Is your system too “lean & clean sounding” ?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Khorn, May 4, 2021.

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  1. Ted Torres Jr

    Ted Torres Jr Synergistic Maximus

    Location:
    SE LA
    IMHO, Synergy of equipment, room and genre of music insures a setup presentation that remains musical and pleasing, even if very analytical with clean and accurate tonality and timbre!

    No need to spend 5 to 6 figures to obtain great synergy from 2-channel audio, just attention to balance and smart setup for the given listening environment!! Create plausible "Suspension of Disbelief" and the Soul of the music will come through! :righton:

    Ted
     
  2. toddrhodes

    toddrhodes Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Bend, IN
    No. I'd never own a "lean" system. I can deal with bloated or muddy bass. I don't like it, but I hate, loathe, and despise "lean," anemic-sounding systems.

    To me, 2-channel stereo is simultaneously a 3-dimensional visual experience, a 4-dimensional aural experience, and a 1-dimensional physical experience (meaning I can feel it in my chest). If I don't get that whole experience in my primary, focused-listening system, I disengage.
     
  3. toddrhodes

    toddrhodes Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Bend, IN
    /fistbump

    We're not that far apart from one another. 5 hours or so? Currently listening to Tool after a few weeks off from the "big system." And this is the type of music that exemplifies what I mean. Funny enough, not all tracks really slam you in the chest and that's fine - but when it should, it should. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it :)
     
    Ilusndweller likes this.
  4. The FRiNgE

    The FRiNgE Forum Resident

    Sometimes a system that characterizes itself can be a cool thing. One such system I auditioned at the hifi expo at the Waldorf, when they were having it in NY., the Jadis Eurythmie II horn system. This system does color the midrange somewhat, nominally not excessively, but... its imaging (and dynamics) was so convincing, the music was alive with realism. It's something that I can get used to, a little coloration or "character" of a system that does other things amazingly well.
     
    avanti1960 likes this.
  5. ZenArcher

    ZenArcher Senior Member

    Location:
    Durham, NC
    IMO, equipment that isn’t broken can’t sound lean and clean (with the exception of bandwidth limited speakers). It’s only recordings that can sound that way. A highly accurate loudspeaker or a gross equipment mismatch may cause lean recordings to sound worse because it’s not adding euphonic grunge, but that’s not the fault of the equipment, which is only reproducing what's on the recording.

    I’m not an accuracy purist. I enjoy a tube system from time to time precisely because of the euphonic distortion it can add. But decent equipment used as designed is not going to add leanness to a recording.
     
    Alan2 likes this.
  6. Diapason

    Diapason Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dublin, Ireland
    I had Kharma 3.2 FE for a long time, they of the ceramic drivers. When everything was working well they were fantastic, a real open window, incredibly detailed, like a new pair of glasses. Problem was, that speed and precision could easily slip into a whitish kind of sound that pushed you away instead of drawing you in. It was a fine balance, and brought as much madness as pleasure. Even with very high-priced stuff, I think it's hard to get that completely open window sound WITH a natural balance. When you hear it it's magical, but these days if I have to choose I prefer the sound to tip towards plummy rather than bleached.
     
  7. Alan2

    Alan2 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    CD in general has always sounded clean to me in comparison with my vinyl repro. Cleanness can also depend on how a particular album, in either format, has been recorded/mastered.
     
  8. avanti1960

    avanti1960 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago metro, USA
    until you hear something even better, nothing wrong with a little remodeling...
     
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