What quality am I describing?

[Foxx510]

Just wondering what the commonly used technical term(if there is one) and the technical reason for this sound "quality" is. Some speakers, even though they are tonally balanced and sound ok, seem to be one step away from sounding like a real live instrument. It's like some of the detail is blurred, or the edges are missing. Am I describing "detail" here? It's kind of like "listening through fog", if that makes sense.
Which speakers/drivers do this particularly well?
Any opinions welcomed.

Adam

 

[sreten]

Hi,

After describing the tonal balance of a speaker the next thing is
called colouration, the effect the speaker has on various frequencies.

Note that a very unbalanced speaker by default sounds coloured.

There are many causes of the mush depending on the technology.

A pair of Quad 57 electrostatics in good nick sound astonishing in this respect.
Pity they do not do bass and burn holes in the diaphragms above 15W peak.

/sreten.

 

[mashaffer]

Most likely IMO is lack of dynamics and good transient behavior but possibly an imaging problems.

mike

 

[Foxx510]

My best guess is that it's lack of ability to keep up with the really fine transient details. So, dynamics or detail I think I what I'm describing here.

 

[Lsharptec1]

Adam,

You may be referring to a speaker system that does not have correct "time alignment" between the drivers.

Larry

 

[Zarathu]

Sometimes when the crossover is badly implemented and especially when it comes directly in the middle of the critical 300- 3000hz most sensitive human hearing range, the music can sound as a veil is across it.

Bad implementation of passive crossovers, or using a 1st order cross, or other things might do it. It usually causes the vocals to be somewhat unintelligible and other stuff to be fogged.

Unfortunately lots of systems cross there.

My opinion and also that of Rod Elliot of Southwest Audio, AU.

Zarathu