2 Channel Stereophonic Audio

Stereo got started in the 1930’s. The word "stereophonic" — derived from Greek stereos = "solid" and phōnē = "sound". This technique let the sound engineer build a sound stage into the recording. All sounds in nature are mono, we have two ears to help locate the origin of the sound. When a mono sound occurs it hits each ear at a different time, this time delay is interpertd by our brain as a position in space. We can then turn our head in the direction of that sound and see it. When we listen to a stereo system that has been properly set up, we are able to find the position of every instrument in the sound stage. When stereo speakers are not set up properly in the room, one of the anomolies that occurs is time delay distortion. This confuses our brain on a subconsous level, and puts it in a semi fight or flight condition. This gets in the way of the emotional content being absorbed by our brain. In stereo sets where the speakers are not in the correct relationship to each other, the listener notices a small “sweet spot” in the room where the stereo image comes togeather. When the speakers are properly set the “sweet spot” covers most of the room.

Hi fidelity

High fidelity or hi-fi reproduction is a term used by audio enthusiasts to refer to high-quality reproduction of sound or images that is very faithful to the original recording master. As set out in 1973 by the German Deutsches Institut für Normung (DIN) standard DIN 45500, high fidelity equipment has minimal or unnoticeable amounts of noisee and distortionn and an accurate frequency response.

There are two main components of audio fedelity that dictate the quality of the music. Frequency response and dynamic range. Frequency response is the range of frequencies that the system can reproduce. The dynamic range is the different levels of volume that are avalible. The human ear hears from 20Hz to 20Khz and most audio systems use this range as the standard. When you look up the frequency response of a product it gives the range of the response as well as how “flat” the respnse is. This means that a component that has a 20hz to 20khz response of .5dB is flat with a variation of .5 db of volume between the two extreams. For example, all speakers reproduce 20hz at some volume, but you want to be sure that it is loud enough to be hear. Dynamic range lets you know how many steps of volume difference the system is capible of reproducing. The human ear has a dynamic rang of over 130dB which is capable of detecting pressure variations of less than one billionth of an atmosphere.

Most products have specification sheets that you can look up or read about that give the abilities of the systems using the above specifications and many others that are measured. Does reading these specifications give you all the information you need to know when buying a product? The answer is no. This is because first of all, the manufacturer almost 100% of the time has a disclamer that the specifications are subject to change with out noitice. This means that they can say anything. Also, the testing producures would have to be detailed to get an understanding of how they got the measurements. The botom line is everyone has a different taste of what they like and don’t like, from food to cars to homes, there is a fit for everyone and most people know it when they see it, or hear it as the case may be. Not only do they know it when they see it but they know it in the first 15 seconds in most cases.

In my personal expierence I have walked into many hi-fi stereo stores and listened to systems that cost well over $70,000 and not been impressed. My first thought was, maybe I am not qualified to hear the difference, which the salesman asured me of, and I figured that the problem must have been me. This actually made me want the system more somehow, like maybe if I were to get it, I would learn how to hear the difference. Now I know, speaker set up is paramount to system fidelity. No matter how much speakers cost, where they are made or how much the components cost; if the speakers are not set up properly the system wont sound good and any person off the street will know it in 15 seconds. You are qualified to judge fidelity.

Emotion

A complex psychophysical process that arises spontaneously, rather than through conscious effort, and evokes either a positive or negative psychological response and physical expressions, often involuntary, related to feelings, perceptions or beliefs about elements, objects or relations between them, in reality or in the imagination. The transfer of emotion from the artist to the listener is the function of the audio system. The more distortion that occurs, the harder it is to get into the emotional content that the artist is trying to convey. The distortion that can occur from improper stereo speaker placement puts your brain in a sort of fight or flight state. In this state the brain is not very receptive to emotion.

M.A.S.T.E.R.S.

This is the two channel speaker setup tought by our distributer Sumiko. The technique is based on getting the two speakers in the room to work efficantly with eachother. The speakers job is to move air in the room, while the room constricts the movement of air in the room. This is a delicate balance that if not achived will diminish the speakers performance consideribly. No matter how much monry you spend on speakers, improper set up can drastically impair their performance.