We discuss the context of modern sound



    Audio-Technica ATH-M50x Limited Edition Surrounding Headphones

    In the 29th issue of the Sound podcast, we discuss the context of contemporary consumption of musical compositions and opportunities for immersion in the subject.

    [ More on the Sound Podcast ] [ Listen to this issue ]

    Other Podcast Issues
    • [ read ] [ listen ] Black Friday and New Year's sales: Experience of Audiomania;
    • [ read ] [ listen ] “Musical fast food”: How can a mass product sound?
    • [читать] [слушать] Старый новый звук: Мнения инженера и меломана;






    Dmitry: Now there is a situation when large IT companies like Apple with their Apple Music and the purchase of Beats, on the one hand, give us convenience, on the other hand, they drag us into their closed ecosystem: we get a certain set of albums, tracks, that is, a certain a choice, but we cannot go beyond this framework in terms of, for example, obtaining music with lossless compression.

    This is the choice people have to make if they don’t want to spend time independently searching, receiving and downloading music of potentially higher quality.

    Timothy: Here we need to talk about the fact that there is a clear choice between convenience and quality. As paradoxical as it sounds, Apple Music, with all its convenience, has problems, in my opinion.

    I would love to pay much more for Apple Music if I had the opportunity to listen at a completely different level of quality. But, since it is very convenient, and I can listen to almost any song at any time, I go for this compromise.

    I take my phone out of my pocket, connect to Apple Music and listen to music this way. Although at some points, of course, this is not enough for me. And I take out a disk or start something from my hard drive in lossless quality. And then I already get maximum pleasure.

    And at that moment I think, why do I need this Apple Music? But then, anyway, I return to it simply because it is convenient. This conscious choice, when a person who understands how music should sound, how it can sound, chooses convenience instead of quality, is a terrible paradox, it seems to me.

    Dmitry: A similar situation arises, for example, when listening to music on the subway. It’s hard for portable players and DACs to compete with smartphones that take full advantage of the ecosystem of Apple and other companies.

    Timothy:Yes. One box, again. Stuck and listen. But if we talk about the metro - we have raised this topic many times - the metro is not the best example. This is an extreme environment for both ear and listening. And listening to music in this case is a way to disconnect yourself from the outside world. Here, of course, people have less complaints about the sound quality. Well that is audible.

    Depending on, of course, how good or bad the material is used, and how decent the headphones are. Nevertheless, people with “sandwiches” (when a person has not just a smartphone, but separately a smartphone, DAC and amplifier, and all this is pulled together with a special rubber band) already often appear in the subway. This “sandwich” lies in a backpack or bag. I already see that.

    Even if I, being in the subway - and I visit there infrequently - I see this, probably this indicates that the future has come. A person chooses [sound quality] because I can’t say that carrying such a “sandwich” is convenient. Moreover, if we talk about the main function of the smartphone - talk on the phone. I have little idea how to technically implement a telephone conversation with such a sandwich. Obviously, the headphones must be a headset.



    Portable player FiiO X3 2nd gen

    Dmitry: I, rather, had in mind the case with transport in general - it can be attributed to the plane, and to a fairly long journey on the bus. All the same, these are more comfortable conditions when a person can calmly sit back in a soft chair and listen to good music.

    On the other hand, the topic of portable equipment is interesting from the point of view of equipment workplaces. Now you can see that people are starting to relate completely differently to what they do during working hours. You can safely take a break for 15-20 minutes at lunch and listen to good music if the workplace is no longer the classic computer speakers of the late 90s - early 2000s. Then everyone had computer speakers on the right and left of the monitor.

    A person can already safely get himself a portable system that will stand at his work for 15-20 thousand rubles. It seems to be not very attached to her, does not require much from her. But on the other hand, it allows you to have a good time, even if it is not an open stereo system, but just a set of DACs and fairly good headphones.

    Timothy:Usually in offices there really are some kind of inexpensive things for general listening. In general, the concept of open space or simply large rooms, where a huge number of people are sitting, implies the use of personal means of isolating a person from others. No matter what open space you look at, heads are everywhere in the headphones. Otherwise, it is impossible to work.

    The concept of offices, which was not so long ago, it seems to me, is more logical. It’s not always enough just to put on headphones to abstract from the external environment. I also want to turn my back on her as much as possible, and in such a way that I can’t see anything with my side vision. But there are people who really can not work with music. It is impossible to imagine how they generally work in open space.

    The saddest thing is that at the same time, the efficiency of these people is greatly reduced. The boss can look at the results of the work of such an employee, despite the fact that he seemed so promising, and they (the results) are lagging behind to be desired. The funny thing is that all this is due to the fact that he cannot disconnect from the external environment, he is constantly in it. And headphones, unfortunately, will not solve this problem 100%.

    At one time, we had a situation in Audiomania where we could not agree for a very long time which radio we would listen to. Different people listen to very different music. Constantly sitting in the headphones is not quite normal and typical, I periodically want to get out of there. It is more comfortable to be in the natural environment. There really was a problem.

    In one room, we were an ardent supporter of heavy music, people who are used to working with modern electronics, and opponents of both. It was very difficult to agree.



    Marshall Stockwell portable speaker

    Dmitry: On the other hand, there can be a very interesting way out when there is a separate room, for example, a small kitchen where people could put their music in turn.

    Timothy: Of course, that would be very good. Again, in our experience, in a room where people gather for a break, as a rule, nothing sounds. With us, anyway. People catch their breath, discuss something, and, as a rule, this is not work.

    Although it would be great to get to know each other's music. For example, before this comrade, who loved heavy music, I practically didn’t listen to it. When he introduced me to her, I realized that there are interesting moments and compositions that I would not even mind listening to, but, of course, not as a backdrop during the main work.

    Dmitry: Yes, you can get the most selected songs right away and not waste time studying the topic and doing an independent search. When a person is immersed in a topic, he knows what exactly can be shown, which is a standard and an example of good compositions in a particular topic.

    Timothy:Here it is generally worth remembering that people are strange creatures. On the one hand, they constantly need a wide choice, on the other hand, they practically do not use it. If you take, for example, the same Apple Music, this is actually an opportunity to listen to anything.

    But people do not know what they want. It turns out that they still listen to some playlists and collections. The same thing happens in Smart TV. Why is Smart TV developing so sluggishly? Because people are not used to choosing their own content. And here it turns out, everything is available to man, but he does not know what to take.

    Therefore, people who can introduce you to a new world, a new style of music and tell you what happens, this is very cool. The same is true with the search in Smart TV for applications in which there may be something interesting. I've been hooked on TED recently. I watch several performances every day. This is an incomparable sensation.

    But then again, in what mode am I watching this? I press the button “show random performance”, I don’t sit and do not select something by tags, because it is not clear what I will choose. I want something, and I click and watch this something. A very strange creature is a man.

    Dmitriy:It is interesting to think about how the ecosystem of audio has changed in terms of accessibility. I recently bought an amateur SLR camera and tried to figure it out. I realized that he can not provide me with anything other than automatic mode, and in fact that's all I have for the first time, until I sit down to read a rather thick manual.

    From the point of view of audio technology, the situation seems to me much simpler. No need to dive into the topic for weeks to get good enough quality right away.

    Timothy:With photographic equipment, everything is a little different. Photographic equipment is professional and unprofessional. By the way, audio too. For home listening you do not need to understand anything, on the one hand, on the other hand, if we are talking about how the format of music consumption has changed, here, probably, one can argue with the idea that much is simplified.

    In the 80s. I could get a tape recorder, stick a cassette, press the “Play” button and that’s all - there was no other listening option. Well, coils, vinyl. Vinyl was a separate story. By the way, vinyl from my childhood is not associated with anything other than fairy tales.

    People who listened to vinyl records then were very specific. I had one acquaintance, he constantly ran to the Melody store, defended a huge queue in order to buy a record, because it was not easy. Now, in order to have many possibilities, you need to understand a little in technology.

    Let's just say there is a simple way, there is a difficult one. As in cameras: there is an automatic mode, I pressed one button - I got the result, there are various other modes. That is, if a person wants more, he will have to figure it out. And more here, more likely, in opportunities, additional chips.

    For example, the same network players. You can record music on a USB flash drive, plug it into the receiver and listen. There is such an option. Another question is what exactly the receiver can reproduce, and how well it does it. If we want additional convenience, there’s already a conversation about the network storages on which something lies, and all this needs to be configured.

    All this, in principle, is not difficult. As well as setting the shutter speed, aperture on the camera, because now, probably, any camera can set the white balance normally. And you can understand how it works in about ten minutes. Books are written about this.

    Audio is a bit trickier. The most important thing is that the conditions are changing, the equipment is changing, and people are not really keeping up with this. There are people who are watching for new things. And there are people who are not in the know and who do not need it. For them it is too difficult, it is a kind of barrier preventing them from plunging into the world of audio. They look, they see a lot of wires, a lot of devices, a lot of settings and decide to buy a boombox and listen to it.

    Dmitry: It turns out that, on the one hand, the question of choice again arises. Of course, it is better when there is a fairly wide selection. But, on the other hand, we need to understand how to approach it. For example, in the workplace we will have a rather modest audio system compared to what we can afford at home.

    Timothy:By the way, I do not agree. We have an employee in our office who has a very expensive DAC, a very expensive headphone amplifier on his desk, and he uses very expensive headphones.



    External DAC Arcam rPac

    Dmitry: Yes, this is a closed circuit when a person listens with headphones.

    Timothy: I think that not headphones - this is a collective listening. And here really everything is very difficult. There are different categories of people who are used to working in a different atmosphere.

    For example, in accounting, rarely does anything play. This is very strange for me. However, there are different categories of people, and they can clearly be divided by profession. Close to the accountants are teachers. These people cannot work to music, it distracts them.

    Dmitriy:Probably the fact is that there is a lot of reporting in accounting and in the educational process.

    Timothy: No, I do not agree. I also have a huge number of numbers. When I work with numbers, collect some statistics, create some kind of report, and this happens almost every day, it all goes very well to the music.

    It seems to me that the point here is not what a person does, but how he relates to this and what is happening in his head. My process to music is much more cheerful and fun. This is an integral part of it. Without music it will be hard, long and difficult. With music - easy and fast.

    The only thing I can’t listen to is singing in Russian at such moments. Here, probably, the reason is clear. Russian is my native language, and I understand it too well. And, fortunately, this does not happen with English yet, because otherwise it is not at all clear what I will have to listen to. Only instrumental music.

    Dmitry: Let's get back to the question of choice. It is interesting to look at the difference that is now, compared with what was 6-8-10 years ago. In addition to having a wide range of choices, this is also an opportunity to get expert information about what is currently on the market. There are many sites that allow you to delve into a particular topic. From the point of view of audio technology, acoustics, are there now exactly such expert platforms in this topic?

    Timothy:Oh, that’s a sore point. If you recall the past a bit, audio technology in the same 80s was the engine of progress. This was the topic that is now occupied by IT, probably more in the context of smartphones and mobile communications.

    This was not the case in the 80s. Therefore, a lot has been said about audio and video technology. The media also supported this topic. The media generally very quickly connect to the issue, which is interesting.

    Now, unfortunately, this is practically nonexistent. There are sketchy publications. If this is not specialized media, you should not wait for competent material. We had a negative experience when a non-core magazine about the interior was going to make an article about home theaters. We took part in it, helped, told.

    When the article came out, I wanted to shoot myself. So much time was spent to convey the essence to people, and the article was not about that, and even illiterate. Unfortunately, this is a big trouble. People will read it. I hope not many, because the magazine is not for fans of audio / video, but nonetheless. Those who read will have a completely wrong impression. This is bad.

    There is a wonderful iXBT portal. As far as I know, in the near future there will be a section about audio, namely about Hi-Fi. They are now thinking what to call him. I am extremely happy, we even begin to work with them in the context of testing some materials, reviews. It's great. On this portal, as readers and, perhaps, writers, there are people who are really interested in technology, technology and modern things.

    There is a lot of this in audio now, but there’s nowhere to read about it. This, of course, is difficult. The transition of media to the network for the media themselves is generally a painful topic. Until recently, they tried to deny the presence of the Internet, and they behaved a little strange, because the prospect was clear. It is very difficult to get authoritative, correct and reliable information about home audio, about home theaters.

    This information is accompanied by a lot of white noise. If you take the forums, there are a lot of people with high ratings, and the rating, as we know, on the forums is given for the number of posts. As a result, we get a stream of opinions from people who, unfortunately, do not know anything about this and are judged simply because they think so. This, of course, is very difficult.

    Dmitriy:On the other hand, you can just go directly to the expert in the store or visit the showroom. How much has the situation changed in terms of this opportunity? There used to be more showrooms, now it's less. A crisis. How can this be compared?

    Timothy: Firstly, the situation has really changed. In network stores, sellers began to run away from buyers who go to a small area where there is Hi-Fi, because you need to talk to them. And during this time you can sell four teapots.

    Not kidding, I came across this. And other people tell me about how the two sellers stand, who see that the buyer is deliberately going to the Hi-Fi department, and they fly off. It's funny.

    This is good for Audiomania because people will come to us and we will talk with them. Relatively recently, a trend with room auditions has appeared, now, probably, it is on the decline on a general scale. People buy more “consumer” things more.

    Again, I look at the situation from the inside out and understand that often people trust someone’s opinion or reviews. And it really happens that they buy without listening. It ends in different ways. Some like it all. But it happens that often people say: “What should I do? I’ve bought it, I read it, and I don’t like it. ” Really don't like it.

    Someone heard something somewhere. Someone went to his birthday party, drank, listened to music, and he liked it. And he bought the same speakers for himself, and they do not sound like they did at his birthday when he drank. Therefore, the showrooms have not gone away, people come and continue to listen. And, I think there is no other way.



    Showroom of Audiomania on the metro station Elektrozavodskaya

    It is clear that there are some simpler things, for example, Heos from Denon. This is just one box that solves all the problems. A smartphone connects to it via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, and something starts to play. Or this box itself is connected to the network, and something pulls and reproduces from the network. And this is enough for people.

    It's great that this is happening, including because some time ago a large number of people in the apartments did not have a musical source. It was amazing. I came to visit my friends and realized that they had nothing to listen to music on. They have a TV and that's it. They moved to a new apartment and do not even think that they need to buy something like that. Therefore, the purchase of such a small device is the first step to come to some more or less serious system.

    If a person understands how the music actually sounds, such a device will certainly not satisfy him. On the other hand, it’s great to put something like this in the bedroom and read a book in the evening to background music (by the way, not everyone can read books to music). Or just do something nice with that kind of music. Why not? But, of course, this is not a full replacement.

    In this sense, probably little has changed over the years. The only thing I can see is that people really began to pay more attention to this. If about 8-10 years ago, the topic of audio completely disappeared from discussions, now it is quite obvious that it is returning. People listen to music. Here, probably, it is worth recalling a young audience, which practically does not live without headphones. This, I think, sooner or later will result in the understanding that music is a part of life, which is impossible without it.

    The only thing, of course, it all depends on what they listen to with these headphones. We recently posted a funny video: a man talked about understanding classical music. If you show this video to young people, and then let them listen to some classic piece, it will be interesting to see their reaction. Because, unfortunately, people do not understand how to listen to this.

    And the quality of the equipment that they have does not allow them to fully enjoy the music so that they hear what is intended, and not what their inexpensive headphones that they bought in the transition can reproduce.

    Dmitriy:By the way, showrooms not only allow you to see a specific instance of audio technology, they also allow you to learn about some new categories in communication. For example, two years ago I met experts in the same way in the showroom and learned from them that there are portable DACs. Before that, I simply did not imagine that there was such a category of goods.

    Also, for some people it may be a discovery to have network players in the form in which they already exist: not just a box that is a large flash drive connected to the network. Still, this is a smarter device.

    Timothy: Showroom is a permanent exhibition. I have long been accustomed to call it that.

    Dmitry: By the way, speaking of exhibitions ...

    Timothy:In my opinion, these inserts no longer make sense, since there are showrooms. Many companies in the showroom can listen, talk, a person will be given a lot of time. He can put on his music, he can listen to it for not two or three minutes. Coming to the showroom, coming to the company, it seems to me, you can get much more. The exhibition itself has already lost its meaning.

    Dmitry: Even when compared in terms of equipment space?

    Timothy: This is generally a disaster. Few people manage to build conditions in hotel rooms, despite the fact that everyone is perverted as he can. The idea of ​​the exhibition is that you can come and “listen” to the whole market.

    In fact, the whole market "listen", firstly, it is impossible, and secondly, it is not necessary. It’s impossible to listen to more than 3-4 speaker options at a time; there is a mess in the head. Here you can draw an analogy with a perfume store, when aromas are mixed in the nose and allowed to smell coffee. Unfortunately, there is no coffee in the audio, you just need to pause, and large enough so that the head returns to normal, and you can continue to compare.

    Dmitry: What is impossible to do with the exhibition, because they go on for 2-3 days.

    Timothy:You can spend all these 2-3 days, hang out there: listen to 2-3 rooms, go out, walk around Crocus, this is a fairly large area. During this time, everything may disappear. Came back - listen further. But I don’t know who has so much time. The main thing is that there really is no need for this. A lot of the same equipment, very similar in sound style.

    It would, of course, be cool if a person turned, for example, to Audiomania and told how he listens to music, his sound and musical preferences, and we would immediately offer him three options that he would listen to.

    I understand that for the most part people want to plunge into it all. As far as I can imagine, this is almost impossible. Especially, given the conditions of the room and the atmosphere: in the corridor, someone is talking to someone, but here you need to listen and hear the nuances. What nuances can there be when a bunch of people are crowding around who are talking among themselves about something, someone is sorting out some things, someone is asking to turn off one and turn on the other.

    This is not an atmosphere that will allow you to pick up your equipment. Unfortunately, the exhibition does not solve this problem. Now the exhibition has more turned into a way to see who else is alive in the market. If a company participates in an exhibition, then it has money for it. Well, see who has what appeared.

    Here you also need to understand that it is not always possible to show a “wild” novelty once a year. New devices and new classes of devices appear, but they do not appear so often to come to the exhibition for this.

    Dmitry: We are forming a way to immerse a person in the topic of audio: he doesn’t come from magazines, but from friends, he watches what they write on the network, he visits expert sites and platforms that are often created by the companies selling audio equipment themselves.

    Timothy: He is forced to do so. There is no other way. Recently, as a rule, everything starts from friends and acquaintances who have learned something. It turns out to be a closed elite club. Someone heard something, found out and offered to show. He showed someone was listening, hanging his ears and opening his mouth, and realized that another time had come.

    It so happened that in the topic of audio we had a strong failure between the 80s and 2010s. Almost a twenty-year failure when audio information was not mainstream. She is not the mainstream now, but we are gradually getting out of this dark zone, they are beginning to become interested in this.

    Take even the fact that everyone goes with headphones. In the 90s. there weren’t so many people in the headphones, for example, in the subway. Now everyone is listening to music. And that's great, I think.

    Also popular now: