How do You Define Hi-Fi?
- Thread starter hobby
- Start date
twiiii
Lunatic Member
Well Hi fi system to me means a great monaural system. with less than 1% total distortion from the beginning of the chain to the end. It must be able to reach concert level with 10 db of head room. Signal to noise should be good enough when playing a source so no noise should be heard at concert level. Back in the 50s thats all we had was mono Hifi and yet the speakers could not reach the 1% spec and you were lucky if they could reach the 10 % spec. 30, to 15,000 HZ was just about the limit of the science for a total system.
I have about 100 mono albums either as LP's or CD's and FM selections played once in a while in mono in which case I use the right speaker only. Remember two speakers playing the same identical signal reduces the intelligibility factor by two.
If you really want to know how good your stereo system is play a mono CD, tape, or LP. The image between your speakers should be very narrow and that image should extend from the very highest of frequencies to the upper bass around 250 HZ. If the center image is vague covering say over a 1/3 of the area between your speakers or larger then your speakers, room acoustics and listening position are very suspect. Some times even horn loaded speakers where the crossover frequencies are to low for the capability of the mid-horn or full HF horn the imaging will be vague and not as focused as it should be. With point source speakers you have to sit in the direct field of the speaker for sure to even begin to get the correct focusing.
The only horn system I have ever heard for a home system that meets those demands if the Klipsch Jubilee. Altec can't, DD JBL can't, EV never could, and though my favorite smaller horn system, the Cornwall, can't either. My HT Line arrays come fairly close, but the stereo line arrays definitely does at 15 or more feet listening distance.
I will admit that there are a lot of folks who don't want that highly focused critical sound presentation. Preferring a sound that surrounds them in an illusion. Bose 901 for instance does that and made Bose famous. But thats not Hi FI. Maybe its mid fi or called something else.
Stereo HiFI is something totally different to be discussed when some one asks about Stereo Hi FI.
I have about 100 mono albums either as LP's or CD's and FM selections played once in a while in mono in which case I use the right speaker only. Remember two speakers playing the same identical signal reduces the intelligibility factor by two.
If you really want to know how good your stereo system is play a mono CD, tape, or LP. The image between your speakers should be very narrow and that image should extend from the very highest of frequencies to the upper bass around 250 HZ. If the center image is vague covering say over a 1/3 of the area between your speakers or larger then your speakers, room acoustics and listening position are very suspect. Some times even horn loaded speakers where the crossover frequencies are to low for the capability of the mid-horn or full HF horn the imaging will be vague and not as focused as it should be. With point source speakers you have to sit in the direct field of the speaker for sure to even begin to get the correct focusing.
The only horn system I have ever heard for a home system that meets those demands if the Klipsch Jubilee. Altec can't, DD JBL can't, EV never could, and though my favorite smaller horn system, the Cornwall, can't either. My HT Line arrays come fairly close, but the stereo line arrays definitely does at 15 or more feet listening distance.
I will admit that there are a lot of folks who don't want that highly focused critical sound presentation. Preferring a sound that surrounds them in an illusion. Bose 901 for instance does that and made Bose famous. But thats not Hi FI. Maybe its mid fi or called something else.
Stereo HiFI is something totally different to be discussed when some one asks about Stereo Hi FI.
twiiii
Lunatic Member
Mid-fi is a system with higher distortion levels even though they maybe pleasing to the ear can be very enjoyable. . The low frequency extension is limited to the 40's and signal to noise ratio has been compromised just enough to be come noticeable during quiet passage or in between selections. Focus and staging of instruments is starting to be come vague. But there aren't any glaring issues with the sound and the sound can be enjoyed for a vast majority of the time. I would consider my systems from the 60's to be just on the top edge of mid-fi striving to be a full stereo hifi system. Mostly turn tables that you could hear rumble and wow a bit, tape machines with compromised tapes that were noisy and FM broadcasts really made are systems all mid fi back then. Only those of us that had master tapes to play and Sheffield Labs direct to disc LP's could say we were experiencing and approaching true life like Stereo Hifi Standards with very quiet TT's and the best cartridges. Cartridges with spherical and early elliptical styli were mid fi. I owned a bunch of them ,too. I think the first MM cartridge I heard that was really Stereo Hi Fi was the Grace F9E. I know the very early Stanton 881S and V-15's weren't anything but mid-fi. Now a Shure V-15- 5 MR and a Stanton 981 HZL were Stereo Hi Fi quality. All MC cartridges didn't track that well at the time though they had great sound quality. Everything tubes was mid-fi. The MC 3500 MK I being the exception for me and when used by others made their speakers like mine sound fabulous. But I couldn't afford 4 of them so I stuck with bi-amping my speakers with 275's even though I new how great my speakers would sound with 3500's powering them.
I use to do live remotes and make live recordings on tape for record companies. I used AKG, Neumann, Sony and those precious Telefunken mics that cost a fortune now days. I chose my speakers and electronics because when I played those master tapes the sound produced was that of the concert I recorded. Thats why I still have those same speakers today, even though they are the basis of my 7.0 HT system for the past 19 years and my Stereo speakers for many years previous to that period of change. Yes all the 7 speakers systems use the same tweeters, mids, and woofers. But just in different quantities.
Then there is LO FI. But thats another topic.
I use to do live remotes and make live recordings on tape for record companies. I used AKG, Neumann, Sony and those precious Telefunken mics that cost a fortune now days. I chose my speakers and electronics because when I played those master tapes the sound produced was that of the concert I recorded. Thats why I still have those same speakers today, even though they are the basis of my 7.0 HT system for the past 19 years and my Stereo speakers for many years previous to that period of change. Yes all the 7 speakers systems use the same tweeters, mids, and woofers. But just in different quantities.
Then there is LO FI. But thats another topic.
Lavane
Lunatic Member
If it sounds good enough to put a big smile on your face, and pleases the ear. Even a little 5wpc tube amp with 5% distortion at full output with only a 40hz-18khz response can sound really nice with the right speakers. 
Below is the amp and preamp I built that I was listening through yesterday while at my bench working on another amp I built.
Below is the amp and preamp I built that I was listening through yesterday while at my bench working on another amp I built.
Attachments
Mike_S
Well-Known Member
If you don't have $1000 interconnects is it even HiFi?
Think that is HiFi in a nutshell, you got to be part of the 1%'s or it's mid-Fi.
Does it even matter? With all the Ci-Fi stuff, and class D stuff. Not sure where the line is anymore. HiFi used to be racks of gear, 18in across from floor to ceiling. Speakers with a ton of drivers from floor to ceiling. Now you can get a 200w amp that will fit in your hand. My 200 amp needs 2 people to pull it out of the rack.
If you are happy with it, and like the sound of it, that is all that matters. No need to label it. I like good sounding music, what sounds good to me may sound like poop to you. Nothing has taught me more of that when I went to an Audio show, listened to $100,000+ horn speakers, they were the worst sounding speakers I have even listened to, in another room was sub $2k home built open baffle speakers that were absolutely wonderful!
Think that is HiFi in a nutshell, you got to be part of the 1%'s or it's mid-Fi.
Does it even matter? With all the Ci-Fi stuff, and class D stuff. Not sure where the line is anymore. HiFi used to be racks of gear, 18in across from floor to ceiling. Speakers with a ton of drivers from floor to ceiling. Now you can get a 200w amp that will fit in your hand. My 200 amp needs 2 people to pull it out of the rack.
If you are happy with it, and like the sound of it, that is all that matters. No need to label it. I like good sounding music, what sounds good to me may sound like poop to you. Nothing has taught me more of that when I went to an Audio show, listened to $100,000+ horn speakers, they were the worst sounding speakers I have even listened to, in another room was sub $2k home built open baffle speakers that were absolutely wonderful!
SingleAction
Active Member
When I was a kid and if I remember correctly. When Stereo records were first being introduced, HiFi simply meant that the audio was monaural and Stereo was 2 channels. It had nothing to do with the audio quality.
Lavane
Lunatic Member
This simple explanation sums it all up in one well written sentence.
I think we're all done here.
jayvis
Addicted Member
Most of us who grew up in the 60's and 70's started just listening to music on small transistor radios. That was fine until we heard something that sounded far better, and that continues to this day in my case. Doesn't matter what they call it or how it's categorized. Audio sound fidelity continues to evolve and to be subjectively evaluated.
I think the term predates stereo.
This simple explanation sums it all up in one well written sentence.
I think we're all done here.
My boombox is hifi after all!
RI HiFi Guy
Member
Definitely, I am Gen X myself and just grew up with this stuff just because it was ubiquitous. I am now definitely a gear head and a Hi-Fi enthusiast, just like the rest of us here. I just think people tend to make **** more complicated than they need to.
I mean the Moondrop Chu II are less than $20 and very high fidelity. I know some people would call them Fun-Fi or Mid-Fi or whatever but to me that just seems snobbish.
Many won't be able to get over the fact that they are earbuds.
For three years all I've had to play records with is a low-end AT turntable plugged directly into a Bose table radio. It ain't hifi, but I've enjoyed starting a record collection again and get enough playing time in to wear out a stylus every six months.