Do You Look at the Measurements?

das · Feb 5, 2012

I hadn't posted in so long that the forum automatically sent me a message inviting me back. So I reset my password and decided to also post this question.

As some of you might now, I'm publisher of the SoundStage! Network. I've seen various messages about measurements here, but I have kind of a different question. Regardess of whether your understand or use the measurements, do you actually LOOK at the measurements? I'm not talking about a glance. I'm talking a meaningful look to see what's presented -- again, whether you use them or not, or fully understand them or not is not part of this.

I ask because we have our own internal metrics about how many times the measurements versus the reviews are looked at, but they don't obviously break things down into exact who it is looking. So that's why I'm asking explicitly.

Thanks,
Doug Schneider @ SoundStageNetwork.com

Steve Williams · Feb 5, 2012

Hi Doug

I sent that welcome back email

and thanks for posting

BTW, nice to have met you and Jeff at CES

DonH50 · Feb 5, 2012

I always read the specs and look at the measurements. I consider them a starting point for comparisons. I am an engineer, however.

mep · Feb 5, 2012

I do look at measurements when presented.

RogerD · Feb 5, 2012

Doug, very nice website. I do look at measurements but my "ear" is veritas.

microstrip · Feb 5, 2012

Doug,
I often go there, looking for old and patiently waiting for recent measurements

Johnny Vinyl · Feb 5, 2012

I glance at them in the hope that I can actually interpret what they mean. Usually it's all gobbly-gook to me, but there are times they makes sense. I've gotten better since joining WBF and reading the threads, but it's still a world of mass-confusion for me most times.

Vincent Kars · Feb 5, 2012

I always look at the measurements.
If a company doesn’t talk measurements but marketing I won’t appreciate.
All claims should be backed up by measurements

fas42 · Feb 5, 2012

Eons ago I would look at such things, but the measurements, because they don't actually measure what's important to people listening with a critical ear, have virtually zero relevance.

Frank

Steve Williams · Feb 5, 2012

fas42 said:
Eons ago I would look at such things, but the measurements, because they don't actually measure what's important to people listening with a critical ear, have virtually zero relevance.

Frank

I'm curious which measurements "you" feel have the most relevance

ack · Feb 5, 2012

I look at reviewers' measurements and dismiss manufacturers' as conveniently... miscalculated...

Johnny Vinyl · Feb 5, 2012

ack said:
I look at reviewers' measurements and dismiss manufacturers' as conveniently... miscalculated...

They must love you at TAS and the lot. And while perhaps not totally untrue (thanks to the marketing teams), wouldn't you put your best foot forward?

fas42 · Feb 5, 2012

Steve Williams said:
I'm curious which measurements "you" feel have the most relevance

You'll hate me saying this, but it is the degree of low level distortion coming through ...

In the "good old days" of Martin Colloms reviews of quite ordinary speakers there were graphs of 2nd and 3rd harmonic distortion over the full frequency range, at two levels of dB sound out. No-one as far as I know is doing anything like this these days, no matter high end the unit.

There are no measurements of how distortion figures like this vary, if at all, with degree of system warm-up or run in; nor how senstive the equipment is to mains supply interference. These are the things that truly matter in the real world; the only way people find out is by trialing the equipment over a period of time ...

Frank

treitz3 · Feb 5, 2012

Hello, Doug and welcome back. While I may have looked at measurements in the past [many years ago], I never look at them now. Not even out of curiosity. They are completely useless to me, as they have absolutely nothing to do with the end result as to what hits my ears. The end result is the only thing that matters to me.

JackD201 · Feb 5, 2012

Yes I do. There is still a huge divide between my being able to look at them and "imagine" how that translates to how I'd hear it.

Robh3606 · Feb 5, 2012

Hello Frank

You have to know where to look. I look at measurements all the time. Depending on how complete they are they can tell you quite a bit.

Rob

fas42 · Feb 5, 2012

Thanks for those, Rob! So, where do we find this magical stuff, then -- are you talking about Zaph, etc?

Of interest, note how the 2nd harmonic starts to rocket up at higher frequencies; getting to around 30-40db down: not so good. When you get a cleaner graph, nudging 60dB down much of the way then you're talking of some better stuff ...

Frank

jazdoc · Feb 5, 2012

Steve Williams said:
I'm curious which measurements "you" feel have the most relevance

$$$

Robh3606 · Feb 5, 2012

Of interest, note how the 2nd harmonic starts to rocket up at higher frequencies; getting to around 30-40db down:

Frank you have to subtract 20db from those graphs. The legend say up 20db so you can see them at that scale. So at 500hz you are at -55Db down on the 2nd

Rob

fas42 · Feb 6, 2012

Robh3606 said:
Frank you have to subtract 20db from those graphs. The legend say up 20db so you can see them at that scale. So at 500hz you are at -55Db down on the 2nd

Rob

Yes, I took that into consideration. The human ear is more sensitive to distortion at higher frequencies, and if you check what's happening above 5KHz or so, on each one of those graphs; that's where I got the 30-40dB down numbers.

Frank

Do You Look at the Measurements?

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