Future of Sound

With SACDS, and remasters pouring forth at an incredible rate, and with audio technology also soaring, what are the opinions of my fellow audiophiles as to where things are headed...I'd be naïve to think that audio sound cannot get much better, at least in the near term. Can sound reproduction get much better...? I mean I sit here in my sound room, and its as if they are all in the room.... Thoughts?

 

We must keep making it louder! Louder! Louder!

As far as actual playback bitrate or sample rate or whatever is concerned, I'm sure more and more tape transfers will be done at higher resolutions... but it will also document the aging of the tape (provided we're talking about the classics). Speaking as someone who can't hear a difference between MP3 and hi-res FLAC (I'm here because there's a great community who loves music, please don't murder me!), I don't know if there really will be a significant push to further these advancements. That said there is definitely a market for it. I think the technology will evolve, but not at the rate it did over the past few years. I mean, how much better can some of this stuff sound?

As for actual mastering, I really hope dynamics make a triumphant return. I'd love to see brickwalled releases viewed in the same light as dynamic ones are today (by the public at large I mean - "wow, this sounds weird").

 

and will there be a "large" market for much improved sound" over what there is now? We all know money drives things. Do the kids under 21 care about incredible sound, considering the fact that everything is down loaded? and ripped....The sound now pouring out of my 9 speakers is monumental. There will always be a market for those that want the best possible sound. Me being one of them...

 

I think there definitely will be a market for this stuff, but it will be a niche market. Probably moreso than it is now. I know significantly more about audio than I did two years ago thanks to this forum, and I still do strive for the best possible sound, but I think that most people on this board would start foaming at the mouth if they had to spend more than sixteen seconds listening to music on the gear that I have (terrible iPhone which folds everything down to mono, or stereo laptop speakers which sound even worse than the folded down phone). I still do strive for good sound... but that's more in terms of mastering, not gear. That also probably explains why I have higher tolerances toward EQ and compression than most here... but there is a line to be drawn.

 

Future is NOW ! Only problem possibility's not used but misused.

 

what?

 

What what ? I really dont get what you mean to say.
Perhaps a little clearer: there is no future, what you got is now, today. Gear is good but not always used the right way, CD's today horrible. No CD from mid ninety's on worth of a good playback system, period, no discussion possible.

 

So, no hope, no future, no improvements, nothing to look forward in the world of sound improvement?

 

The future is 2 years old already.

Surrounded by sound: how 3D audio hacks your brain »

 

I was hoping this thread might actually provoke some rational thought....oh well.

 

No. I listen to recorded music since early fifties.
Nothing changed, stereo a major setback in quality, surround, quadro, digital, streaming all snake oil, sounds for sounds sake. So at least I expect nothing in the future, perhaps only new good artists I can dig recorded in real High Fidelity.

 

Did you read the article? How is that not cool future stuff?

 

I also was there early in the stereo era and I absolutely disagree with you on this.

 

Of course sound reproduction can get better, and it will - everything can be improved upon, including my wife's chicken parmigiana (fingers crossed).

 

I disagree. I think there are some CDs with lots of care and attention applied. Not many, but they're out there. Bob Dylan's two most recent albums, Shadows In The Night and Fallen Angels, sound wonderful on CD. I believe they were mastered by Greg Calbi. There is plenty of space, they are the right volume level, and I can't detect any dynamic range compression at all. They sound beautiful. I have no proof, but I suspect that this is simply a digital transfer of the same master used for cutting the vinyl issues. Also, Vic Anesini has remastered the Kinks' Muswell Hillbillies and Everybody's In Showbiz on the Sony Legacy label and it doesn't sound like he used any EQ at all - it sounds like the tape being played straight back. Personally, I would have preferred a little bit of low end punch, but I can easily add that myself, whereas a poorly mastered CD I could not remove it.

I agree that most CDs from the early nineties onward tend to abuse EQ and compression and similar tools. However, to say that there are none at all and that there is no discussion to be had at all doesn't seem fair.

 

Sound will become obsolete. Music will stream directly into our brains.

 

The thing that I am the most excited about is the ready availability of high resolution digital files via streaming.

 

I'm eager to hear music I love via MQA ... but it seems to be vaporware at the moment.

 

never had a chance last night....but will now

 

False.

 

My guess is it could be much like color TV. It was introduced and everyone thought it couldn't get any better. Yet, it still improves as time passes.
I would assume audio would be along the same lines.

 

x

I agree...but how?

 

False for sure

 

Now that, I'm not sure of, but I'm sure it will improve. Though, some of the best sounding speakers/equipment is vintage.

 

I wonder if anyone is tinkering with the next thing that will follow cds.....