What Is “The Analog Sound”? | Understanding Harmonic Distortion (Part 1 of 3)

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[dxjbzqe]

I seriously appreciate creators who just get to the point and don't make people sit through annoying intros. I've gotten so used to having to fast forward through the early part of a video that it feels weird not having to do that.

[italianbirdvideos]

There's just nobody out there consistantly producing easily understandable yet concise videos like this channel. So good.

[-KingOfKhaos]

This actually explains a complex topic VERY clearly, plainly, and utilized excellent examples… thank you! 👍🏻👍🏻

[greygrey]

I just had to pause your discourse to say that, I have never heard a better discussion of "analog-versus-digital" sound recording and production. Ever. Thank you !!

[picksalot]

Clear and concise information presented without bias. This makes it a lot easier to decide which tools are best for the desired result. 😎

[EliteEaterCRV]

I have been having troubles getting my own computer built, but the main reason i have it is so that i can make muisc. The back to basics video was extremely helpful. Thank you guys in advance for the excellent lessons!

[tekis]

Great video! Being a professional audio engineer hailing from the days of analog tape, I can tell you that sometimes we didn't always like "the non-linearness" that came with it. The first time that I ever used a Alesis ADAT, I was very impressed with the fact that the output sounded identical to the input. But, there was a time when just the thought of having to use a plug-in just made me wince. Since then, digital recording has made exponential strides. Nowadays I don't think twice about using plug-ins. And you're dead on about distortion; I have more saturation, distortion and transformer emulations than I can count! Thank you.

[DeltaWhiskeyBravo]

Excellent demonstration and explanation. Now we can understand why adding analog emulation plug-ins makes audio sound better. It's also why it seemed to make sense to add distortion and saturation to make it more like what I thought it should sound like.

[captain_crunk]

I thought Dan Worrall was the best at explaining such things, but you have overtaken him IMHO. Keep up the ridiculously good work. And thank you for doing what you do!

[junaidisaacs]

Always a great day when audio University and Kyle post a video 🔥 such a great idea to go into depth about this topic I feel like most people just tell you the difference but never actually explain why they distort differently

[dyad]

This is THE MOST VALUABLE advice I've ever heard in my life..

Thanks so much Brother 😎💪👌

[CookieCurls]

This is great, but I wish you played the audio for all of the distortion examples. It would have helped strengthen the argument and would have taught us more if we could actually hear what you were talking about.

[cliffprowse]

Awesome video! People should also understand that louder doesn’t mean better. It’s like people try and make a mix as loud as possible which isn’t always a good thing

[SpankyFuzz]

This is a very valid approach and a great presentation on the subject. It is worth watching the whole series. Well done. Thank you, Audio University.

[johnbogle]

Great video. As a long time audio professional, I've collected some stories about quality and fidelity. In a discussion with a music professor many years ago, the idea of perfect reproduction came up. His thoughts were fascinating. If you record a piano in an acoustically perfect room* using the best available gear and then play it back with the best playback system available, even a layman when blindfolded could tell you the difference.

Our perception of sound is mostly made up of reflections from the local environment. If you introduce the effects of a different environment into it, the difference becomes obvious. There's no way around this, it's how our brains are wired. There is also the sonic differences of mic proximity to source (the same as speaker proximity to listener?). That said digital or not, perfect fidelity is a nearly impossible dream. In the end it is my opinion that the electronics in the middle don't matter much weighed against differences in transducers and environment.

There is a quote from some engineer that said "Flat response? Get the jack change the tire." Maybe we should be trying to make music more "musical" than accurate :). Thinking about sonic extensions or additions to music is nothing new. A Chamber orchestra's music was written to be played in a chamber (smaller room). Bagpipes, in an open field were designed to scare the bejesus out of an enemy. There are many divergent examples. Most modern music was written to be compressed, streamed and played back through sub standard Bluetooth speakers or earbuds (ouch!).

I have subscribed. Thank you for a peek into the psychics and psychology of sound. Cheers

*What is acoustically perfect?

[Burnout_AU]

Kudos for the transparency of the verbal narrative. I listened as audio only and found your script worked well without visual aids. Subscribed😊

[clarkrogers]

MAN that was cool! when those harmonics showed up on the screen from the recorded audio being pushed past the limit of the equipment i screamed lmao. MAN that is so cool! harmonics are everywhere!!!

[louf]

A couple of years ago I resurrected an older Sony real to real recorder and played back what ever tape was in there. It was Chuck Mangione's _Encore_ . I was shocked of the fidelity of bass and of warmth and realness.

[richardsoffice]

Thank you. Have been studying this for awhile; You express this excellently, succinctly, fine examples, with emphasis yet pleasantly! Have noted this; I can try to explain this, but if someone still doesn't understand, & they see your video, still don't, `get it, ' well ~ !

[JumboDubby]

Excellent, excellent discussion of this matter.