Quote Originally Posted by E-Stat
Here's my theory. Early SS was horrible. Really horrible. Like early Redbook digital. Thin, edgy, harsh, but of course low in THD, right? It lacked warmth with its sterile harmonic averse sound. Anorexic one-dimensional cellos and piano.
Wasn't around back then, but that's what I hear.

I did read an article awhile back where the writer theorized that in digital transfers or recordings some of the harmonics were "lost" and that harmonic distortion associated with tube gear might actually be somewhat accurately replacing what was missed?

Made a bit of sense when I read it - if an amp, source, or speaker can add harmonic distortion, surely a microphone, eq, processor could strip it down and lose it?

He also theorized what I hinted at earlier - much of the resistance to SS was simply because it sounded different, unfamiliar, not what people were used to, not what people had previously believed it should sound like - people were "trained" on tubes. Few successfully made the transition - likewise, fewer solid state generation folk make the transition to tubes, probably for the same reason. Impossible to prove, and people are emotionally invested in their preferences so honest answers are probably difficult to obtain in polls, but an interesting read. I'll see if I can find the link again.


It happens to the best of us. For years, I never really understood what one of my mentors told me: You have to get the midrange right. Waddaya mean get the midrange right? Its just - well there. In my twenties, I was all about getting the top and the bottom right - now that's the challenge. Not any more.
Yeah, I was guilty of chasing boom and sizzle. More so the sizzle than the boom, never was a big bass lover, as long as it was there. Until I really started hearing vocals sound terrible. Kind of an eyeopener.