Ok I'll biteOriginally Posted by Welder
Looks like this one might lead balloon on us
Let’s face it; it wasn’t going to be a big hit on a subjectivist forum was it?
Quad did listen to their amplifiers because the designers and many of the Quad staff used them at home in their systems. Many of our cherished recordings spanning perhaps three or more decades were mastered in studios using Quad amplifiers, not to mention many broadcasters. But its true that the II just like the 303 and 405 were never assessed during the design stage using music.
They'll have been assessed using various noise and test tones because Quad held the view that an amplifier has only one primary function, that of ensuring that what appears at the output matches that on the input in all but magnitude at audible frequencies.
That task can be performed just as well with tones as with music because the amplifier simply responds to changes in voltage and current. It cannot tell what is passing through it, music or otherwise.
Liking what comes out of the amplifier is another matter. If the amplifier is technically faithful to the input and you don't like the result, then you don't like the music as recorded or replayed by your source!
If you prefer the music through a different amplifier, that amplifier is altering the signal in some way. I would say that unlike some 'objectivists' I'm all for a bit of manipulation of the signal if it gives a more enjoyable experience. Prefer to do it using EQ though.
Well hopefully I've reflated the balloon if nothing else
Rob
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