights) to leave around my place to see if any disappear unexpectedly like one of my favorite expensive pocket knives once did.

[jeff51]

@roostre

I saved my money and over time obtained four Klipsch speakers (two Heresy and then two Cornwall) and eventually my dream Crown DC 300A amplifier with Crown IC 150A preamplifier.

After almost 50 years have passed, I still have all four Klipsch speakers which sound good even by today’s standards and miraculously have never needed any maintenance or repairs but I sometimes wish I had waited and saved a little more to purchase the Klipshorn speakers instead.

Ha,
I’ve still got a Crown IC 150 sitting forlorn on a shelf. One of the few preamps from the 70s that had 2 phono inputs.
The users manual was too cool. Hand written results of the factory tests.

K-Horns. Geeze-Louise have they gotten expensive. 15K$ on ebay.
For something that been around since 1947!
That’s longer than me…
And you need a corner.
I’m often sent to the corner…
All the Best,
Jeff

[Nachtfeuerzeug]

@roostre

@Nachtfeuerzeug

… Any audio folks out there in BLF with observations over a similar time frame? …

But now as a senior I prefer the smallest sized affordable stereo equipment and flashlights that will do the job but I will still pay more for simple elegant designs with reliable quality that hopefully can last a long time.

Thank you for sharing!

I have had 5 home theater receivers, a Yamaha R-V703, two newer Yamahas that I sold, a Pioneer VSX-1016 and an Onkyo. They are all Circuit City/Best Buy mid-range receivers and these three I still have are going to be my last as it stands right now. In a AV receiver shoot out among Marantz, Sony, and Pioneer in Sound & VIsion, the Pioneer didn't fade on power in stress tests and so I picked up a display model from BB. It's been a great unit and the Onkyo runs hot but just works. The older, analog input only Yamaha powers a dual voice coil, Infinity based, acoustic suspension sub that I built around 2004... has it been that long?

With the 'newer' receivers being equipped for room optimization, I can mix various brands that have exactly the design for surround or front placement and not run into serious conflicts on tonal differences (I'm slowly losing my frequency range of hearing as one would expect, anyway).

[tatasal]

Being a previous audio equipment dealer myself, I can relate to the op’s view.

The cool white leds can be related to the usual USA mid-priced, bright-sounding, ‘in your face’ blast of sound from speakers like JBL and the like while the cooler, softer 5k, 4.5k, 4k leds more akin to British brands…more laid-back but luscious-sounding speakers like Tannoy, KEF, Harbeth and some others.

With regards to amplifiers, the sweet-sounding Rotels, low-budget yet giant-killers can be compared to the Mateminco/Astrolux and Nitewatch line.