Differences in Amp Sound: How Do We Find the Truth?

audioXpress readers are well familiarized with Richard Honeycutt's Hollow State column. In many of his articles, Honeycutt explored distortion in a quest to find the origin of “tube sound.” In this article, he takes a more general view of possible amplifier differences, solid- or hollow-state, focusing on different amplifiers’s differences in sounds, and a correct subjective evaluation process of components and systems. This article was originally published in audioXpress, October 2012.

Object-Based Audio. You’ve heard the term. It means we no longer need to record audio information in 6 (5.1), 8 (7.1), or an insane number of audio channels – 22.2, as Japan is pitching for its 8K production and broadcast standard – to properly convey the spatial information of sound reproduction. And not necessarily only for sophisticated soundtracks in immersive formats. And that's where the industry is heading, leaving our precious "audiophile" discussions about the ideal "production standards" for stereo recording and reproduction of music in the dust.

The AES Milan Convention, being held 23–26 May at the NH Hotel Milano Congress Centre in Milan, Italy, will feature Malcolm Hawksford – Emeritus Professor within the School of Computing Science and Electronic Engineering at Essex University, Colchester, and a recent AES Gold Medal Winner – as presenter of the 38th Richard C. Heyser Memorial Lecture, speaking on the topic “Understanding High Quality Audio – A Personal Journey.”

Over 90 delegates gathered from July 18–20 at the University of Surrey, Guildford, UK, for the second international conference on Sound Field Control presented by the Audio Engineering Society. Chaired by Filippo Maria Fazi and Philip Jackson, the conference broke new ground in the understanding of the active management of audio delivered within an acoustical environment.

Klippel GmbH is promoting a free two day seminar titled “Essential Loudspeaker Diagnostics Made Easy.” This seminar will be presented by Klippel founder Dr. Wolfgang Klippel on January 12–13, 2015, at the Canary Hotel in Santa Barbara, CA, and addresses the evaluation of sound reproduction systems using physical and perceptive measurement techniques.