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From: rentsch@unc.UUCP (Tim Rentsch)
Newsgroups: net.audio
Subject: Re: Ivor Tiefenbrun and the demons of digital
Message-ID: <58@unc.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 24-Sep-84 18:03:18 EDT
Article-I.D.: unc.58
Posted: Mon Sep 24 18:03:18 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 4-Oct-84 04:00:28 EDT
References: <802@opus.UUCP>, <214@olivej.UUCP>, <904@houxm.UUCP>
Organization: CS Dept., U. of N. Carolina at Chapel Hill
Lines: 33

From the replied-to article:

   (2) I doubt that this comment was made on the basis of sound scientific
       reasoning.  Have you ever listened to a CD and an analogue disc with
       the CD being made from digital master and the analogue disc being
       made from an analogue master tape of the same performance with
       identical source and good production -- no, I didn't think so.  Or
       better yet, have you actually heard respective analogue and digital
       master tapes made side by side from a single progam source (e.g.,
       same mics, mic preamps, etc.). -- ditto. This is the ONLY way that
       you can make any meaningful comparisons between the technologies.
       Otherwise, there are so many variables (both hidden and out of your
       control) that any other conclusions are meaningless.

My comments:

The use of "ONLY" here is nonsense.  Scientific reasoning is not "sound" --
go back to theory of knowledge ideas.  Scientific reasoning is inductive,
and all inductive arguments are basically hogwash.  Now it is true that
certain arguments are accepted by the scientific community, and others are
not, but that says something about the community, not about the "soundness"
of the arguments.  More to the point, just because scientific research is
accepted only when strict double-blind testing has been done, does not at
all mean that other testing is useless.  It may be that the only way to
convince a scientific research audience is through means such as are
suggested, but "the ONLY way you can make any meaningful comparisons"?  No
way.

"Back off, man.  I'm a scientist."

cheers,

Tim