[Things your Mom warned you about] How to listen and judge a component or HiFi system outdoor

Recently we have dedicated an entire article to how one should approach critical listening of a HiFi component or system and which are the minimal conditions that must be satisfied in order to express a reasonable judgement on how a component sounds. Unfortunately this is not always the case, as those minimal conditions (same system, same listening room, same moment) are hard to attain. Anyway, it is unavoidable to make a decision on a purchase under wrong or far from ideal conditions. Let's see how to minimize risks and mistakes. What follows might be obvious to many but, judging from what can be found on hifi forums and YouTube videos, there are many enthusiasts who seem to ignore a correct approach to critical listening. An upcoming Part III of this article will add other tips.

Tip #1: always try to ask for the HiFi component to be tested at your home for a day or over a weekend, possibly under the direct supervision of the salesman, or upon release of a substantial (refundable) cash deposit. It's not easy, but for investments of a certain amount it is not impossible to test a component at home. When this is not possible, ask the salesman, assuming he has a decent listening room, to take to his shop one or more of your components, so to be able to compare them with what you think could be an “upgrade”. Even if the dealer's system and his room are unknown to you, at least you will be able to detect the differences between your component (or your speakers) and the candidates for replacement. All this is quite easy to attain, especially if it involves moving components of reasonable size.

Tip #2: if the above situations are unattainable, you have to listen in the store listening room. To minimize the variables (components and environment) make sure to bring with you a good selection of records that you know well, possibly of good quality. Indeed, it is perfectly useless to judge a HiFi component (as I have seen done at HiFi shows recently!) with recordings of poor quality, i.e. old, compressed, lacking dynamics, 3D image and extended frequency response. The excuse “...but I know these well!” doesn't hold up, because a good system or a more transparent and precise one might even make you hear more recording faults or artefacts, so much that you might prefer a worse, lower fidelity component to one that makes you detect all the shortcomings of the recording. Of course, the salesman will try to convince you that the component on sale is better sounding than yours: ask the courtesy not to interfere.

Tip #3: someone might argue that listening in the shop can be misleading, because the component that sounds good in that context, perhaps within an optimized room, will cease to sound that way once placed in your listening room. This is sad but true, but it's a good opportunity to exploit this kind of information: if it sounded good in that room and it sounds terrible in yours, there are excellent possibilities that your listening room is fundamentally wrong and therefore, before planning any upgrades, perhaps it would be worth investing time and money to make it sound acceptable. In any case, there is no way out: in an unsuitable room even the 1 million Euro system will play VERY BAD, proof of this is the sound disaster of certain high-end systems at HiFi shows, systems which sometimes are literally unlistenable.

Tip #4: things don't change much if you listen at a friend's house, except that, realistically, your friend will let you bring and listen to your own components, for a reasonable comparative test. In this situation, however, you need to pay attention to your friend. Audiophiles are typically big talkers, often boasters of long-term experience, and typically fans of one or another audio philosophy. It is highly likely that he will try to influence your judgement. For this reason, the tests must be carried out in religious silence: you listen for a while and then you can discuss and compare your findings with someone else. Remember that whatever is said by the other party, whether he/she is interested in selling something to you, will affect your judgement, especially if you do not have enough listening experience.

Tip #5: at HiFi exhibitions it's almost impossible to understand anything, since the conditions are uncontrollable and often you won't be able to ask to listen to some of your records. To make the situation worse there is the context, which is noisy, with lots of people chatting, even loudly, including the owners and managers of the rooms themselves. Understanding something within this chaos is literally impossible. For this reason we are always very cautious when we visit a HiFi show and try to mention some worthy room or installation. Generally we limit ourselves to write something about the rooms that sound good (and there are some) and suspend judgement for the rest.

Conclusions

These first five easy rules should help you limit the risk of listening under uncontrolled conditions, in the next episode we will see more, delving deeper into them, especially about what to listen to and how.

DISCLAIMER. TNT-Audio is neither a shop, nor a HiFi company or a repair laboratory for HiFi components. We don't sell anything. It is a 100% independent magazine that neither accepts advertising from companies nor requires readers to register or pay for subscriptions. If you wish, you can support our independent reviews via a PayPal donation. After publication of reviews, the authors do not retain samples other than on long-term loan for further evaluation or comparison with later-received gear. Hence, all contents are written free of any “editorial” or “advertising” influence, and all reviews in this publication, positive or negative, reflect the independent opinions of their respective authors. TNT-Audio will publish all manufacturer responses, subject to the reviewer's right to reply in turn.

Things your Mom warned you about: be careful when judging a HiFi component outdoors!

Simple rules to avoid making mistakes...

Foreword

Conclusions