Before we get into the heart of today’s post, Looking in the right places, I thought I would share with you a picture of the new Music Room Two. There’s still more work to be done, but I thought you’d enjoy seeing it in its current configuration.
It is a significantly better sounding room than we’ve ever had. I hope you get a chance to visit us.
Now, on to today’s post.
It’s a chilling 20˚ this morning. The white frost clings to the rooftops unmolested by curls of steam from the furnace exhaust. Yet, standing in the sun it feels warm. A lot warmer than what the thermometer is telling me. Is the thermometer incorrect or are we experiencing two different things?
In fact, that thermometer is measuring air temperature and not the warmth of the direct sun at altitude. Move to the shade and the thermometer and my feelings will match.
When we rely on measurements to explain the world it is incumbent on us to measure everything affecting the results we attempt to quantify. But often we look at only a narrow slice. Which is why simple measurements of THD and IM are interesting but rarely telling of a system’s performance.
If we are ever to consider an all-encompassing measurement of sound quality it would surely be an aggregate of a number of factors melded into a single scale of perhaps 0 to 100. What would be included is, of course, the debate.
But, it’s one I think we should have.
