heisenberg wrote: > A fairly pervasive urban myth has been percolating among the community, > and this myth has to do with the unfounded assumption that louder always > gets perceived as better sounding. In my particular case, and in a few > other cases I know of, the exact opposite is true. When comparing > side-by-side two versions of the same track, I tend to invariably favor > the quieter sounding one. > > So where is this myth coming from? Why are we always assuming, in a > knee-jerk fashion, that louder version is guaranteed to win?
A quick search found this article: Perceived sound quality of reproductions with different frequency responses and sound levels (JAS 1990) AIf Gabrielsson. It states: Another important physical factor is the sound level. The available evidence indicates that an increase in sound level will usually increase the perceived fullness spaciousness and nearness as well as sharpness and brightness and decreasing sound level gives the opposite results. There also appeared to be some other articles going back to the 1970s. I didn't read the articles, but believe they involve relatively small differences in volume - about 1 dB. That is below the point where people clearly recognize one sound is louder - the perceived volume appears to be the same for both. And, of course, the sources would otherwise be identical in frequency range, dynamics and the like. Under these circumstances, most people report they find the louder version as clearer and more dynamic, but not louder. One also needs to keep in mind that studies of this nature also deal in average results, but it is certainly possible that individual listeners may respond differently. Finally, your comment is a bit confusing, as you refer to "comparing side-by-side two versions of the same track". I couldn't quite tell if you were talking about the same source where you had introduced a volume difference or were talking about two separate CDs where one was louder due to remastering. In the latter case, all bets are off in my book since it is quite likely that dynamics, equalization and other factors as well as the volume have been manipulated. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ mlsstl's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=9598 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=98610
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