Quote:
Originally Posted by jphughan
And this is one of the great fallacies of audio perception -- that quality is heard at high volume. Great audio systems sound fabulous at any volume, and if you only hear a difference when it's loud, you're probably experiencing the placebo effect -- unless your only point is that B&O can play at higher volumes before getting distorted.
I listened to both systems, and keep in mind that the US-spec M5's base system is NOT the same as the base for other M5 specs around the world; we get the "Premium Hi-Fi System" standard, which slots between the true base system and B&O. Unless you're listening to music like classical or jazz with "natural" instruments (as opposed to electric guitars and synthesizers), or tracks sung by people with complex voices like Ella Fitzgerald or Diana Krall, I don't think you'll notice the B&O difference compared to the Premium Hi-Fi; can't speak for the true base system as I'm in the US. And even then, you'd need to be using high quality sources like high bitrate tracks served up over USB, no 128 Kbps MP3s or even Bluetooth Audio.
And even after all that, is the difference worth $3700? Not to me. That could buy a pretty spectacular aftermarket setup even factoring installation costs in.
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You seem to be more knowledgable than I when it comes to Audio. This is an instance of different consumers perception. I always listen to it with my ipod plugged in via USB. I listen to a variety of music (no country and no classical) I'm 32 years old and have been pretty harsh on my ears for quite sometime between shooting guns, motorized equipment, and always listening to music loud. So perhaps maybe I need it to be loud for my ears to pick up on certain frequencies. Anyway, happy holidays.