With that being said, I have a plan to introduce a reference sound card for my upcoming sound card tests, but only if I find a good way to use it, and deem the numbers meaningful and relevant to the actual performance of the device. Some arbitrary measurements could take away from that conclusion. The way I see it, my job is to tell to the reader that the Sound Blaster X4 sounds indistinguishable from the more expensive GC7, and that it makes no sense to spend more money if getting a better sound quality is the goal. I ran into tens, if not hundreds of audio products that measured good, but sounded worse than their competitors which measured worse. these don't mean anything for the overall listening experience, but might make it seem like a product A is better than product B, while that doesn't have to be the case in practice at all. A THD of 0.0079% vs 0.0074%, or a 0.0003 IMD difference, or a 0.2 dB dynamic range difference, etc. While you'll definitely see and should care about a difference in CPU/GPU heat dissipation or the framerate you're getting in the game you're playing, the same is not true for the numbers generated by RMAA tests (and many other audio-related tests for that matter). I had a feeling this discussion is going to pivot in this exact direction The CPU/GPU measurements cannot be compared to audio ones, the analogy doesn't stand. Measurements pointless? Is this some kind of joke that I'm not getting? To measure the latter, proper equipment is required. Depends which ones of course, but to say they don't mean anything is just strange for a reviewer.Īlso, considering that all speakers and headphones should sound the same if the DAC/Amp is designed properly, means you are actually describing/reviewing the sound of the speakers or headphones, not the performance sound card. The same can be said for CPU and GPU reviews here on TPU.Īnd numbers actually do tend to be meaningful. How users (mis)interpret it is their problem. The job of the reviewer is to provide proper information about the product. Let users cling to whatever number they want. Not having measurements basically defeats the purpose of a review. Or maybe use a separate sound card as reference. Granted, loopback tests aren't all that useful to begin with, but it's still better than nothing. I'm gonna judge the gaming performance, temperatures, and noise levels by using my eyes, fingers, and eyes, respectively, from now on"? Would you (or other users here) be OK with W1zzard saying for example "Yeah, those benchmarks, and temperature and noise measurements are a hassle and seem redundant. Click to expand.Measurements pointless? Is this some kind of joke that I'm not getting?
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