Hearing ability varies from person to person. Some have great hearing but are not always experienced or trained in listening. Others have hearing loss. Some worry about age – see article below – How age affects hearing.
Some reviewers and designers have what we can call “hypersensitive hearing” but not many. Please see article below.
Sound stage ( 3 dimensionality)
This is probably the ultimate test for any system as the ability to create a sonic hologram of the sound involves all 3 of the pillars of great sound quality.
- Left to right image is linked to clarity.
- Depth of image, in terms of front to back positioning tends to be linked to accurate tonality.
- The ability to accurately pinpoint instruments and singers in the mix is linked to dynamics. As mentioned previously dynamics draw “attention” and the ear follows dynamic sounds much more easily to locate them positionaly in the mix. If an instrument is producing good dynamics it’s a bit like turning a stage spotlight onto it.