Neutrality

What does neutral mean to you? IMO neutrality to the source [ recording session] cannot be accomplished. Whats your opinion?

rollo

 

Pink Triangle 'Anniversary/SME 'V'.. would fit the bill..No emotion to the music at all

 

neutrality should mean hearing exactly whats on the CD with nothing added or taken away. It should in theory be impossible for kit to lack "emotion" as it should simply reproduce whatever emotion was in the original event.

However i think humans generally dont find such a sound pleasing and its usualy the kit that has an inherent sonic flaw, or excentricity that tends to find favour. Dare i mention the likes of naim.

Naim could never be accused (not even by fans) of being neutral and true to the recording. It is however great fun to listen to and highly entertaining, full of the emotion you speak of.

So perhaps the quest for neutrality is fairly pointless.

Take another example, my newly aquired focal speakers. I wouldnt delude myself into saying they are neutral, they arent. My previous dynaudios were more neutral. But the focals are more musical. They have a richer midband and airy extended treble, that although not neutral, is amazingly pleasant to listen to.

One of my old systems comrised a roksan caspian M series cd player, audiolab 8000Q and 8000M monoblocks into epos ES30 speakers. I consider that system to have been pretty neutral. It was also flat an uninvolving. I guess you cant win.

Now i just have kit i enjoy listening to, dont care if its neutral or not.

 

That combination i mentioned i had for approx 1 month, i purchased them for a song & though why not..I hated the damned combo after a week or so..Boring Boring Boring with no life in the music at all. I honestly don't know how people can live with such gear.

 

yeah i had the same issue with the audiolab kit.... not the monoblocks per se (as you can see i have another set) but with the frankly veiled, dull and boring sounding 8000Q preamp. How on earth what hifi ever called that a reference system i have no idea.... reference of what boredom?

The amps themselves are pretty neutral, but then ive yet to find many class AB power amps that sound particularly bad at that kind of pricepoint. The preamp having far greater influence over what comes out of my speakers.

 

Maybe it wasn't actually neutral; maybe it was in some way taking the life out of the music, just as others systems add life by emphasising leading edges of notes. The word 'neutral' has negative connotations of a flat, uninvolving sound; however if you substitute 'life-like' or 'truthful', which in this context mean much the same as 'neutral', most people who are into hifi would say that this is a worthwhile goal.

 

I agree But I think a truly accurate or neutral system can sound superb. The problem is there are very, very few about. Especiliy since to achieve that goal the room must be considered. Far too many make claims of being neutral and are far from it.

Nothing wrong with Naim electronics, I think tis only the speakers that deviate from neutral.

 

reference of what boredom?

Boredom as in my recording i enjoyed & listerned to the most were drained cold & just hard work to listern to..I found myself in a kinda CD listerning situation most times...I much prefer to listern to distortions a deck give the listerner..

Example: Michell long in the tooth 'Gyrodec'..The 'Mycro' or even the 'Syncro' sounds better to me

 

the syncro is a nice deck.. even just to look at

 

Neutral means "free from colouration" according to Stereophile - so a system that allows the character of each recording through and presents them as different will be considered neutral, one that makes them all sound nice and cuddly will not be.