Comments on Russ's Hi-Fi and Home Cinema Blog: The concensus view

I used to take part in discussions about Hi-Fi on ...

2008-05-26T11:17:00.000+01:00

I used to take part in discussions about Hi-Fi on a forum until posting a thread called 'My Approach To The Mains' in which I detailed what I was doing to improve the sound of my stereo. Consistant ridicule is what I ended up reading with people insinuating I am stupid. Too many people think we know all there is to know about electricity and that science was able to explain everything at the time they read some books at university. The scientific community has always been closed to new thought (just as the Religious establishment was some time ago) and anything that questions the accepted rules that we make for nature to follow.
Reading in a Hi-Fi magazine that a material called Graphene which is made of one layer of carbon atoms and has been used to make the smallest transistor (being only ten atoms in size) exibits electricity that is not the 'flow of electrons' commonly used to explain the phenomena but is in this case charged massless particles, which to my mind sounds like ' we haven't the fogiest idea how to explain it logically so we will come up will these tiny particles that exist in a different dimension' Something I came accross at university. My unfortunate conclusion that I arrived at some years ago is that the consensus view will never be an admision that we will never understand. Which is a shame. Cheers, Ben Amderson.

Hello Russ,I completely agree with your view that ...

2008-01-04T14:40:00.000Z

Hello Russ,

I completely agree with your view that infrastructure is very important in audio hi-fi. I tried (as much as my budged allowed me) to sort out mains, cabling and support (our audio hi-fi system is: http://tinyurl.com/8hjkd) and I could say that the sound coming out of our (relatively modest) hardware could be compared with the sound coming out of much more expensive hardware (which I have listened to at What Hi-Fi shows in London).

I think that most people even do not know that there is a quality of sound, do not know what hi-fi (and its philosophy) is and are more than pleased with mp3 sound and Ipod-like players, although I always wondered why we still have CD sound now when DVDs (and Blu-rays and HD DVDs) are around. Looks like ultimate quality is not the main goal of many people.

I think that an average audiophile would agree with you, it is so obvious, and most people come to the same concussion.

The other day I asked Cyrus Audio if they would be wiling to re-cable our Cyrus 7 integrated amplifier with your internal KIMBER cables (me taking the risk if there will e any improvement), but they said that they do factory upgrades (in which they are quite good and flexible I think) only according to the spec (of the piece of audio hardware in question), fair enough (I asked them to chose what cables they would need, etc.), but I wanted to see if that would give any improvement in sound (but I do not know what sort of internal cables they put in Cyrus 7, though).

Regards,

Robert

I have a great deal of respect for your ability to...

2007-12-26T23:19:00.000Z

I have a great deal of respect for your ability to stand your ground in a world which is, unfortunatley, full of idiots. I gave up trying to make myself understood along time ago. I wish you all the best for the coming year. Ben.

I think I should make it absolutely clear that I d...

2007-08-14T10:46:59.118+01:00

I think I should make it absolutely clear that I do not support the consensus view that "Global Warming" is substantially man made or that we can do anything about it. I do, however, strongly support conservation, recycling, reusing, organic farming, whole foods, a healthy diet, lots of exercise, and as much sex as I can manage.
I abhor closed minds, censorship of ideas, the demonisation of those with other opinions, beliefs or cultures, waste and the chemicalisation of our environment. These are just a few examples. I hold strong opinions on most things and am willing to discuss them with anyone capable of conducting a civilised argument. My opinions are based on moral, ethical, logical and evidential principles and are, therefore, open to modification and change.

Shame the telegraph article is just another head-i...

2007-08-10T19:44:00.000+01:00

Shame the telegraph article is just another head-in-the-sand diatribe against not only man-made global warming, but against peer-reviewed science, and by extension, against scientific method and rationality itself. You do yourself few favours using this kind of tripe to support your argument for decent power supply as a prerequisite for good sound. You're winning the argument, so you shouldn't cloud the issue with this kind of hocus pocus.

Hi Russ, I too have a problem with concensus view...

2007-06-27T10:53:00.000+01:00

Hi Russ, I too have a problem with concensus views. The way I deal with it is by taking comfort in the fact knowing that, 'the more you know, the less you need to show.'

Surely there's a logical reason on both sides. The...

2007-06-22T16:21:00.000+01:00

Surely there's a logical reason on both sides. The hifi manufacturers work on the basis that shorter runs are better, sometimes the DAC is in a different box from the power supply etc etc. How can you possibly suggest that it's only the cables?

I personally have a shielded mains lead, a shielded mains block, high quality Arcam separates, quality interconnects and speaker cable - it all adds up but without the original source component being good, there is little to perfect???

Thank you Neil,This silly argument will roll on fo...

2006-11-29T11:24:56.523Z

Thank you Neil,
This silly argument will roll on forever. I have to say that those who have a real understanding of electronics or engineering have no problem with the concept.Thank you for your support.

In the December 2006 edition of What Hi-Fi, three ...

2006-11-29T10:21:00.000Z

In the December 2006 edition of What Hi-Fi, three members of the public, all with engineering backgrounds, were invited in to listen to cheap cables vs expensive cables. They were chosen because they had expressed non-belief in the benefits of better cables. Not only were they subjected to an "A-B" test of the worst kind, but their "knowledge" of the subject (based on engineering consensus) prevented them accepting that better cables sound better. I was reading the article and almost screaming "Phone Russ, he'll explain!!!"