why something works and how to define it is not relevant to the hobby, we care whether it reproduces music effectively, not why or how. and many times something works for reasons not exactly why we were told it does.
so 'marketing-speak' in patents regarding high end audio is like grains of sand in the wind. hard to grab hold of. no matter that some of us try very hard to do it and dissect it.
how many times do we get some sort of consensus on cause and effect here regarding manufacturer's technical claims? particularly the deep dark sorts of things claimed in patents?
Peter; no doubt you are one of those who pursue details of why and how, and I am not. so we view this issue completely differently.
I'm not so sure, Mike. It seems to me that we are always discussing why things work and defining them: Differences in formats, why D2D sounds better than a pressing from tape, SS/Tube, speaker typologies, etc. The forum is full of these discussions. Though I am one of those who does not approach the hobby from a scientific background, I do think that some audiophiles indeed care very much about "why something works...in this hobby." Fellow member Ack, for instance, often sites patents by both MIT and Spectral to understand what products from those companies are trying to do, and I think he feels the patents can help explain the "why". And Ack often has very interesting posts in which he breaks down the patents and shares his understanding of them with those interested in reading his posts and learning more about these products.
Of course, I primarily care about how it sounds, and I assume Ack does also. But referring to patents in the high end audio industry as "marketing-speak" just runs counter to what I had thought. I appreciate Klaus bringing this notion to my attention.
I do think we may both be interested in pursuing details and care somewhat about the why and how. For instance, you certainly went to great effort to tame the reflections in your listening room, and you reported great results. I don't think you did your experiments blindly. I'm sure you listened to results and then thought about what areas to try next. Those reports added to others encouraged me to consider reducing the reflections in my room. I think you commended me for paying attention to the details. The why and how were a part of it.