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High-end Audio
High-end audio is a class of consumer home audio equipment marketed to audiophiles on the basis of high price or quality, and esoteric or novel sound reproduction technologies. The term can refer simply to the price, to the build quality of the components, or to the subjective or objective quality of sound reproduction. Definition The distinction between the terms ''high end'' and '' high fidelity'' is not well defined. According to one industry commentator, high-end could be defined as, "Gear below which's price and performance one could not go without compromising the music and the sound."Szabady, Paul (January 2008)"The Rega P3-24 Turntable" ''Stereo Times''Archivedfrom the original on 21 November 2013 Harry Pearson, founder of '' The Absolute Sound'' magazine, is widely acknowledged to have coined the term ''high-end audio''. Costs High-end audio equipment can be extremely expensive. It is sometimes referred to as ''cost-no-object'' equipment. Audiophile equipment can ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Home Audio
Home audio systems are audio electronics intended for home entertainment use, such as shelf stereos, music centres and surround sound receivers. Home audio generally does not include standard equipment such as built-in television speakers, but rather accessory equipment, which may be intended to enhance or replace standard equipment, such as standard TV speakers. Since surround sound receivers, which are primarily intended to enhance the reproduction of a movie, are the most popular home audio device, the primary field of home audio is home cinema. History Monaural Home audio dates back before electricity, to Edison's phonograph, a monaural, low fidelity sound reproduction format. Early electrical phonographs as well as many other audio formats started out as monaural formats. Stereo Stereophonic sound was invented as a means of creating a sound stage, a more realistic reproduction of the sound as recorded live. Stereo sound usually refers to two-channel audio, but technically ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Total Harmonic Distortion
The total harmonic distortion (THD or THDi) is a measurement of the harmonic distortion present in a signal and is defined as the ratio of the sum of the powers of all harmonic components to the power of the fundamental frequency. Distortion factor, a closely related term, is sometimes used as a synonym. In audio systems, lower distortion means the components in a loudspeaker, amplifier or microphone or other equipment produce a more accurate reproduction of an audio recording. In radio communications, devices with lower THD tend to produce less unintentional interference with other electronic devices. Since harmonic distortion tends to widen the frequency spectrum of the output emissions from a device by adding signals at multiples of the input frequency, devices with high THD are less suitable in applications such as spectrum sharing and spectrum sensing. In power systems, lower THD implies lower peak currents, less heating, lower electromagnetic emissions, and less core los ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stereophile
''Stereophile'' is a monthly American audiophile magazine which reviews high-end audio equipment, such as loudspeakers and amplifiers, and audio-related news. History Founded in 1962 by J. Gordon Holt. ''Stereophile'' is the highest-circulation hi-fi magazine in the Americas and possibly the world. In 1998, ''Stereophile'' was acquired by Petersen Publishing. Until 2018, ''Stereophile'' was published in New York by The Enthusiast Network, a publisher of special interest magazines. The magazine was formerly based in Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label= Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. The name “S .... During this period it was published eight times a year. until the August 1987 issue, when it started monthly publication. In March 2018, ''Stereophile'' was purchased, along with related magazine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Professional Audio
Professional audio, abbreviated as pro audio, refers to both an activity and a category of high quality, studio-grade audio equipment. Typically it encompasses sound recording, sound reinforcement system setup and audio mixing, and studio music production by trained sound engineers, audio engineers, record producers, and audio technicians who work in live event support and recording using mixing consoles, recording equipment and sound reinforcement systems. Professional audio is differentiated from consumer- or home-oriented audio, which are typically geared toward listening in a non-commercial environment. Professional audio can include, but is not limited to broadcast radio, audio mastering in a recording studio, television studio, and sound reinforcement such as a live concert, DJ performances, audio sampling, public address system set up, sound reinforcement in movie theatres, and design and setup of piped music in hotels and restaurants. Professional audio equi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Broadcast Quality
Broadcast quality is a term stemming from quad videotape to denote the quality achieved by professional video cameras and time base correctors (TBC) used for broadcast television, usually in standard definition. As the standards for commercial television broadcasts have changed from analog television using analog video to digital television using digital video, the term has generally fallen out of use.Broadcast Engineering - Broadcast quality /ref> Manufacturers have used it to describe both and " |
Audio Noise Measurement
Audio noise measurement is a process carried out to assess the quality of audio equipment, such as the kind used in recording studios, broadcast engineering, and in-home high fidelity. In audio equipment noise is a low-level hiss or buzz that intrudes on audio output. Every piece of equipment which the recorded signal subsequently passes through will add a certain amount of electronic noise the process of removing this and other noises is called noise reduction. Origins of noise – the need for weighting Microphones, amplifiers and recording systems all add some electronic noise to the signals passing through them, generally described as hum, buzz or hiss. All buildings have low-level magnetic and electrostatic fields in and around them emanating from mains supply wiring, and these can induce hum into signal paths, typically 50 Hz or 60 Hz (depending on the country's electrical supply standard) and lower harmonics. Shielded cables help to prevent this, and on prof ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oxygen-free Copper
Oxygen-free copper (OFC) or oxygen-free high thermal conductivity (OFHC) copper is a group of wrought high-conductivity copper alloys that have been electrolytically refined to reduce the level of oxygen to 0.001% or below. Specification Oxygen-free copper is typically specified according to the ASTM/ UNS database. The UNS database includes many different compositions of high conductivity electrical copper. Of these, three are widely used and two are considered oxygen-free: * C10100 – also known as ''oxygen-free electronic'' (OFE). This is a 99.99% pure copper with 0.0005% oxygen content. It achieves a minimum 101% IACS conductivity rating. This copper is finished to a final form in a carefully regulated, oxygen-free environment. Silver (Ag) is considered an impurity in the OFE chemical specification. This is also the most expensive of the three grades listed here. * C10200 – also known as ''oxygen-free'' (OF). While OF is considered oxygen-free, its conductivity rating ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Speaker Wire
Speaker wire is used to make the electrical connection between loudspeakers and audio amplifiers. Modern speaker wire consists of two or more electrical conductors individually insulated by plastic (such as PVC, PE or Teflon) or, less commonly, rubber. The two wires are electrically identical, but are marked to identify the correct audio signal polarity. Most commonly, speaker wire comes in the form of zip cord. The effect of speaker wire upon the signal it carries has been a much-debated topic in the audiophile and high fidelity worlds. The accuracy of many advertising claims on these points has been disputed by expert engineers who emphasize that simple electrical resistance is by far the most important characteristic of speaker wire. History Early speaker cable was typically stranded copper wire, insulated with cloth tape, waxed paper or rubber. For portable applications, common lampcord was used, twisted in pairs for mechanical reasons. Cables were often soldered in pla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valve Amplifiers
A valve amplifier or tube amplifier is a type of electronic amplifier that uses vacuum tubes to increase the amplitude or power of a signal. Low to medium power valve amplifiers for frequencies below the microwaves were largely replaced by solid state amplifiers in the 1960s and 1970s. Valve amplifiers can be used for applications such as guitar amplifiers, satellite transponders such as DirecTV and GPS, high quality stereo amplifiers, military applications (such as radar) and very high power radio and UHF television transmitters. History Origins Until the invention of the transistor in 1947, most practical high-frequency electronic amplifiers were made using thermionic valves. The simplest valve (named diode because it had two electrodes) was invented by John Ambrose Fleming while working for the Marconi Company in London in 1904. The diode conducted electricity in one direction only and was used as a radio detector and a rectifier. In 1906 Lee De Forest added a third ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Audiophile
An audiophile is a person who is enthusiastic about high-fidelity sound reproduction. An audiophile seeks to reproduce the sound of a piece of recorded music or a live musical performance, typically inside closed headphones, In-ear monitors, open headphones in a quiet listening space, or a room with good acoustics. Audiophile values may be applied at all stages of music reproduction: the initial audio recording, the production process, and the playback, which is usually in a home setting. In general, the values of an audiophile are seen to be antithetical to the growing popularity of more convenient but lower quality music, especially lossy digital file types like MP3, lower definition streaming services, and inexpensive headphones. The term ''high-end audio'' refers to playback equipment used by audiophiles, which may be bought at specialist shops and websites. High-end components include turntables, digital-to-analog converters, equalization devices, preamplifiers and ampli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Psychoacoustics
Psychoacoustics is the branch of psychophysics involving the scientific study of sound perception and audiology—how humans perceive various sounds. More specifically, it is the branch of science studying the psychological responses associated with sound (including noise, speech, and music). Psychoacoustics is an interdisciplinary field of many areas, including psychology, acoustics, electronic engineering, physics, biology, physiology, and computer science. Background Hearing is not a purely mechanical phenomenon of wave propagation, but is also a sensory and perceptual event; in other words, when a person hears something, that something arrives at the ear as a mechanical sound wave traveling through the air, but within the ear it is transformed into neural action potentials. The outer hair cells (OHC) of a mammalian cochlea give rise to enhanced sensitivity and better frequency resolution of the mechanical response of the cochlear partition. These nerve pulses then travel to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Audio System Measurements
Audio system measurements are a means of quantifying system performance. These measurements are made for several purposes. Designers take measurements so that they can specify the performance of a piece of equipment. Maintenance engineers make them to ensure equipment is still working to specification, or to ensure that the cumulative defects of an audio path are within limits considered acceptable. Audio system measurements often accommodate psychoacoustic principles to measure the system in a way that relates to human hearing. Subjectivity and frequency weighting Subjectively valid methods came to prominence in consumer audio in the UK and Europe in the 1970s, when the introduction of compact cassette tape, dbx and Dolby noise reduction techniques revealed the unsatisfactory nature of many basic engineering measurements. The specification of weighted CCIR-468 quasi-peak noise, and weighted quasi-peak wow and flutter became particularly widely used and attempts were ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
