What kind of magic is this?

[ericwisgikl]

Hello folks!

Yesterday, surfing the Internet, from a YT channel I follow, which usually uploads good stuff, I found the following video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Stf_PGLVKI

The headline says PRODUCING MUSIC WITHOUT ANNOYING YOU NEIGHBOURS?!?

Basically it's all about a system that integrates speakers in a desk, which at the end isn't that crazy and fancy, but the main claim is that the sound from these speakers almost doesn't interact with the room. It only has low end around the sweet spot, but not near room's boundaries, where pressure zones are.

This is the designer product's website:
http://www.jacobiofficial.com/

So I went on and said mmmm, smells like snake oil. But I don't want to hurry up and I want to share this with you in order to know your opinions. Also it seems to come from an architect and studio designer, so I makes sense that some science is involved around. But as we know, there's so much BS on Internet, so... I read you

Best regards.

Eric

PD.: I hope it's ok posting some YT links and references about real world stuff around there and comercial products. If it's not, let me know and get rid of this post.

[shybird]

I heard about this as well! Very interesting. Would love to hear some expert opinions. I certainly don't have the answers! Lol

Cheers
Trevor

[shybird]

Also apparently each desk is like $30k

[Soundman2020]

I've heard of those things, but "color me skeptical" is my take. Take a look at the stream of comments below that video, and it's interesting that the words "snake" and "oil" seem to occur together VERY frequently there. It's also fascinating how the designer's website has some vague but outrageous claims, yet not a single measurement of any kind to back up the claims. Not even an explanation that makes sense. I wonder why? When asked how it works, the reply he gave is "Good question"... but no answer!

And for 30 grand? Wow! For that price, you can do one hell of a lot of treatment in a room, making it acoustically fantastic, then add some really great high-end speakers too, and still have money left over!

The "comparative listening" tests are completely invalid, of course; Different speakers in different locations and at different angles... Why even bother doing such a test?

Maybe I'm wrong, and that desk actually does what is claimed... but the only real proof would be an set of real acoustic tests done by an INDEPENDENT acoustician (not the guy himself...) in a LOUSY room (not the heavily treated room shown there), showing the acoustic response at the mix position and several other room locations, using a set of conventional speakers in the empty room, at the exact same spots and at the same angles as where the desk will be, then take the speakers out, move the desk in, and repeat the test with no other changes to the room. Publish both sets of tests... not just a couple of doctored graphs...

Strange that he didn't do that, if he is so confidant in his product!

I'm not buying it... either literally or figuratively!

- Stuart -