Aristotle for
Audiophiles
 The
ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle begins his seminal work on ethics, the Nicomachean
Ethics, by telling us that all things -- actions, arts, inquiries -- aim at some good
and that this basic truth is often confused with the idea that there is a single good to
which all things aim. When we investigate anything or perform an action our success is
determined by how well we achieve the intended end. Without an end in mind, we are unable
to determine the success or failure of our endeavors.
This isn't just good philosophical advice, but bears
directly on how audiophiles approach putting together a good system. Some believe,
contrary to Aristotle's advice, that there is one ultimate end in audio reproduction and a
product or system is successful insofar as that ultimate end is achieved. We find people
arguing for the superiority of tubes over solid state, or vinyl over CD, or, perhaps the
newest incarnation of this debate, SACD over DVD-A. Such single-mindedness blinds people
from seeing that, just as Aristotle told us, we cannot judge the success of anything
without knowing the intended result. Single-mindedness in audio, or anything else, entails
that we assume that what we are after is the only acceptable end. That is hogwash.
Evidence for my claim was all over the place at Home
Entertainment 2004, held in May in New York City. There were just as many approaches to
high fidelity as there were exhibitors, and it simply wouldn't make sense to characterize
these various approaches in normative terms like "the correct way." Each
exhibitor approached sound reproduction in his own way because of the concessions or
design choices that needed to be made. Some had low-powered amps, others megawatt amps;
some made room-sized speakers, others had small bookshelf speakers or even in-wall
speakers. Each approach follows its own path to good sound. What is considered "good
sound" might vary with each setup (for example, one approach may sacrifice
transparency for dynamics while others will make different concessions). We continue our
coverage of this show this month in the hope of giving you a greater sense of what is
available and helping you find your own audio goal.
The traditional approach to high fidelity relies on large
speakers and large components, but newer approaches eschew these choices in favor of
portability and convenience. There are quite a number of portable hard-disk players these
days that allow for great mobility, but not all are created equal in sound quality or
their ability to drive all headphones with sufficient power. Our review this month of
HeadRoom's Total BitHead headphone amplifier shows a product that allows you to keep
portability without sacrificing sound quality. The BitHead is more than just a headphone
amplifier, however. Its USB interface allows it to be used as a standalone sound device
for your personal computer -- yet another approach to high-fidelity sound.
Aristotle's insight can be applied not only to audio
products, but also to what we buy audio products for: music. We can see this if we keep it
in mind when thinking about the value and merit of various musical styles. I've been
spending lots of time lately with the Beastie Boys’ new album, To The 5 Boroughs
[Capitol 72435 84571 0 0], and Robert Aiken and the Toronto New Music Ensemble's recording
of Toru Takemitsu: Chamber Music [Naxos 8.555859], and it is easy to see that their
goals are different and their success is hard to compare. To The 5 Boroughs is
loud, cacophonous, and full of clever and crass vocals. Takemitsu's music is none of these
things, but is serene, soft, and delightfully ethereal. Both are great, but to compare
them directly would be to fall into the trap that Aristotle mentions; there simply is no
one goal to which they both aim.
Remember that at GoodSound! we want to help you
achieve your own audio ends. Whatever path you choose to follow in constructing your
system or whatever musical muse you choose to follow, we'll still be here waiting to help.
…Eric D. Hetherington
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