Hi-Fi sound, myths and reality - the evolution and development of sound

8052

What is Hi-Fi sound - myths and reality . This article provides a brief historical background of audio technologies, as well as myths popular among music lovers. To understand what Hi-Fi sound is, it is advisable to at least briefly know about the evolution of sound, where it all began and at what stage of development we are now.

• Myth No. 1. Modern vinyl heads have a hi-fi sound;
• Myth No. 2. Recording on vinyl is fundamentally different from recording on tape;
• Myth No. 3. Analog tape recorders have purely analog sound;
• Myth No. 4. Warm tube sound and “cold” transistor sound;
• Myth No. 5. CD quality is HI-FI quality;

Prices for high-quality headphones for music (in 2021):

Invention of sound recording, analogue era, mechanical period

It all started with the invention of sound recording . A sound recording of a folk song was made by the French inventor Edouard Leon Scott de Martinville in 1860, using a device called a phonautograph. It is 10 seconds long and is an excerpt from a French folk song. The phonautograph scratched sound tracks on a sheet of paper blackened by smoke from an oil lamp. Naturally, there was no talk about sound quality then. The main thing was that the sound was able to be recorded and reproduced at all.

In 1877, the French scientist Charles Cros was the first to scientifically substantiate the principles of recording sound on a drum (or disk) and its subsequent playback. In the same year, namely in the middle of 1877, the young American inventor Thomas Edison invented and patented a phonograph device in which sound is recorded on a cylindrical roller wrapped in tin foil (or paper tape coated with a layer of wax) using a needle (cutter) , associated with the membrane; the needle draws a helical groove of variable depth on the surface of the foil. His wax roller phonograph was not widely used due to the difficulty of copying the recording, the rapid wear of the rollers, and poor playback quality.

What is hi-fi and why is it needed?

Where are we? Welcome to The Chord Company. We love good music here and we love listening to it on good hi-fi equipment. So why are all these wires needed? They are used to improve the sound quality of stereo and DC systems - in fact, any audio and video equipment needs wires to connect devices to each other and to the network. Do hi-fi wires have the same purpose? Yes, but don't stop reading at this point. The very fact that you opened this article is a good sign. This means that you love music, and a hi-fi system will help you love music even more. Maybe this will be your best purchase in life. Did you think that hi-fi is a strange hobby of not quite normal people? This is wrong. It's just a means to an end. The main reason for buying a hi-fi is only one - this way you can achieve the best quality reproduction of your favorite music. And you can, you really can. No matter what kind of music you like, the first time you listen to it on a decent hi-fi is always fantastic. You will definitely hear a lot of new things, things you have never heard before, in those songs that you have known and listened to for years. This is a new look at what seemed familiar. Doesn't hi-fi cost a lot of money? It’s worth it, yes, but in general, of course, it shouldn’t. Take a closer look at what's on the market and you can put together a very decent CD listening kit (CD player, amplifier and speakers) for under £500. I guarantee that with such a system you will get much more pleasure from listening to music than before. And this is what hi-fi is for, for greater involvement, greater emotions, greater impressions. This is something that gives pleasure and lifts your spirits. And yes, these are more details and nuances in the music that you are used to listening to and knew. Isn't it cool? Invest a little more and you'll get more - not bigger or more powerful, but better for your music. I collect vinyl. What should I do? You'll be surprised at how cheap a decent turntable can be, and you'll likely be shocked at how much a good turntable will improve the sound quality of your records. What if all my music is on my smartphone? No problem. There are tons of devices where you can connect your smartphone directly to your hi-fi system and, you know, boy, it really improves the sound a lot. There are devices with which you can listen to music from any media. It's very easy to find devices that connect via USB. This means that any music stored on your computer can be played through hi-fi. Not only louder, but better. More detailed, exciting, captivating. It's very easy to open up music into your life. Does hi-fi seem too complicated? I understand, but this is only at first glance. No matter what country you are in, there are probably many hi-fi lovers there, many sellers in the showrooms of this equipment. Believe me, most of them are not just trying to rip off your money, most of them are the same fanatics of quality sound, just talk to them and they will help you make your music sound better. No need to bother with bass, mid and high frequencies and other audiophile things that people like to discuss on forums. Just listen to your music as it sounds. All you need to know is whether you like it or not. I guarantee that any hi-fi retailer will be happy to let you just come in and listen to what you like. So grab a couple of your favorite songs (no matter what medium they are on), go to the nearest showroom and listen. There is only one way to judge a system – whether it sounds better or worse. If you don’t know where to go, contact us, we will find the salon closest to you, and you will be greeted there like family. Take your favorite CDs, smartphone or laptop, choose a place. And then relax and have fun. Nigel Finn

Gramophone and gramophone record

In 1887, an American engineer of Jewish origin, Emil Berliner, proposed using a disk-shaped medium for recording. While working on his idea, Berliner first built and tested Charles Cros' device, proposed 20 years earlier, using a zinc plate instead of a chrome plate. Emil Berliner replaced the rollers with disks - metal matrices from which copies could be made. With their help, gramophone records were pressed. One matrix made it possible to print an entire circulation - at least 500 records, which significantly reduced production costs and, accordingly, the cost of production. This was the main advantage of Emil Berliner's gramophone records, which were difficult to replicate compared to Edison's wax rollers.

• Unlike Edison's phonograph, Berliner developed a special apparatus for recording sound - a recorder;

• And to reproduce sound he created another - a gramophone , for which a patent was received on September 26, 1887;

Instead of Edison's depth recording, Berliner used transverse recording, in which the needle left a sinuous trace of constant depth. In the 20th century, the membrane was replaced by microphones that convert sound vibrations into electrical vibrations, and by electronic amplifiers.

For the gramophone (not yet electric, but mechanical) its own medium and format appeared, in one person - the gramophone record.

In 1892, a method was developed for galvanic replication of a zinc disk from a positive, as well as a technology for pressing ebonite records using a steel printing matrix. But ebonite was quite expensive and was soon replaced by a composite mass based on shellac, a wax-like substance produced by tropical insects from the family of lac bugs that live in southeast Asia. The plates became of better quality and cheaper, and therefore more accessible, but their main drawback was their low mechanical strength - they resembled glass in their fragility. Shellac records were produced until the middle of the 20th century, until they were replaced by cheaper and unbreakable ones - made from vinylite (a copolymer of vinyl chloride and vinyl acetate), the so-called. vinyl records. One of the first vinyl records was released in 1897 by Victor in the USA.

The first mass-produced records had a diameter of 6.89 inches (175 mm) and were called 7-inch records. This oldest standard dates back to the early 1890s. Such gramophone records are designated as “7″”, where “″” is the inch sign. At the beginning of their evolution, gramophone records had a high rotation speed and a large track width, which significantly reduced the duration of the sound - only 2 minutes on one side.

Double-sided records became available in 1903, thanks to developments. In the same year, the first 12-inch (12″) gramophone records with an actual diameter of 11.89″ (300 mm) appeared. Until the early 1910s, they released mainly excerpts from the works of musical classics, since they contained a total of up to five minutes of sound.

The third and most popular size was 10 inches (10″), or 250 mm. These records held one and a half times more material than a standard 7-inch record.

The three main record sizes – 12″, 10″ and 7″ – are traditionally called “giant”, “grand” and “minion”, respectively.

Basic parameters of Hi-Fi headphones

Classification according to main parameters:

Construction type

• Plug-in. The simplest and most common type. It has a second name - “liners”.
• Intrachannel. They fit much deeper into the ear canal than in-ear ones. This provides good sound concentration. Their second name is “vacuum” or simply “plugs”.
• Invoices. The sound source in such devices is located at some distance from the ear canal.
• Over-ear headphones. They create the best sound insulation, as they completely cover the ear.

Acoustic design.

• Open. These headphones have slots in the speakers. This eliminates the “air cushion” effect, but at the same time, sounds from outside become more distinct.
• Closed. Sound from external sources in such models is isolated, since the body is devoid of perforations.

Signal transmission method

• Wired. They are the most common. The signal is sent directly through the wires. Their disadvantage is that the wires periodically get tangled, break and can become unusable. Monster n tune200 am17 is a popular model in this class.
• Wireless. They can be divided into infrared, radio, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi headphones. Prominent representatives include audio technica ath dsr7b t and monster n tune200 am17 .

Electric Sound - The Beginning

Recorder for recording onto a copper master disc (Germany, early 1930s). On the right is a support with a cutter, on the left is a microscope for visual inspection of the recorded audio track.

At the end of the 1920s, the first revolution took place in the world of recording, when instead of the method of recording through a horn, they began to use the electroacoustic method - recording through a microphone . The revolution did not happen by chance - electromechanics, electronics and mechanics have come to the point that this would become possible. The ancestors of electric sound were first the telephone and then the radio. By reducing distortion, the frequency range has expanded from 150–4000 to 50–10000 Hz. This can be considered the first step into the world of Hi-Fi. Naturally, on expensive devices the sound was better and already had a rather natural sound.

In the 1930s, records were released with one track on one side, and often a single concert by one artist was sold as a set of multiple records, usually in cardboard or, less commonly, leather boxes. Due to the external similarity of such boxes with photo albums, they began to be called record albums (“albums with records”).

Rating

Based on consumer preferences, expressed in sales volumes and the number of positive reviews, a 2021 rating was compiled for high-end acoustics. It includes models with an affordable price, high-quality sound and undoubted ease of use.

Heco Ascada 600 Tower

pros

• stylish design
• floor installation
• high quality built-in amplifier
• great build
• wireless connection

Minuses

• The wireless communication channel may experience failures due to external interference
• medium quality connecting cables included
• modest total power

From 79190 ₽

This audio system is an ideal choice for an apartment. It does not need external amplifiers or frequency filters. Wireless connection of devices is supported. The rather modest power, however, is sufficient for an apartment, and does not reveal shortcomings in the reproduction of extremely low frequencies. The acoustics sound rich and will bring a lot of pleasure.

Jamo S 805 HCS

pros

• good sound
• high-quality assembly
• well-thought-out leg system
• two-way audio systems
• good power output

Minuses

• without subwoofer
• The installation for the rear speakers is not thought out
• no built-in amplifier

From 41990 ₽

Designed for use with an external amplifier, this set of acoustics can be a convenient option for those who want to build a system with ideal sound. By connecting the Jamo S 805 HCS to a special amplifier, you can get a high-quality, three-dimensional sound picture. However, it will not be authentic without the use of a subwoofer, which will need to be coordinated with the parameters of the main speaker system.

Monitor Audio MR6

pros

• The optimum ratio of price and quality
• bass reflex system with the ability to close the output
• stylish classic
• clever floor design
• support for Bi-wiring, bi-amping inputs

Minuses

• it is impossible to close both bass reflex holes to obtain a closed enclosure
• the sound is utilitarian, dry, with a limited frequency band
• made in China, does not meet brand specifications

From 21500 ₽

This acoustics is the best choice for those who want to get good sound for reasonable money. There are no comments on the operation of the system. However, bragging to your friends won't work. The system is rather utilitarian, simple, sounds without nuances, and simply reproduces the supplied signal with high quality. An undoubted advantage is the support for Bi-wiring / bi-amping Hi End class inputs.

Vector HX100

pros

• compact ceiling mount housing
• good sound, 2 bands with a large woofer
• bass reflex
• availability of separate Bi-wiring input for LF and HF signals
• gold plated contacts

Minuses

• passive, complex wiring
• narrow frequency range
• No connection cables included
• relatively thin case walls made of MDF

From 15015 ₽

This acoustics can only be used as an additional sound source. It is convenient as rear speakers, also due to the nature of the mounting. An undoubted advantage is the presence of gold-plated separate inputs for frequency signals. However, the narrow range of reproduced frequencies does not allow these speakers to be used as the main sound source.

First Hi-Fi, vinyls

In 1948, the largest and one of the oldest record companies in the United States at the time, Columbia, for the first time released the so-called long-playing record, or Long Play (LP), designed for a rotation speed of 33⅓ rpm. Methods of increasing the duration of sound have been produced before - for example, during World War II, “B” discs were produced in the United States. The release of long-playing records was dictated mainly by competition with magnetic audio media.

In order to compete on price with tapes or not lose sound quality, a new material was invented - vinylate . This innovation made it possible to significantly expand the range of recorded frequencies to 50–16,000 Hz, completely preserve the timbre of the sound, and also increase the dynamic range of recording to 50–57 dB, reduce the noise level and greatly extend high-quality sound. In 1958, stereo players and stereo records appeared. This can already be called Hi-Fi characteristics =) of that time.

[/su_spoiler]

What does the abbreviation Hi-Fi mean?

If a person hears that the sound quality corresponds to the Hi-Fi level, then he imagines that we are talking about equipment that provides an impressive level of audio playback. Let's figure out what this designation says.

"Hi-Fi" is an abbreviation for "High Fidelity". Translated into Russian, this means “high fidelity.” It should be noted that the wording does not indicate accuracy or clarity of sound. “Fidelity” in this case means that the sound is transmitted without distortion.

Quality criteria for transmission have existed since the very beginning of the existence of sound-reproducing technology. Thus, in the 19th century, the reproduction of a human voice, in which the dog recognized the owner’s voice, was considered an excellent quality. Over time, the requirements have increased.

The designation Hi-Fi became common in the 50s of the 20th century. At this time, vinyl discs became widespread, the use of tape recorders began, and FM broadcasting appeared. The spread of sound-reproducing technology has necessitated the emergence of sound quality standards.

However, their actual appearance must be dated back to 1924, when electrical sound recording was invented at Bell Labs. At that time, this meant a sharp increase in quality compared to the mechanical method. At that time, the criterion for sound accuracy was the frequency range used. By the mid-30s it was 30-8000 Hz.

Harold Hartley

In 1932, engineer Hartley, long before the advent of smartphones, first used the designation Hi-Fi. It has become widely used in advertising. In the 60s, Hi-Fi became the de facto standard for high-quality sound. At this time, the DIN45500 standard appeared, which presented the quantitative characteristics of the standard in question. In modern slang we are talking about Hi-Fi.

It used the following indicators as criteria:

• uneven amplitude-frequency characteristics;
• range of frequencies available for playback;
• nonlinear distortion factor;
• signal to noise ratio.

Over time, it became clear that the requirements of this standard were not complete. They did not include some important sound characteristics. These include intermodulation characteristics, dumping factor, impulse characteristics and others.

In addition, over the past decades, sound reproduction technology has made significant progress, surpassing the requirements related to hi-fi. Today, these requirements are met not only by the products of market leaders, but also by most manufacturers.

Thus, today this standard is not a standard of high quality work, but represents the requirements that are met by the majority of recording products from manufacturers around the world.

Now is probably the time to create a new standard that would set criteria for sound reproduction quality, taking into account the experience gained over the past decades.

Myth No. 1. Modern vinyl heads have hi-fi sound

Of course, a frequency range of 50-16,000 Hz and a dynamic range of 50-57 dB (assuming you have an expensive high-end turntable) gives quite realistic sound, especially for an inexperienced listener =). But any listener with experience will be able to distinguish a modern high-quality recording, in one of the new lossless digital formats, from the sound of a grammatical recording.

Modern grammatical recording has not advanced very far. Playing vinyl is first and foremost a tribute to history. The process itself is important, the ritual, sound quality fades into the background. Of course, a considerable percentage of people will disagree with me. Moreover, on the Internet, on well-known torrents, there are blatantly wild cases when it is offered to download huge files with digitization of vinyls in 24-bit 192 KHz quality =))). But let's leave this to people with “tender” ears.

Almost all music lovers are unfamiliar with radio engineering and vaguely imagine the process of producing vinyl and tape recordings. Many of them believe that the sound in tape recorders and vinyl players (unless stated otherwise) is analog. Much to the dismay of lovers of true analog sound, I will dispel these myths.

Lifting cables from the floor

We don't mean that cables need to be suspended from the ceiling so that you can pass through without touching them. But if you remember that wires can transmit vibrations to system components, it becomes clear that they should be kept away from their sources - especially from the floor in the case of speaker cables. That's why you see fittings at hi-fi shows such as the Bristol Show.

If you don't agree with this, remember that companies like Naim use loose power cord connectors in all their hi-fi components - for this very reason. They are designed to dampen unwanted vibrations before they are transmitted to the body and cause disgrace. The next time you come to a hardware store and see a loose connector when connecting some expensive component, you will know that the problem is not lazy assemblers.

Besides the fact that cables should not be scattered on the floor, try to avoid twisting them and forming knots; This will help improve the sound quality of the hi-fi system a little more.

Myth No. 2. Recording on vinyl is fundamentally different from recording on tape.

Let's start with the most “holy” thing - vinyl. Alas, recordings for vinyl in recording studios are prepared in advance, using a tape recorder (or a modern version of a computer).

More precisely, the first grammatical recordings until the early 30s of the last century were actually made without tape recorders. But almost immediately with the advent of the first tape recorders (at first very expensive, bulky and inaccessible for mass production), studio recordings began to be made on a tape recorder and only then, after mixing and mastering, this recording was copied onto a matrix for producing records.

As a result, we do not have vinyl sound as an independent phenomenon, but a tape recording prepared for vinyl. Thus, all vinyl lovers actually listen to tape sound, but in a reduced “vinyl” range.

Where and how does all this manifest itself?

Obviously, developers of acoustics and amplification systems are influenced by their national traditions. And these traditions cannot but extend to the sound of audio systems.

In addition, these systems reproduce music recorded within certain national traditions. That is, the trick is also in how popular, rather than folk, music is recorded in different countries.

One day I received a network player for testing with a Chinese version of regional presets. Immediately after turning it on, it connected to a certain Chinese Internet radio broadcasting children's songs. In children's Chinese version.

The accompaniment was a rhythmic clang somewhere in the upper middle region, and children's voices performed something shrill and atonal. It was impossible to listen to this, and it’s understandable why - after all, I’m not Chinese...

But when one day life forced me to listen exclusively to Iranian radio for two weeks, on the tenth day I said to a local resident: “This performer is good,” and he approved of my choice. You just had to get the hang of it! But at first it all sounded to me like a muezzin’s aria accompanied by a one-string balalaika...

Tape recorders

The principle of magnetic recording on steel wire was first developed by Oberlin Smith in 1888, influenced by his visit to Edison's laboratory in 1878. However, the first working device was made by the Danish engineer Waldemar Poulsen only in 1895. The inventor called the device itself a “telegraph” . Wiki source about the tape recorder.

From wire to tape:

5.1 From wire to tape

In 1925, Curt Stille introduced an electromagnetic device that recorded speech on a magnetic wire . Subsequently, devices of his design, using a thin steel tape as a carrier, were produced under the Marconi-Stille brand, and were used at the BBC from 1935 to 1950. In 1925, the USSR patented “a flexible celluloid tape coated with steel filings (for example, using wood glue),” but the invention was not developed. In 1927, Dr. Fritz Pfleumer patented magnetic tape (first on paper, then on polymer). This principle itself began to be developed in parallel with Smith, in the BASF laboratory.

5.2 Birth of the first tape recorder =):

5.2 Birth of the first tape recorder =):

In 1934-1935, BASF began serial production of magnetic tape based on carbonyl iron or diacetate-based magnetite . In 1935, AEG released the first commercial tape recorder called Magnetophon K1. The word Magnetophon itself has long been a trademark of AEG-Telefunken, but later it became the name of this class of devices for playing tape recordings.

5.3 First qualitative step::

5.3 First qualitative step:

The principle of high-frequency magnetization (mixing a high-frequency component into the recorded signal) was proposed in the early 30s. Braunmuhl and Weber , improved in the late 30s.
Nagai, Carpenter, etc. Before the invention of high-frequency magnetization, tape recordings were of terrible quality. The fact is that the magnetization of magnetic film never occurs according to a linear law, which is necessary for high-quality recording and playback of sound. This invention solved the problem. 5.4 Reel-to-reel (or reel-to-reel) tape recorders:

5.4 Reel-to-reel (or reel-to-reel) tape recorders

The media used is magnetic tape wound on plastic or metal reels (in everyday life the name “reel” was also used). Before the advent of cassette tape recorders, reels were called cassettes.

5.5 HI-FI tape recorders:

Real Hi-Fi - the most ultra-budget option, everyone dances

Real Hi-Fi... Not the meager figures of the characteristics of this standard, which were surpassed decades ago and correspond to a bread machine playing a melody in your kitchen, but real Hi-Fi, the one that they talk about with a breath, meaning something that can change your idea of ​​​​quality sound .
I am sure that in adequate condition today the word Hi-Fi refers to the outstanding sound of high fidelity, and not compliance with characteristics covered with dust for many decades.

Hi-Fi standard for amplifiers:

• Nonlinearity of the frequency response in the range of reproduced frequencies 40-16000 Hz - 1.5 dB at the linear input (2 dB with a corrector);
• Nonlinear distortion coefficient in the reproduced frequency range 40-12500 Hz, no more than - 1%.
• Intermodulation distortion coefficient in the reproduced frequency band 250-8000 Hz (also outside this band when the sound pressure level decreases by 6 dB), no more than - 3%;
• The spread of channel parameters in the range of reproduced frequencies is no more than 3 dB ;

Today, such characteristics seem overly modest; we are already accustomed to SOI values ​​not only in hundredths, but also in parts per million, for op-amps, for example.

OPA1612 – ultra-low distortion 0.000015% at 1 kHz

Hi-Fi – High Fidelity – high accuracy or high fidelity. Hidden in the name itself is that we are not talking about SOI or the band of reproduced frequencies, but about the high reliability of playing a recording, when you have confused a living person with a dead one, excuse me, with a recording.

In fact, the effect of presence is best achieved by recordings you made yourself at home or some kind of rehearsal, then you can really make a mistake and mistake someone’s background conversation for a live one.

On special recordings from which you listen to music, you can perfectly feel the size of space (on some recordings, not all), high detail, etc., but the effect of presence is something else, when your brain is deceived and takes what you hear for reality. For example, on Diana Krall’s recordings, I may like the music, the structure of the composition, the timbres of the voice, but I won’t confuse the live Diana and the recording, I won’t flinch.

The effect of deceiving the brain, tube or hybrid amplifiers are sometimes capable of passing off what is happening as reality, which, at the expense of detail and accuracy, somewhat blurring the audio picture, can sometimes be frighteningly realistic, but their default built-in disadvantages are disgusting damping, and as a result, the hum of instruments in music , some loss of detail, loss of energy - this is the price and you choose for yourself.

For myself, I chose transistor amplifiers - accuracy and detail are more important to me, as an adherent of audiophile sound presentation. This is exactly the case when the listener decides what is more important to him according to his taste and hearing.

So what is real Hi-Fi - the sound is deceiving you, you must believe in reality - this is the maximum program, but we all know that Hi-Fi is conditionally divided into different levels - budget / entry-level, solid middle, top-end and Hi-End.

The last two categories are accessible to a minority for financial reasons, and therefore the entry-level and mid-range Hi-Fi zone gets a big impact. But this should still be the sound of high fidelity; logically, there shouldn’t be a division at all into levels of initial, medium, high - there is either high fidelity or not. But this is in theory, but in practice, there is a division.

Today we will talk about initial Hi-Fi, moreover, about a budget solution that probably any listener can afford if they wish.

The budget option is, of course, a compromise and you must understand this; you still won’t be able to get Hi-Fi directly as the final point of audio development, but focusing on real Hi-Fi, you still get extremely high quality sound.

What can a budget Hi-Fi be characterized by, what would distinguish it from ordinary household audio amplifiers?

The first step is definitely detail or musical resolution. In a budget hi-fi, you'll be shocked by how rich and detailed the sound is. Moving up to higher levels of hi-fi you'll find that not only is the sound rich in detail, making it feel clearer and more audible, but those same details are richer in texture at the higher end. If you like to play computer games, then imagine that in the initial Hi-Fi you had just a muddy, smeared texture on which you couldn’t make out anything.

In a higher class on the testing grounds you suddenly see rich patterns, and in an even higher class you see that these patterns also have a depression, as if pressed into the surface, etc.

Comparing this analogy, musical resolution can also be compared with the resolution in a computer game. In household amplifiers, it’s as if you’re playing a game with a resolution of 320x200 - everything is very cloudy, blurred, any details are hard to see, and you’re more likely to guess what the character’s face looks like.

Having switched to the initial Hi-Fi, you discover a resolution of 640x480 pixels and are amazed at the fantastic detail, as happened to me when I launched the game Rise of The Robots on my 386SX2 computer.

And by the way, what an audio lover strives for in Hi-Fi is not so paramount, it all depends on the genres he listens to. For example, CC Catch or Blue System will sound great on any music center, and once you have Hi-Fi class components at your disposal, you are guaranteed not to hear anything new, there are no hidden sound vibrations and other things.

But the paradox is that the higher the class of your equipment, the more genres you become interested in listening to and you gradually embrace genres such as jazz, etc., although most traditionally come from rock or synthpop. For Heavy Metal, a real Hi-Fi path is also a controversial advantage - expression and a wall of sound can be achieved with simpler components.

But jazz, orchestral music, opera, classical music without real Hi-Fi equipment are just a pathetic shadow of true greatness.

Therefore, let’s return to the topic of the review: ultra-budget, but true Hi-Fi sound. We must be guaranteed to get high resolution (details of what is happening), but since this is a compromise, we should not get something. In what we did not receive, we will most likely see softness and tenderness. Therefore, our sound should be very detailed (high resolution, without high resolution it’s simply not Hi-Fi), but harsh and with simplified textures on the details.

Are you ready to put up with life? Of course, you are ready to put up with this if you want to experience the real high resolution of true Hi-Fi for the first time. High resolution is a wealth of details in music that were previously unheard of or barely noticeable, this is better sound clarity, better audibility, that is, better sound clarity, and this despite the fact that we do not use a tone block!

Hi-Fi is not bass and treble, this is what I listed above, in the high class add a three-dimensional audio image, gentle softness, an amazing play of microdynamics, when an internal connection suddenly arises between various sounds, which globally enriches the musical canvas, etc.

Ultra-budget Hi-Fi can be obtained in only one way so far - headphones. All other options are poorly implemented due to the fairly high cost of Hi-Fi class speaker systems.

Having a high-fidelity circuit - a Yamaha P2200 power amplifier (240,000 yen), a Yamaha NS-1000x speaker system (316,000 yen) and a DAC on the Saber ES9038PRO, I am quite able to assess how much a budget path has the right to claim the title of real, albeit budget, Hi-Fi .

Of the cheap headphones that have the title of best buy, according to customer reviews, there are two contenders - Koss Porta Pro and Axelvox HD242. I also have a Beyerdinamic DT990Pro at my disposal, so I have something to compare with.

The Axelvox HD242 is constantly compared to the AKG 240, as if it were their clone. I have not made such comparisons, but in terms of comfort and sound quality, for example, the Beyerdinamic DT990Pro is much better. It’s funny, but this is not immediately understood when listening, since the detail of the Axelvox HD242 is high, but putting on the Beyerdinamic DT990Pro you immediately get a feeling of unreal comfort and gentle sound, and then you realize that the richness of sound textures is incomparably better on the 990.

About the Axelvox HD242, I can say that they sit on the head roughly and are not comfortable. There doesn’t seem to be any pressure, but it feels like after a soft chair you were suddenly given the opportunity to sit on the edge of a hard stool. It’s possible to sit, but it’s somehow tense.

Axelvox HD242 cost about 3,000 rubles and have detailed sound that can claim the title of Hi-Fi, but I can’t imagine how this could be possible to use them comfortably.

But I will focus on the Koss Porta Pro headphones - just believe me, they are superior in sound to the Axelvox HD242.

They cost the same as the Axelvox HD242, less than 3,000 rubles, but they sound better and have much better comfort (but also completely incomparable with the comfort of the DT990 velor ear pads). By default, the Koss Porta Pro is disappointingly happy - these are dull headphones with a buzzing “ bass-reflex bass - there is something to feel despondent about. But the paradox is that the speakers themselves have enormous potential for sound quality, but for this you will have to use an equalizer. After equalization, you will never recognize your Koss Porta Pro - these will become excellent Hi-Fi headphones.

I have already configured the equalizer in different operating systems, so that after reading the review you can feel the difference in sound by downloading equalization presets.

The first preset is designed for the Windows operating system and the equalizer built into foobar2000 - you can download it for free from the link below.

koss-audiophile-eq

The beautiful detailed sound of the preset is very similar in character to the sound style of the Yamaha P2200 + Yamaha NS-1000 system. Actually, it was selected by ear and on the fly, comparing with the above-mentioned path, in order to achieve identity. And it turned out, a luxurious preset.

For the Linux operating system, everything did not go so rosy and, unfortunately, it was not possible to achieve a similar result in full, but I prepared two equalizer preset options, which also significantly improve the sound of Koss Porta Pro. The preset setting is made for the equalizer of the Audacious player.

Koss-Linux-audacious

The following nuances were noticed in this setting: in jazz everything is quite good, but heavy music - heavy metal is devoid of solidity. Therefore, I made some average settings for two headphones Koss Porta Pro and Axelvox HD242 (suitable for both) at once, in which the emphasis is on “fat”, thickness, power of sound - this is a more weighty and aggressive option. If you want the roar to be a roar, and the fat and meat to correspond to the description, this is it. The low and mid frequencies responsible for vocals are emphasized here.

KossPorta-Axelvox242-fat

We've sorted out the presets, without them I don't see any point in listening to Koss at all.

What remains is the amplification part - and here an untold gift from aliexpress awaits us - the Aiyima DAC-A5 headphone amplifier, also costing around 3,000 rubles.

The components used inside are luxurious:

CM6642 + CS8416 + CS4398 + TPA6120 + OPA2134

The CM6642 is USB's next generation of the excellent CS6631a transport.

CS8416 is a popular SPDIF (optical/coaxial).

The CS4398 DAC is a top-end one, used in top-end Marantz players.

And the headphone amplifier is one of the best and popular OPA6120 chips.

This amplifier is enough to experience true Hi-Fi detail, which is great.

Listening to Koss Porta Pro + preset and Axelvox HD242 headphones on the Aiyima DAC-A5, I would be impressed by the detail. The Koss Porta Pro performed especially well in jazz and classical music – fantastically well. But there was a certain harshness and roughness that I completely attributed to a cheap amplifier; for its price, this set still produced an amazing level of sound.

But having tried Beyerdinamic DT990PRO headphones with the same Aiyima DAC-A5, I was surprised to hear a sound without a hint of harshness, affectionate, gentle, rich.

In total, when using even a budget Head-Fi solution (headphone path), you can get real Hi-Fi sound. And it's really affordable.

This encouraged me to experiment and compare with adult Hi-Fi amplifiers costing up to $1000, and in the near future I plan to evaluate the sound of the Koss Porta Pro and others on the popular Marantz PM-6001 (6002-3-4) amplifier.

Myth No. 3. Analog tape recorders have pure analog sound.

The truth about analog sound in tape recorders will turn out to be even more terrible than the 2nd myth, because... concerns not only tape recorder lovers, but also, as we found out, vinyl lovers .

Any tape recorder, both analog and digital, uses magnetization. What is it? Before the invention of magnetization, the sound in tape recorders was purely analog and the recording was of terribly poor quality