This thread is funny

on one hand you got folks that THINK they hear a difference
between amplifiers

on the other hand you got folks that THINK there is no difference
between amplifiers.

They are BOTH right, and BOTH wrong in some ways I think...
I could argue either side of the fence....
here is why...

Typicly ( but maybe not in this case) most folks prejudge the
sound from different amps based on many things... Advertising,
price, brand name, construction, marketing hype, even the color
of the heatsinks and these things affect how most folks think an
amp sounds... Or even if an amp is supposed to be better most
folks will automaicly think that it does sound better....

To make this hard to get a real handle on, most of these folks
do not actually do an A/B test on the two, they just typicly listen
to one amp in one car and compare it to another amp in a completely
differnt car... Thats NOT really comparing amplifiers, thats comparing
complete systems!!

The speakers may sound different, the subs may sound different, the car
may sound different even the music may be different... Maybe not in
this case, but for the most part, this is how most folks do an amp
comparison which is just NOT a good way to actually compare amps!!

Plus, most of these same folks really dont get the opportunity to
really compare many different amps, the average car audio
enthusiast may not in his entire lifetime get a chance to really
listen to all that many different systems ... 10, 20, 30...???
Where they really get to settle in and listen to thier own music
they are familiar with.....(be honest with yourself)
And which ones of those allow for a good amp comparison??
FEW if ANY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Many times though, an old amp will come out of a car and a new amp
will replace it, and it is pretty easy to tell the new amp sounds better!
Almost everyone would agree with this statement, it happens everyday!

This is a better comparison ! But still not a perfect comparison...

Its a known fact that the human brain cannot remember differences in
sound sublties for very long at all, so again your brains predjudices
often come into play to color the sound in a way you dont even realize
(but maybe not in this case) ...

And of course the old amp and new amp may not be the same power
which would mean the new amp probably plays louder then the old
amp... Which to most folks (including me) a HUGE difference in how
the amps sound and compare to one another...!!
HUGE DIFFERENCE!!!!

Plus, it is known that many amplifiers will intentionally EQ thier sound
with sound filters, and / or bass or treble boosts... You may not even
know its there, but that wold definitely make two amps sound very
different....!!

In the old days when the old Fosgate amps came out
it was rumored they became so popular because they EQed the sound
(like putting a smiley face on an EQ) built into the amps.... I dont know
for a fact that this is true, but in an actuall A/B comparison most folks
might choose those amps over another because of this .....

Do they do this today..??
I dont know, but if I was an amp manufacturer I might consider it!!
It is all about the money you know! ;-)

And on the other hand, some of the folks saying there are no amp
differences are almost right, but some ore very wrong!! And possibly
giving folks the completely wrong idea about things.....

IF and IF is a HUGE word here, one amp is compared to another amp
at EXACTLY the same amplitude at EXACTLY the same frequencies
with both amps playing EXACTLY the same then of course there
will be absolutely no way to tell the difference even in a good A/B
test.....

This will almost NEVER happen i normal everyday life.
Even the famous $10000 amp challenge has a huge set of rules
about setting up the amplifiers before the comparison to minimize
any differences.....


BUT IN THEORY!!!
An amp SHOULD (but maybe isnt) have a perfect frequency response
and in theory that WOULD make any amps sound the same when
not clipped or over driven......


SO you see... its funny to me this arguement is even happening....

On one hand the folks THINK the amps sound different but
probably never had the oportunity to do a real test that has meaning,
most of these folks are probably influenced by predjudice...

BUT, they are also aware that the old amp they had was not
as enjyable as the new amp they have now!!

so they are right AND wrong about many aspects of this arguement

Then back to the other hand.... Some of these folks that are
convinced that all amps sound the same may have some of the
same types of predjudices (based on theory instead) that the
amps sound the same.... Many do not have opportunities
for many real comparisons.....

I have been doing this work for 30 years, and have more audio
test equipment than many folks could imagine and even I have
only rarely set up this actuall comparison....

And many of these *sound the same* folks often seem to forget
that even though ANY amp can be put in a situation where it
sounds like ANY other amp... This is only one condition, it is
NOT real life amplifier use!! And these folks that forget this
run around spouting that ALL AMPS SOUND THE SAME
NO MATTER WHAT as if it were some kind of gospell truth!
They sometimes forget
to say IF the amps are set up and IF the amps have equal
freuancy respons and IF the amps ...blah blah blah

and this causes more confusion for folks in this hobby than the
folks that say amps sound different!! Maybe because the
*sound the same* folks might be a little more scientific in nature
(even though sometimes misguided)...??
I dont know...

But either way, both sides on this arguement have some right
and have some wrong....... IMO...

Eddie Runner
TeamROCS member #001
http://ww.teamrocs.com/forums/