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Phil Bishop
12-06-2008, 15:08
This separate thread is in many ways related to an earlier one on room temperature.

I sometimes find that for some reason my hi fi sounds great one day, then relatively lousy (or to use a moden expression "pants") the next - it is like it has bad days! Nothing changes in the set up - it is just one thinks "wow that sounds good" one day and the next its "what's gone wrong?".

I think there are more factors at play than mains variations, etc. I think temperature does play a role. In the UK, the weather has changed, it has cooled down and the hi fi did not sound great this morning. But could our physiology/health (ears!) also be playing a role? I notice when I come in from swimming, having had ear plugs in my ears, things sound rough for a while. Also, things maybe sound better when I am relaxed? Another factor may be room acoustics, doors open, shut, etc.

Anyone else had similar experinces?

anthonyTD
12-06-2008, 17:47
This separate thread is in many ways related to an earlier one on room temperature.

I sometimes find that for some reason my hi fi sounds great one day, then relatively lousy (or to use a moden expression "pants") the next - it is like it has bad days! Nothing changes in the set up - it is just one thinks "wow that sounds good" one day and the next its "what's gone wrong?".

I think there are more factors at play than mains variations, etc. I think temperature does play a role. In the UK, the weather has changed, it has cooled down and the hi fi did not sound great this morning. But could our physiology/health (ears!) also be playing a role? I notice when I come in from swimming, having had ear plugs in my ears, things sound rough for a while. Also, things maybe sound better when I am relaxed? Another factor may be room acoustics, doors open, shut, etc.

Anyone else had similar experinces?
hi phil,
there is no doubt that what you are experiencing does happen, and it affects us all from time to time, but as to what in paticular causes the sound to change in many instances so dramatic is hard to fathom, as you say, its probably down to any number of things!!!:)
but have no fear,i am sure there will be some smart arse along soon to enlighten us though:lol:

Phil Bishop
12-06-2008, 18:11
Thanks Anthony, glad I am not alone! Phil.

BajaGringo
12-06-2008, 19:19
I have experienced this at times but always assume that is just signs of the slow degradation of my own ears ability to perceive, capture and translate sound.

And then it has to pass that along to my brain to digest and that's a bigger mess that we'll leave for another post...

Donald Hanson
12-06-2008, 20:44
I have noticed this as well and I always chocked it up to alergies messin with my ears or the likes.

Mike Reed
12-06-2008, 22:14
How can I resist the call for a smart-arse!

I used to get this as well; very frustrating, psyching oneself up for an evening's session, only to turn the TV on after failing to be turned on by the music. Happily this rarely happens nowadays.

Elements responsible for this phenomenon over some years, for me, was

Poor mains; either increased demand on the grid or some degradation due to other electronic apparatus. Solved, as far as I can see, by dedicated mains.

R.F.I., esp. with vinyl. You don't just hear it; it changes the presentation, almost.

Airborne electrical disturbances, like a storm, maybe some way away.

Humidity, esp. with vinyl. Dry air conditions are not good. Humidity good.

Receptive mood, not always ameliorated by imbibing. Difficult to analyse sometimes.

Wax build-up in the ears (always sounded better after a swim!)

Wrong choice of music for a particular mood

Paranoia that something may be wrong (very character dependent!)

Wife tells you to turn the bloody volume down!



Oh well, maybe just an arse. Only smart one there is having your own circuit, and maybe changing your wife (voice of experience!)

goraman
13-06-2008, 03:57
I have found a cure for this. a shot glass of warm water and a teaspoon of olive oil.
an old audio geek past this to me it is better than anythin on the market today porit in your ear wait 3 min. then let it run out and even better use a ear bulb,it looks like a small turky baster.then flush with just warm water.and Q tip dry. The oil softens wax the water lifts it out.I do this 3X a week and my doctor has comented on how clean my ears always are when I get my cheak up.It's like spending $1,000nds more on gear.

Also use a power conditioner,a major factor consisantcy.

alb
13-06-2008, 07:05
I find a lot of this "off day " effect is simply due to not being relaxed.
I rarely listen now, unless i know there will be few interruptions and i am able to spend at least a couple of hours doing nothing.
If you have things on your mind then it's difficult to fully relax.
Ambient noise also has something to do with it, i reckon.

combwork
13-06-2008, 07:39
I have found a cure for this. a shot glass of warm water and a teaspoon of olive oil.
an old audio geek past this to me it is better than anythin on the market today porit in your ear wait 3 min. then let it run out and even better use a ear bulb,it looks like a small turky baster.then flush with just warm water.and Q tip dry. The oil softens wax the water lifts it out.I do this 3X a week and my doctor has comented on how clean my ears always are when I get my cheak up.It's like spending $1,000nds more on gear.

Also use a power conditioner,a major factor consisantcy.

Could you tell me please, what does a power conditioner do? If you've got say a cd player, a vinyl deck and a pre/power amp, which componant would get the most benifit from one? Logically the amp, but there are a lot of electronics in the cd player as well.

This off day/good day thing has been driving me nuts. I like the idea of DIY ear cleaning; I'm not sure if the local chemist sells ear bulbs but I'll find out................

Mike Reed
13-06-2008, 19:08
This off day/good day thing has been driving me nuts. I like the idea of DIY ear cleaning; .............


You may find that the sound quality waxes and wanes in direct proportion to your ear syringes. (Sorry, couldn't resist it!)

Bearing in mind my total lack of knowledge and experience, I think mains conditioners are expensive 'cleaners' of crappy or polluted domestic ring mains. They must, surely, 'restrict the flow' in order to do this.

It would make sense to have one before any sockets feeding the hifi. (as in a hydra, possibly), but it's still no substitute for your own hifi circuit, i.m.o., however basic that may be.

BajaGringo
13-06-2008, 19:12
If I were to turn my head to the side and pour any kind of concoction into my ear, it would likely just drain out the other ear...

alb
13-06-2008, 19:26
With reference to the effect of mains conditioners.
It's commonly said that mains filters may have a slight adverse effect on tube equipment, but will work better with digital and possibly solid state.
I have a homebrew mains filter which stops any clicks and pops coming through from the mains, and i haven't noticed any such adverse effect so far. Maybe i will as my system gets better.
Unless you mains is unbearably bad i see no advantage in expensive conditioning systems. Thats just an opinion of course.

anthonyTD
13-06-2008, 20:50
With reference to the effect of mains conditioners.
It's commonly said that mains filters may have a slight adverse effect on tube equipment, but will work better with digital and possibly solid state.
I have a homebrew mains filter which stops any clicks and pops coming through from the mains, and i haven't noticed any such adverse effect so far. Maybe i will as my system gets better.
Unless you mains is unbearably bad i see no advantage in expensive conditioning systems. Thats just an opinion of course.
mains conditioners if they are designed right can improve things significantly, especially if you have problems with inconsistency in sonic performance as discussed here, but unfortunetly a lot of the filters available on the market just suck the life out of the music, and in extreeme cases tend to make everything sound slow.
anthony.:)

goraman
13-06-2008, 23:51
The APC H110 is A very high quality conditioner and is less expencive than lets say a Richard Gray or Ferman.A good power conditioner simply filters out noise from reaching your transformers in your gear.the feed back to your power caused by floresent lights and neon transformers,A/C units and other neiborhood crap can distort what other wise should be very clean sound.not enough to say whats that? but enough to just bleed in and muddy the sonic waters.The APC will povide all the current of a 15 amp breaker I have a tube amp and it likes the APC just fine.P.S. what benifits most? Well with all things build from the sorce componate out.Why if the signal starts out bad the degredation is increaced with amplifacation. Not unlike a rocket it is easy to correct a 15 degree tregectory error just after take off but wait till the end of the path and insted of being a few meters off target you are menny miles from the target.By starting with a great sorce into a great pre amp even if the amp has a small flaw it will not be as bad as starting with a bad sorce.Everthing starts with the power that comes out of the wall.Don't bring all your lovely neiabors electronic polution to your sonic experiance.