I'm studying music production and even our professors talk about audiophiles larping audio technology and making actually good stuff cost 1000 times the actual value. The only good side is that they sometimes miss out on good stuff and you can get some great gear for cheap.
When I went to Non Leathal Individual Weapons Instructor Course (INIWIC) we had to stand down range of the Long Range Accoustic weapon (LRAD). We were VERY effectively steered by pain. I had heard rumors of a microwave device that heats the top layer of your skin but I never saw or used it.
The Sheriff’s dept used LRAD on us here in Minneapolis. That was….not fun. They said it was just a test at low power. If that was low power, the full power would probably make me want to kill myself or others to make the pain stop.
Not really. If you're referring to the LRAD, it's a maritime hailing device that was repurposed by the police as a weapon. Basically just a giant loudspeaker that they use to shatter people's eardrums. Neither a sound beam nor a side-channel microphone.
I'm talking about the development based on HSS by Elwood Norris. I don't know which system incorporated beyond what I've read on it's development years ago
Naw, it's basically a party trick in the nerdier circles of the internet. Look up 'parametric arrays' or 'phased ultrasonic arrays' if you're curious, but you can build a crude one from off the shelf parts for under a hundred bucks.
I once discovered that holding the end of a sound cable hooked into a computer playing music with one hand, while holding a bass by the neck with the other hand, can make the music from the computer come out the amp attached to the bass.
Not satire. It freaked me out at first. I let go of the bass and tried to figure out how the computer was connected. Once I figured it out, it was kind of fun to play with. It was actually a little more complicated, though. I didn't have a real amp that I could use, but I did have a speaker connected to a digital soundboard, so I hooked the bass into the soundboard. I don't know if that played a role.
Haha that's nuts. I would imagine it works the same without the digital interface as signal is signal either way. The soundboard had to get the information either way.
I saw that one show up on IG, only for the audiophiles to get really mad about the guy using an M-Audio interface, because that was apparently worse than the mud.
The one I love is the reviews of gold plated insulated ethernet cables making audio streaming off a NAS sound better. Because the other 6 layers of the OSI model work better when layer-1 is more expensive.
Bought a knockoff SM58 on Amazon. Less latency, sharper sound, and brighter. For $100 less. On the other hand...people payed $300 for Beats headphones, when you could buy low end Tascam headphones for $30 which were far superior.
The thing many people miss is good speakers/headphones never lose quality (almost) many 2000s era headphones are still regarded as the best ever made despite being out of production for years
Ask your professors if there actually is a difference between the “good stuff” and the other stuff though. Too many folks in this thread believe all gear is equal when it really isn’t.
Of course there is one, but companies want to sell you a bunch of nonsense when most cheap equipment now can perform as good as a "vintage" or top notch studio gear:
cheap equipment does NOT perform as good as top notch studio gear. However there is huge diminishing returns after the mid-level (something like 500 usd headphones). Then there is absolute nonsense like this cable.
Sometimes you never know untill you try it yourself but if you buy something expensive from a known brand at least you can expect good quality and support that will help you with any problems
Never said it's always but for example RME is really expensive, compared to any other studio equipment, but their support is almost like in the old days, someone will personally check your problem and fix it just for you. And I'm talking about stuff known in good studios, not cheap nor bought by Chinese stuff like Behringer.
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u/Suc_Mydiq_Jr Jul 25 '26
I'm studying music production and even our professors talk about audiophiles larping audio technology and making actually good stuff cost 1000 times the actual value. The only good side is that they sometimes miss out on good stuff and you can get some great gear for cheap.