Talking about the timbre performance of HIFI

                                      Talking about the timbre performance of HIFI

Any sound in nature is a complex waveform. In addition to the waveform of the fundamental frequency, this complex waveform also has a series of resonance frequencies, which is the so-called "harmonic", which has a certain relationship with the fundamental tone. "Overtone" relationship, for example, if the basic frequency of an object's vibration is 240Hz, frequencies such as 480Hz (second harmonic) and 720Hz (third harmonic) will also occur. The ratio of the overtone composition of each object is different. The sound of different overtone components produced by different objects is timbre.

In fact, every link and every part in the audio system will have its own tone, such as resistors, capacitors, transistors, vacuum tubes, wires, chassis materials, chassis structures, etc. Many people don't understand why there is only a small sound in the audio equipment. A small difference makes a big difference in the sound. In fact, the reason is very simple, that is, the timbre of each part is different.

Nowadays, the instruments of audio equipment test the multi-deviation harmonic distortion, intermodulation distortion, frequency response, damping factor and other measurements, and the spectrum analyzer is not used to analyze the structure of the overtone, but even if the spectrum analyzer is used to analyze the proportional components of the overtone , It is still impossible to know whether the sound is good or bad, which also explains why two machines with the same frequency response and the same distortion have different sounds.

Therefore, we have to use some objective vocabulary to describe the tone color. Although we can’t fully understand it, we can understand it more or less. Otherwise, we only need to use the instrument to test the equipment, so why listen to it? Audiophiles often use various Similar adjectives to describe timbre and sound quality, such as tough, bright, soft, rhyme, smooth, round, gorgeous, fuzzy, turbid, sharp, cohesive, loose, thick, shallow, clear, transparent, detailed, rough, strong, plump , Lively, etc., no less than a hundred adjectives.

Colors can be divided into warm and cold, and timbre can also be divided into warm, cold or hard, which is related to the proportion of overtones emitted by audio equipment. If the proportion of mid-bass in the overtone component is more, the sound will tend to be warm, soft, full, and rich; if the proportion of mid-to-high pitch in the overtone component is large, the sound will tend to be cold, tough, thin, and thin; What is neither warm nor cold is called neutral.

In the audio circle, the description of timbre, in addition to the above-mentioned timbre, also includes adjectives such as bright, dark, wet, dry, water, delicate, and tender. The sound quality is the texture of the sound itself. We are used to the sound quality with adjectives such as thick, thin, loose, tight, dense, sparse, slippery, and astringent.

The general meaning of "sound quality" is the quality of sound, but in audio technology it includes three aspects: the pitch of the sound, that is, the intensity and amplitude of the audio; the pitch of the sound, that is, the frequency of the audio or the frequency of changes per second Order; the timbre of a sound, that is, the overtone or harmonic content of an audio frequency.

Talking about the sound quality of a certain speaker is mainly to measure whether the above three aspects of the sound have reached a certain level, that is, whether the pitch has a certain intensity relative to a certain frequency or frequency band, and it is within the required frequency range and under the same volume. , Whether the amplitude of each frequency point is uniform, balanced, and full, whether the frequency response curve is straight, whether the pitch of the sound is accurate, which not only faithfully presents the original appearance of the frequency or component of the sound source, but also meets the requirements for frequency distortion and phase shift. The overtones of the sound are moderate, and the harmonics are rich, and the timbre sounds beautiful.