Measurement Voodoo

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Kevin Haskins

Re: Measurement Voodoo
« Reply #20 on: 2 Nov 2007, 03:01 pm »


I really appreciate the effort knowledgeable people put forth to educate us consumers. So I don't agree that there is such a thing as too much information. I may not understand it all upon the first read (or after 100 reads), but making it available is like a good reference text - I can refer to it as I need.

Distortion measurements are something that I wish all speaker manufacturers published (and that JA at Stereophile measured). As you point out the values for drivers (woofers) are quite high relative to typical electronics. I think as more people understood this, we could get away from sweating the details of electronics and focus on speakers. Plus, I think it would push more audiophiles to embrace subwoofers. Would you give us an explanation as to why an anechoic chamber is necessary for accurate distortion measurements?



The only thing I'd add is all that matters to "Capitalistic Kevin", is how well it sells and how little headache it generates.   If I spend all my time educating consumers in order to make $10 then I won't be educating consumers for very long.   

There is a balance, I don't know exactly where that point is and it will probably change with time, but there is just so much effort you can put into educating people.   It doesn't necessarily pay off from a business standpoint.   


Bob Reynolds

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  • Posts: 526
Re: Measurement Voodoo
« Reply #21 on: 2 Nov 2007, 05:19 pm »


I really appreciate the effort knowledgeable people put forth to educate us consumers. So I don't agree that there is such a thing as too much information. I may not understand it all upon the first read (or after 100 reads), but making it available is like a good reference text - I can refer to it as I need.

Distortion measurements are something that I wish all speaker manufacturers published (and that JA at Stereophile measured). As you point out the values for drivers (woofers) are quite high relative to typical electronics. I think as more people understood this, we could get away from sweating the details of electronics and focus on speakers. Plus, I think it would push more audiophiles to embrace subwoofers. Would you give us an explanation as to why an anechoic chamber is necessary for accurate distortion measurements?



The only thing I'd add is all that matters to "Capitalistic Kevin", is how well it sells and how little headache it generates.   If I spend all my time educating consumers in order to make $10 then I won't be educating consumers for very long.   

There is a balance, I don't know exactly where that point is and it will probably change with time, but there is just so much effort you can put into educating people.   It doesn't necessarily pay off from a business standpoint.   



Yes, I understand completely. I was just being a selfish consumer. I've often thought that there might be a market for ebooks on such topics. So rather than spending so much time on forums answering the same questions over and over again, a person could be given a link to a document with a very detailed explanation. Write the explanation once and maybe generate a little revenue from it.

Kevin Haskins

Re: Measurement Voodoo
« Reply #22 on: 2 Nov 2007, 05:24 pm »
I think most business models trying to sell information on the web are doing poorly.   There are certainly exceptions, but most people expect content to be free.   Why?   Because that is the norm on the web.   

I'd also have to have content that is valuable to people.   In order for me to put together educational material it would require a significant investment in time.  How many people would I have willing to pay for that content?   I'd probably make an extra $10-$20/month.    :icon_lol:

The only reason I put stuff together is to draw people to my site.   I enjoy doing it too but there are only so many hours in the day.


TerryO

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  • Posts: 538
Re: Measurement Voodoo
« Reply #23 on: 3 Nov 2007, 01:25 am »


I really appreciate the effort knowledgeable people put forth to educate us consumers. So I don't agree that there is such a thing as too much information. I may not understand it all upon the first read (or after 100 reads), but making it available is like a good reference text - I can refer to it as I need.

Distortion measurements are something that I wish all speaker manufacturers published (and that JA at Stereophile measured). As you point out the values for drivers (woofers) are quite high relative to typical electronics. I think as more people understood this, we could get away from sweating the details of electronics and focus on speakers. Plus, I think it would push more audiophiles to embrace subwoofers. Would you give us an explanation as to why an anechoic chamber is necessary for accurate distortion measurements?



The only thing I'd add is all that matters to "Capitalistic Kevin", is how well it sells and how little headache it generates.   If I spend all my time educating consumers in order to make $10 then I won't be educating consumers for very long.   

There is a balance, I don't know exactly where that point is and it will probably change with time, but there is just so much effort you can put into educating people.   It doesn't necessarily pay off from a business standpoint.   

Mr.Haskins,

I certainly prefer "Kapitalist Kevin" over "Kommunist Kevin", or should that be "KGB Kevin"? :thumb:

Bob,

I think that most people wouldn't be willing to work the hours that Mr. Haskins puts in, with all the demands on his time. More than one "really great" product has disappeared from the market due to endless hours spent answering emails, phones and providing education for those that can, and ought, to be willing to read the books that attempt to explain these matters. In the Internet Age we have a tendency to become spoiled by being able to actually communicate with some of the top people in the field and sometimes (I'm guilty of this myself) become impatient with those who spend more time than is financially viable to answer questions. This isn't meant to be a rebuke, but rather a recognition of the reality of the situation.

Best Regards,
TerryO

Kevin Haskins

Re: Measurement Voodoo
« Reply #24 on: 3 Nov 2007, 01:43 am »
I'm on 14 hours today and still going strong.    On a typical week I only do about 60 hours, maybe a little more.   At some point I stop being productive.   Thats the time to close shop and go home.