LISTENING ANALYTICALLY
Many listeners are trained, by reviews, forums, or habit, to focus on surface-level attributes:
- Is the bass tighter?
- Are the highs more extended?
- Is the soundstage deeper?
These are useful observations because they typically correlate with natural resolution, but they can also lead you astray. What sounds more “impressive” at first is not always what feels right over days of listening.
WE ARE ALL DIFFERENT
Some audiophiles can tell within seconds whether a system is right for them. They know immediately whether they feel like spending the whole day listening, or whether they’re already thinking of doing something else. Their reaction is instinctive, emotional, and honest.
Others take a bit longer. It is understandable if you prefer to start your analysis with a sonic stocktake of the system’s accuracy. But you need to then put that away, just sit with the music and let your mind wander if it wants to.
Some find it easier if they get used to the new sound over an extended period and then go back to what they had before, to understand the difference.
Some find it too hard to set the analysing aside and need to be doing something else, and wait to feel the strength of the emotional pull of the music.
Some do not feel comfortable trusting their own reaction and look for a concensus of others, before they listen for themselves.
Whichever way suits you, you simply need to ask yourself "is it impossible not to follow the thread of the music and feel its message, or do you find your attention wandering to something else?" Your answer will tell you all you really need to know, because it is only how you react emotionally to the music that matters.
Signs Of A Real Improvement
Watch for these subtle but powerful signals:
- Time disappears. You find yourself held in place by the music, or perhaps compelled to dance, listening without intending to, for periods much longer than you expected.
- Emotion Takes Over. You forget to assess the sound because you are too involved in the flow of the music.
- Absence Of Fatigue. You don't notice how loud you are playing the music, and you have no inclination to turn it down.
None of these can be gauged with a scope, but they are what music is about.
What To Avoid
- Fast A/B Switching. It encourages judgement based on impact, but typically such a test will not be long enough for you to feel the music fully.
- Expectation Bias. If you have spent money or read glowing reviews, your brain can interpret differences as an improvement, or perceive differences that do not exist.
- Over-Thinking. It’s fine to listen critically, just don’t let that be the only way you listen.
Anyone Can Do It
You don’t need golden ears or technical vocabulary. You only need to notice how the music affects you, not just in the first few moments, but over a period when you have put away the analytical frame of mind, and just allowed the music to engage you.
Your emotional response can be more reliable than any measurement, once you allow it to take over, and you learn to recognise it.
Conclusion
Listening is not about passing a test. It’s about being moved. The best systems disappear, allowing the illusion of being present at the recorded performance.
When in doubt, don’t analyse harder. Just listen longer.
OLADRA is a division and a registered trademark of Antipodes Audio Limited (New Zealand)