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Zero calories

Paul's Posts — 02 November 2011

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Zero calories

Went to cook some scrambled eggs this morning and first sprayed the pan with one of those spray oils.

Always conscious of my weight I checked the calorie content: zero.  Zero?  Really?  It is, after all, oil and oil is NOT zero calories.

Turns out the agency that regulates the measurement standards has set a minimum level where they figured if it’s below this level it doesn’t matter.

That got me to thinking.  Maybe it would make sense if we did the same thing.

I am absolutely convinced neither you nor I can hear the difference between 0.01% THD and 0.001% THD despite the fact one is 10 times lower than the other.  We may be able to hear the method used to lower the distortion (like applying more feedback) but all things being equal, I don’t think the difference between these two measurements matters.

Why publish it?  Why not make it easy on people trying to evaluate equipment, based on specifications that are basically meaningless to them?

For example: THD less than audibility.  Now there’s a spec I can live with.  The fact it may be 10 times lower than the next guy’s is a marketing man’s dream – but truly meaningless to the person it should matter to.

My apologies to the marketing guys.

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About Author

Paul McGowan

Paul McGowan is the CEO and co-founder of PS Audio Inc. a Boulder Colorado design and manufacturing company of high-end audio products and services. McGowan has been designing and building high-end products for nearly 40 years. Hobbies include skiing, music, hiking, artisan bread baking, kick boxing and cooking. He lives in Boulder Colorado with his wife Terri and his 4 sons.

(2) Readers Comments

  1. klipschorn1

    November 2, 2011 at 2:43 am

    Paul,
    I love these daily emails. They have been very insightful. I have also enjoyed you PS Audio newsletters over the past year or so.
    Thank you for your passion for high end audio, I know in a nutshell that you just want it to sound right and I share the same passion.
    I have had the Dac Link 111 with Cullen upgrades for several years and I love it, great product and great sound.

    Thank you for all you do for the audio industry,

    Randy

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