VO-BB - 19 YEARS OLD!

[GHull]

There's a neat little news magazine I subscribe to, The Week -- a nice, succinct condensation of articles from all over ... current events, politics, people -- and, psychological studies.

At the risk of "reprinting without permission," I'll paraphrase the report published in the "February 1, 2008" The Week [why do magazines do that with dates?]

Researchers at the California Institute of Technology found that, in essence, a $90 bottle of wine actually does taste better ... even when it is a $10 bottle in disguise. Subjects rated a $5.00 wine "higher" when the cheaper wine was being poured from a $45 bottle ... with even more pronounced results when the prices were doubled to $10 and $90 ... with "the brain scans of subjects' pleasure and perception centers always lighting up when they saw a higher price tag ... consistently mistaking value for quality."

All of this reminds me of a hilarious -- but revealing -- practical joke an engineering buddy of mine did a long time ago. He wired the dynamic element of an EV 635A into the empty body of a Telefunken U47 condenser microphone, and then let the fun begin with announcers, VO pros, and singers alike.

Yes, everyone fawned and raved, with most people saying, "Yep, you can tell that's a U47!" The only "comment" he got was, "It seems a 'tad bright' for a U47, but nothing that a little EQ can't solve."

I didn't know if this belonged in "Chat" or "Gear" ... but anyway ...

Comments?

[mcm]

I've seen similar studies - there was a show on PBS a couple of months ago showing the same result, e.g. blind taste tests of vodka where [respected brand] was deemed undrinkable whereas the participants had insisted beforehand that it was the best, and kids were asked to rate yogurts for their strawberry flavor, which they did, only to find out that all the yogurt was chocolate (or the other way round, I forget).

It's another example of the Tyranny of Taxonomy - give something a name and you've given it a strait jacket.

[dhouston67]

I could very easily use this opportunity to point out the store-brands, sold at local H.E.B. grocery, that I find preferable to a lot of "name brands"... if I didn't want to lose that potential Doritos gig.
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[ccpetersen]

Heh...

bottled waters... cough, cough...

http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2005/09/18/water_wars/

http://waterquality.cce.cornell.edu/bottled.htm
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[GHull]

... but does this apply to what we all know and love/hate as audio gearitis?

[Brett Mason]

.......sho.........what's yer.....point?......'s all good.......<hic>.........

[Deirdre]

[GHull]

LOL! That's it, Deirdre ... you nailed it.

[Ed Gambill]

We’ve been reading the Week each Week for about two years now. A good source of info.

On the other forum I posted three clips. AKG 414 ULS, GT52, RCA44 (needs new ribbon) and my wife’s SM57 (she is Saxophonist). The majority like the sound of the SM57. This is the very reason justices should be blind.
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[Deirdre]

There's another VO forum?
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[bobsouer]

Deirdre,

Every time you post that, it always gives me a good laugh. Thank you.
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[mcm]

It is so true that repetition is the soul of wit.

So comforting.

[bobsouer]

Mary,

And, of course, I was channeling you when I wrote the post immediately above.
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ISDN, Source Connect, phone patch

[Bruce]

It must be akin to the placebo effect. If someone tells you this pill will affect your symptoms, it often works even though it's a sugar pill. Is the U87 a great mic? Of course it is...lots of the big VO's and studios use it and it's $2,400+.

I remember participating in a wine appreciation gathering and in a blind taste test of champagnes the $3 Cooks champagne came in 2nd.

Speaking of mics, I've never been wowed by the U87 but that may be the fault of the engineer more than the mic. There's one engineer who's probably used 20 different mics with me over the years and I always sound good (to me) and he's used everything from $100 SE mics to $3,000 Farfegnugenns, or whatever they are.

I'm glad most of the mic discussions in the Gear section end with, "you really should go with the mic that sounds best to you", because that is usually the right answer.

B
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VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

[roger]

Because I'm audio supervisor for an Educational TV network, folks will often ask me to recommend loudspeakers to them. My advice is always for them to go to a store where the speakers are set up in a relatively good listening environment and are switchable and all "listening" to the same source. This will allow one to do a serious A-B critical listening comparison.
It's a very personal choice with no right answer. Just listen to how other folks set-up their car radios and home stereo units. From one end of the spectrum to the other (no pun intended). Hooking up an expensive audio analyzer is no substitute for your own ears and taste.
It also keeps people from getting mad at me when I suggest something they're not too keen on.
Nothing profound. It just keeps me out of trouble.
-roger
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