Why some speakers sound great

[cp]

I actually achieved what Paul has been searching for his whole life.. Real sound! When you sit back eyes closed and it sounds perfect! I'm a perfectionist if a track sounds off i hear it instantly.. And yes i use EQ it is a must.

[sebastianbachert]

Conductor = speaker designer. It's as simple as great. Thank you Paul. May you, your family and your team at PS Audio stay safe in these times. I learn each day thanks to you and your YT-channel. Best regards from Germany

[squallywally]

Key word. Personal. We all listen differently and find different elements appealing. Why I always let my friends adjust the sound of my system when they come by for a visit or even when they are in my car. I find it very interesting how different each of my friends are and what they find that sounds good. Good question and great explanation Paul.

[m.]

One of the best videos you've made Paul!
You have actually made me re think my speakers and question, if they are optimal for the type of music I listen too.
Thank You!

[stevefick]

Great vid, Paul! I like the explanation using the conductor as an example. Very true.
Everyone's ears are different. Buy the speaker that sounds good to YOU. Doesn't matter who builds it. You're the conductor!

[larswillems]

May I add that room acoustics and which type of music is played through a specific set of speakers makes quite some difference too.

[peterhaslund]

I really just want my speakers to not emphasize any part of the spectrum, that's why I chose PSB Imagine T3. Paul Barton did research at the NRC up in Canada to establish a scientific basis for his designs. 40 years later he made the T3s, building upon a desire to have those speakers just disappear. It's not that other speakers are bad, it's just that they color the sound

[ronbradshaw]

Here's my take: loudspeakers are, like Paul said, very imperfect. Like a person, you like that one but not this one... Got that early on and always DIY'd my own loudspeakers. I exploit the weaknesses; i always liked extended range, deep bass and focused highs, result: i use 15inch woofers only and, slot tweeters, that give me the sound that I LIKE.
Forget spending thousandsss on flat frequency response speakers, you'll be spending lots of time CONVINCING yourself you like em cause, they have good reviews...

[gstanley]

Interesting response. I have four different rooms with different systems in my house, one being a mix/master studio I use for classical pipe organ recordings. Once mastered, I listen to the mix in the other three rooms plus two cars. When I am close the recordings mostly DSD and high-res PCM begin to gel in all locations. Each room has a different response, which gives me a feel for how a listener would hear the master at a desk, mid-fi living room, and cost is no object listening room. Once past the freq response issue, I have learned with lost of listening that I have preferred amounts of speaker directivity to control room reflections and imaging; and I have preferred amounts of damping on the speaker/amp combination that accentuates the dynamics and growl of the organ without flabby ringing in the bass. I am also sensitive to edge diffraction and over time have found I prefer the image from bipolar speakers like your IRS Vs. Finally, I have found that the best of the best are using great drivers coupled with exemplary crossovers to reduce the distortions that happen in the crossover areas and muddy both the response and image. And so on... it never stops.

[RobertRyda]

What are your thoughts on adding a hardwate eq into the chain? Giving a 50% volume from the audio interface; equalizing in consideration with the frequency charts and your tastes; having a volume knob to control that into the amplifier; final stop the passive monitors;

[danilorainone]

old is gold, mine KLH, 3 wy, ADS, 2 wy small studio or discoteque wall mounted, fabric w rubber suspension, fav speakers are like chicken recipes, everyone has their own

[randomsomeone]

#1 reason I love this channel.
Honesty.

[rickya.livingston]

Wow, wow that was very helpful. Thanks for give me some good insight bit of Epiphany on the reality speaker designers versus why I hear what I hear depending on the tweaks made by the company/designer the product. I didn’t think about as much. I appreciate it.

[johnnybgoode]

I think there's a lot more than frequency response involved in making a speaker sound good. Some speakers have lousy dispersion. The listener needs to be in the exact right spot before they sound any good. The stereo image may be poor, which also may be related to inadequate dispersion. Some speakers have slow transient response, so the music seems to drag rather than sound lively. Some speakers may present a fluctuating impedance nightmare to the amplifier so that the electronics can't sound their best.

[TheGwt]

Paul- just discovered your channel and have loved the vids. You have a very good speaking voice / presentation style and you do an excellent job of explaining topics (which are typically complex) and engaging people. 👌

[cheaneysaddles]

Enjoyed this talk very much. Thank You!

[gregcyrus]

and then it also depends how the sound engineer mixed up the recording. I now use a physical mixer to adjust sound (esp. recs from the 80s) - not frequently, but I can.

[caroldelaney]

Hi I like my music to sound great when I’m sitting in front of it.but I also like the same music to sound great when I’m moving about the whole space.its a difficult one .

[vicg]

Paul, that is the best explanation so far. A painter's pallate. inexact science. No wonder there are so many different sounding speakers.

[Driessens_Peter]

i always wondered why some speakers sounds beautyful with some amps and others not, and vice versa. i have switched about 4 times of (vintage) speakers and 5 times from (vintage) amp to find a perfect balance and combo (and found it) thanks for the explenation.