The PS Audio sound
Subscribe to Ask Paul Ask a QuestionDoes PS Audio equipment have a sound? Paul explains what that is.
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Does PS Audio equipment have a sound? Paul explains what that is.
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Isn’t that a most rhetorical question and a trivial answer – assumed every serious audio company voices its products? But isn’t this voicing approach most stupid if you do not know how the sound engineer mixed and mastered the recording using totally different loudspeakers in a most different “listening” room (a studio with a minimum of room treatment)? I would rather ask if all professional studio monitors shouldn’t sound identical having a ruler flat frequency response according to the tender specs (as most studios should “sound” identical fulfilling specific specs for reverb time and sound wave reflections (nearfield listening)??? Thus the most straightforward approach should be that PS Audio records and masters its own reference tracks! However I often read in papers from pro audio companies that loudspeakers for home stereo are specifically designed for far-field listening in imperfect listening (living) rooms.
But everyone’s hearing is different. Different cycles/sec hearing. Different emotional understanding of music for each individual.
Different emphases. All these factors go into design when listening is part of that design.
Yes. PS AUDIO does have a sound and it is commonly referred to as “AWESOME!!!”
If you really are an audio enthusiast it is really hard not to appreciate everything PS Audio stands for both sound wise and company wise. 🙂
You both are on to something here.
But at the same time, you both happen, to be correct.
Everybody hears things differently.
Just as Paul said in his video, Chris and Paul’s son Scott, they can hear things that he can’t hear.
And also, truth be told, no two studios are built alike either.
In less you’re there, you won’t know how the recording engineers recorded and mixed every single track down.
While most studios are putting their final product in to PCM, there are some that puts their final product down in to DSD.
If they done the recording right the first time, the recording when it’s played back on a really good system, will sound really grate!
I think Paul gives a great and honest answer to the question. There are a lot of variables that go into it.
Good question. This is why it’s so hard to evaluate/buy electronics. In other words, you have to control the other variables — room, speakers, source material before you can really know.
My 1982 system had top Yamaha electronics (CA-2010 Integrated) and Allison (3) speakers. I loved it for about 35 years in a great room large with a high and uneven ceiling. I listened to LPs and CDs. Easy to position speakers, “neutral” sound, but really dynamic. I downsized and sold it all. It took me 3 years and many returns, trade-ins and private sales to duplicate and then — finally — surpass that old sound. I wanted to limit myself to streaming (Qobuz/Roon) and SACDs — no LPs. I did not want speakers out in the middle of the room and I didn’t want a tiny sweet spot that was limited to one chair. I wasted a lot of time and money because (1) my room was not great, (2) I mistakenly chased resolution/detail, (3) my hearing has deteriorated (HF loss, age 70). But I did a few things correctly. (1) selected half a dozen CDs/SACDs I used as my evaluation standard. (2) I bought good electronics FIRST — before buying on speakers. (I know, opposite of recommended.) (3) I have been saving $$ for 10 years, and I had a BUDGET. My new system would be my retirement present to myself. (4) I read a lot of reviews in Absolute Sound and Stereophile, taking notes and looking for patterns of recommended technology and recommended manufacturers. I ended up buying top PS Audio electronics (expensive, but less-so with trade in). I used the Bridge II for streaming (probably my weak link, now looking for an UltraRendu for upgrade). Then, I started shopping for 3-way tower speakers, going through 3 sets — B&W, MartinLogan, KEF. Something about 3-way towers do not fit my hearing. To me, all of them have a bit disjointed, edgy, fatiguing sound. I took a BIG chance and bought Tannoy Cheviots — old school technology — that I am sure fits my ears better than today’s modern 3-way towers. It made all the difference. I was 90% home to my goal. I tilted my Cheviots back 3 or 4 degrees and got to 95%. I added a REL T/7i sub and got to 110% — better than I ever thought I could achieve on my budget. Detail and resolution without edginess. Dynamics and musicality that FILL my room — a GIANT sweet spot. My lessons. (1) PS Audio makes good electronics that can reveal the differences in good speakers — sometimes differences that are substantial. (2) Don’t chase resolution/detail — you will probably sacrifice musicality. i.e., realism and FUN. (3) Don’t ignore older/classic speaker technology — like Dual Concentric drivers. Speaker companies that have been around for 100 years JUST MIGHT be on to something. (4) At best, it’s all a crap shoot. Good luck on your journey. Oh, if I’m going to characterize the PS Audio sound, I would say their top tier stuff sits in the middle — with a slight lean towards the “warm.” But it’s a “lively” warm, not a “dead” or muffled warm. It has great momentum/responsiveness without being “syrupy”. On the other hand, the Stellar tier leans a bit toward the HF end of the spectrum with great resolution and even a bit edgy. So, to me, there is a difference within PS Audio of their “signature sound.” It depends……
Full bodied, smooth, silky, liquid, warm, transparent, detailed, musical. Weight and slam in the bass and lower highs, delicate in the upper highs. The sound has to bloom and I want the separation to be layered. Instruments must pass in front and behind each other and do so without obscuring each other. See through. My Creek 5350se has all of that which is why it made it into Stereophile class A rating.
I just read the review of the Creek 5350SWE on Stereophile. Sounds like an exceptional integrated amp for the money.
Yep. Creek Destiny too and the older vintage amps and integrated amps as well. All high current, Most are MOSFET but they do make Bipolar.