DIR Return Create A Forum - Home
---------------------------------------------------------
Penny Can
HTML https://pennycan.createaforum.com
---------------------------------------------------------
*****************************************************
DIR Return to: Music
*****************************************************
#Post#: 9402--------------------------------------------------
Does Generation Y Like The Sound of MP3s Over CDs?
DIR By: Mac
Date: June 5, 2012, 12:46 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
[glow=red,2,300]Does Generation Y Like The Sound of MP3s Over
CDs?[/glow]
--- Quote ---
> Dr. Sean Olive from the executive team of Harman recently
invited some select members of the press to visit their
Northridge, California compound. The purpose of this visit was
to hear the doctor's presentation on a compelling study that he
recently finished on the topic of Generation Y possibly liking
the lower-resolution sound of MP3 files better than that of
full-resolution files from a compact disc. The sound from a
compact disc has much more resolution and is much less
compressed, but sources such as Wired Magazine and the New York
Times have been floating non-scientific test balloons up with
the idea that the largest generation ever, Generation Y,
actually prefers the sound of lower-resolution to that of a
higher-resolution compact disc. The editors are pulling
inspiration from an unpublished study from Stanford University.
The idea of kids choosing low-resolution MP3s over
higher-resolution CDs isn't that farfetched if you think about
it. Kids will often pick junk food over fine dining, so is it
possible that they might do the same for what goes into their
ears?
>
>
> Dr. Olive dug in with the goal of reporting on his findings to
the Audio Engineering Society and the world at large. He brought
in test subjects in the Generation Y age range, including kids
from the Los Angeles Unified School district via a local high
school, as well as 40 college and grad students from Loyola
Marymount, University of California Irvine, Cal Arts and beyond.
There was also a test group of professional listeners that
Harman uses for internal projects, so the test data was gathered
from a subject pool that ran from very experienced listeners to
grad students who have studied audio and music playback to kids
who just know what they like to hear. Dr. Olive had the whole
spectrum.
>
> The listening samples included both 128 MPS files and
full-resolution (1440) files from compact discs, with musical
material that ranged from audience applause to Jennifer Warnes
and beyond. The double-blind tests were conducted in one of
Harman's many testing facilities. The material was programmed
randomly, played for nine listeners at a time sitting in two
rows, with an average playback level at 78 db. The tests lasted
no longer than 30 minutes. The room was acoustically treated and
outfitted with a good audiophile-grade system.
>
> The results, you ask? Everybody liked the compact disc audio
better. No one group had a significant preference for MP3 over
CD, contrary to the earlier hypothesis. The more highly-trained
listeners tended to have a slightly stronger preference for the
sound of the compact disc than did the less-trained listeners
but, overall, everyone pretty much agreed on what sounded best.
>
> The study went into some other questions, such as "Does
Generation Y prefer higher-end speakers?" and "Do people from
other countries have different tastes regarding loudspeakers?".
Dr. Olive's full study can be read here to explore these topics.
>
> As for the issue of Generation Y being able to clearly hear
the difference in higher-resolution audio, this study should end
the question as to whether higher resolution is better.
Honestly, it should have been easier to make the point, but Dr.
Olive really broke out some beakers and Bunsen burners to prove
it. Kids buy EA Sports Madden Football to the tune of over
5,000,000 units at a price of over $50 per disc every year. Why?
Because it's a great game with great audio and video effects,
delivered in a format that is HD. Blindly hopeful audiophiles
suggest that Generation Y is bringing back vinyl. They are not.
Vinyl sells for less than $10 per new pressing and, when you
look at the Soundscan numbers for all vinyl sold in 2010, you
learn that the entire format sold just above the RIAA standard
for a multi-platinum record.. That's right: every record on
vinyl that sold in 2010 total equals one-twentieth of what
Thriller sold on its own back in the day. Simply put, that's not
enough volume to bet the farm on a low-res, standard-definition
format. Generation Y loves music possibly more than any previous
generation has. They have media, including music, in their lives
nearly every waking minute of the day, but they clearly do not
want low-resolution media if given the choice of
higher-resolution media. They want the HD effect, be it a jolt
from a Monster energy drink, the rush of an X-Games trick or
stunning 1080p video and uncompressed 24-bit 7.1 audio playback
from Blu-ray. If you want to get the attention of this
all-important demographic, you need to grab it with sheer
technological force. They want the WOW factor and don't have a
ton of money to spend on it - yet.
>
> What I would like to have seen in the study is a third
comparison including the same music/audio played back at 24-bit
192 kHz. All-knowing record executives suggest that the
record-buying public simply can't hear the difference. With
respect, that's total bullshit and I would like to see Dr. Olive
prove it to them with facts. I am suggesting that anyone with
any modicum of hearing left in their ears can easily discern the
difference between the audio that a Blu-ray disc can deliver vs.
what you get via a 30-plus-year-old compact disc. The increased
resolution, plus the 120 dB dynamic range, allows a disc to play
back audio in a way that is more analogous to the master tape. I
bet that each and every group would demonstrate this in a study
similar to the one that Dr. Olive has conducted. What would be
interesting to see is how much more they like music in HD vs.
music in SD (i.e., the compact disc) vs. music in S (I call it
S, because MP3 files simply suck for audio quality).
>
> The labels will say that the physical disc is dead and that
downloads are the only way to go. They are wrong again. A $59
Blu-ray player can hook up to most AV systems via a $10 HDMI
cable and provide a physically superior audio and video
experience with 24/192 audio to 7.1 channels, while packing
1080p video as needed. Oh, and unlike the CD that the labels are
still trying to sell for $15.95, the Blu-ray comes with copy
protection that's pretty hard to break. The CD has no copy
protection at all.
>
> More people love music today than ever before - that's the
good news. The idea that the major labels refuse to sell it at
any level of high resolution is nothing short of a crime against
the arts. Hollywood studios give you theater-quality surround
sound on Blu-ray, yet I can't hear Electric Ladyland as close to
the master tape as possible. Where is Congress when you need
them? (Wait, don't answer that.) As for downloads, it would take
Apple embracing music in HD to push past Blu-ray, as Apple is
the dominant force in music sales, yet the Kings of Cupertino
are focused on how to get media, apps and other goodies
streaming wirelessly to your iPad, iPhone and pending
Apple-based television. They are not focused on HD audio.
Boutique audio companies like HD Tracks are tuned into HD audio,
but offer too few records to appeal to buyers beyond the
audiophile community. The majors and Apple could change the way
we listen to music and give us reason to buy more
high-performance audiophile equipment, yet they don't think we
can hear it. Dr. Olive should prove it to them, as he has proven
the MP3s-sound-better theory is wrong.
>
--- End Quote ---
#Post#: 9403--------------------------------------------------
Re: Does Generation Y Like The Sound of MP3s Over CDs?
DIR By: Chiprocks1
Date: June 5, 2012, 12:55 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
I think if the new generation only has access to one type of
format, that being the MP3, they are going to accept that as the
standard. Now when I say "access", I mean with iPods and
like-minded devices, they will download and cherry pick the
songs they want instead of the "hassel" of going to a store and
buying a CD. With MP3's you get immediate access to whatever
song/singer/band you are in the mood for.
#Post#: 9404--------------------------------------------------
Re: Does Generation Y Like The Sound of MP3s Over CDs?
DIR By: Mac
Date: June 5, 2012, 1:57 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
While reading through this I was thinking about access too. Part
of the puzzle pieces are costs, availability, accessibility,
etc. But I think the point of the report is not only figuring
out if Gen Y can detect quality product and what they prefer,
but at the very core, minus costs, hassle, etc, if given the
opportunity, the better sound is what Gen Y will prefer. Thus
the author’s summary, if making the quality product at the very
least, available. Sure, if the only available thing is crap,
they are going to pick crap. Make the playing field even and see
which one they will pick.
#Post#: 9405--------------------------------------------------
Re: Does Generation Y Like The Sound of MP3s Over CDs?
DIR By: Chiprocks1
Date: June 5, 2012, 2:03 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Vinyl>8 Track>CD>MP3>Me singing
[IMG]
HTML http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i266/Chiprocks1/Smilies/0%20All%20Smilies/HTL_biggrin.gif[/img]
#Post#: 9409--------------------------------------------------
Re: Does Generation Y Like The Sound of MP3s Over CDs?
DIR By: Mac
Date: June 5, 2012, 3:14 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
So does "Fingernails on a chalkboard go before or after your
singing?
I'm just askin'
#Post#: 9410--------------------------------------------------
Re: Does Generation Y Like The Sound of MP3s Over CDs?
DIR By: Chiprocks1
Date: June 5, 2012, 3:17 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
After 8 Track.
*****************************************************
Page 1 of 1