Following RMAF a very nice couple came by to visit and hear Music Room One. They were excited to play their own music and see what it sounded like. It didn't sound good.
I felt badly and played some of my own music which did, in fact, sound good.
Their music was poorly recorded: compressed, over exaggerated frequency extremes, heavy hand on the EQ controls of the mixing console, some even recorded in what sounded like a garage. Music Room One did just what it was designed to do, play everything presented to it, warts and all. Bad recordings sound bad, good recordings sound good, great recordings sound great.
But they had visited the Sprout room at the show and played the same music on Sprout. There, it was enjoyable. They toe-tapped to the music. They didn't get slapped in the face with the poor recordings. They had more fun with Sprout than the big system, with the same music. With my music they were blown away with Music Room One. But they don't listen to my music at home.
It's the classic double edged sword. A Sprout system reduces the extremes. The Music Room One system amplifies those same extremes. Both do a great job at what they were intended to do.
I like to think of Sprout as a Prius and Music Room One as a Ferrari. The Prius gets you from point A to point B in comfort and style; you just never notice it as you travel. The Ferrari is a frustrating disappointment if you're in a 20 mph school zone with a cop driving behind you, but a kick in the pants on the open highway.
Both have their place. Just different strokes.
