The inverse law of music quality and volume: discuss

[Fortuna]

Has anyone else noticed this phenomenon? The fact that the louder someone else is playing their music the worse it is? Do you have theories on why this might be so, suggestions as to how to invert it, or simply assorted flames to throw at me for producing this idea? Dica, O people of the playground!

[llamamushroom]

I dunno, the 1812 Overture pretty much only sounds good loud...

[Emperor Ing]

By that rule, you can play Bohemian Rhapsody at the tone of a dog whistle and it'd sound incredibly awesomely epically amazing, yet it's not true because Bohemian Rhapsody would still be an abominable discrace upon its genre on par with Soulja Boy. That and people would not be able to hear it at all.

Nevertheless, any song is painful to listen to if the volume is loud enough. However, I disagree with your inverse law. I believe that that up to a certain point, increasing the volume of songs makes songs sound much better, there's just songs that are meant to be played loudly. Of course this varies by genre, Metal fans probably like to turn the amps up, while R&B fans would, at least I would expect them to, usually keep their songs at a low volume.

[Emperor Ing]

Also, shouldn't this go in the Media forum?

[Klose_the_Sith]

A lot of the time, I'd agree with you - at least in terms of how loud people tend to play theirs round these parts. Such people who play loud music are generally filthy derro scum 99% of the time, playing whatever latest travesty they've decided is 'fully hektik'.

On the other hand, I've heard some great examples of blasted music to rebut a nearby filth music wagon, from Alestorm to crazy ass free jazz (I dunno who it was in that car, but they must be AWESOME).


By that rule, you can play Bohemian Rhapsody at the tone of a dog whistle and it'd sound incredibly awesomely epically amazing, yet it's not true because Bohemian Rhapsody would still be an abominable discrace upon its genre on par with Soulja Boy. That and people would not be able to hear it at all.

Someone agrees with me about that song (and Queen in general, maybe) :smallbiggrin:


Nevertheless, any song is painful to listen to if the volume is loud enough, but I disagree, that up to a certain point, increasing the volume of songs makes them sound much better, there's just songs that are meant to be played loudly. Of course this varies by genre, Metal fans probably like to turn the amps up, while R&B fans would, at least I would expect them to, usually keep their songs at a low volume.

It's the exact opposite of that round these waters. I mean, we metalheads turn our music up at times, but more often then not we're listening to it on a reasonable volume with headphones.

RnB fans, on the other hand, always play their terrible and cliched songs repetitively and at an excessive volume, to the extent that it would make any reasonable person cry. Especially when they're in class and using their ipods to play it so that we can all share in on the "music". Sigh.

[Jack Squat]

If it's too loud, you're too old :smallwink:

The "drop a sub in your car and crank the bass until you're demolishing buildings" crowd are annoying, but I take solace in that I can't actually hear their songs, and strangest thing I've seen that's related was a guy in a cigar boat blaring country - but hey, this is the south.

I think the song I hear cranked most of the time is "Peace of Mind" by Boston, so I can't really complain.

[Anuan]

Your law needs revision, sir.

When you play music, there is a direct correlation between volume and quality. When others play music, there is an inverse correlation.

Like the toerag blasting mainstream poppunk so loud at eight this morning that I could hear it as being too loud three stories up and across the street. From his -car.-

[Ravens_cry]

To all the foggies out there, a symphony can be just as load as rock and roll. (http://www.hearnet.com/at_risk/risk_trivia.shtml)
So no, there is no relation, inverse or otherwise. I don't like loud music, but that's just a personal preference.

[Ashery]

In general, the statement that music is worse the louder it gets doesn't hold. Hell, I *wish* it did as then we wouldn't have the whole loudness war ('http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war') issue to deal with.

Sure, individuals can prefer their music at a lower volume, but the trend in the general public is quite the opposite. Even people that hate the whole loudness war issue don't necessarily like their music quiet, they just don't want to completely **** up the quality of the recording in order to accomplish the same thing as turning their volume up a bit further.

And what's with the attacks against other genres of music?


RnB fans, on the other hand, always play their terrible and cliched songs repetitively and at an excessive volume, to the extent that it would make any reasonable person cry.

I mean what the hell?

[Dispozition]

I take neutral ground. Music has a right volume. Too loud and it loses tonal quality and detail, and ruins your hearing, too soft and it loses quality and detail. That's why good headphones are...well, good...They give proper sound balance and detail at reasonable volumes.

And it's never a case of "if it's too loud, you're too old". I recently got a pair of noise reduction ear plug thingies for gigs and band practice. As a drummer, I expect my hearing to die fairly quickly, but I try and keep it intact...I never really play music above about 50%...I still find it fine.

Also, most people who play music too loud on public transport and whatnot are *****, and hence listen to twatish music.

[Ashery]

Except that that 50% rule can't be applied in general as it depends entirely on the system you're using. On one system, 50% could deafen you and on another it could be fairly quiet.

[Jinura]

I agree in that it's not as simple as louder=worse.

An example could be Bohemian Rhapsody, my favorite song, but if the volume is to low, it's kinda meh, whereas other music might sound okay at that volume. But if course if it gets to loud it's just painful

[Emperor Ing]

Someone agrees with me about that song (and Queen in general, maybe) :smallbiggrin:
You have no idea. :smallyuk:



It's the exact opposite of that round these waters. I mean, we metalheads turn our music up at times, but more often then not we're listening to it on a reasonable volume with headphones.

RnB fans, on the other hand, always play their terrible and cliched songs repetitively and at an excessive volume, to the extent that it would make any reasonable person cry. Especially when they're in class and using their ipods to play it so that we can all share in on the "music". Sigh.

Some of the metalheads over here blast their ear buds to the point where even the other metalheads in the room are telling the formerly mentioned metalhead to turn it down. Personally I like my Dragonforce loud, but after many experiences with the aformented metalhead, learned to be respectful indoors.

As for the R&B fans, they do something else here that is 3x more obnoxious. They sing their painful-to-listen-to-at-any-volume and extremely chiche'd songs out loud.

...

even saying it makes my skin crawl.

[Klose_the_Sith]

I mean what the hell?

Overproduced mainstream whitewash corporate oppression media is devouring our precious unborn fetuses?


Some of the metalheads over here blast their ear buds to the point where even the other metalheads in the room are telling the formerly mentioned metalhead to turn it down. Personally I like my Dragonforce loud, but after many experiences with the aformented metalhead, learned to be respectful indoors.

Huh. I guess my metalhead friends are a pretty odd group of metalheads though, we spend more time talking about Cthulhu sodomy then anything else really. We also try to set up LAN's in library lessons (we succeed sometimes too :smallbiggrin:).


As for the R&B fans, they do something else here that is 3x more obnoxious. They sing their painful-to-listen-to-at-any-volume and extremely chiche'd songs out loud.

...

even saying it makes my skin crawl.

Oh yeah, that old routine.

Not RnB, but my girlfriend used to have english with some absolute try-hard gangsta who did this.

In a tertiary (the level you need for university entry) English.

Singing at the top of his voice to lady gaga.

Pretty sure he got kicked out of the class on multiple occasions and has since dropped out, but still. Why do you even show up to class if that's all you're going to do?

[Emperor Ing]

My friends are fellow geeks, most of our recent discussions involved why Ginyu never stole Frieza's body. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142009) Music almost never comes up, and when it does it has to do with video game music. :smalltongue:

As for singing out loud, due to countless incidents involving my less-than-geek peers and singing out loud, i've come to associate singing out loud with them disrespecting me. It's terrible, it really is. Especially when you consider 99% of the time it's one of those songs that sound terrible at any volume.

[Yora]

I agree in that it's not as simple as louder=worse.

An example could be Bohemian Rhapsody, my favorite song, but if the volume is to low, it's kinda meh, whereas other music might sound okay at that volume. But if course if it gets to loud it's just painful
A lot of songs by Queen are only good of played loud! And let's not get into actual Heavy Metal. :smallbiggrin:

I try to keep my music on the bus low enough so others won't hear it over the buses engine. But every other day, there's someone sitting a good deal away from me whose music I can hear over my music. That's definately to loud. :smallbiggrin:

[Emperor Ing]

As I said before, my Power Metal can, and should only be played loudly. http://sillysoft.net/forums/images/smiles/smiley_headbanger.gif

[Heliomance]

If a song is worth playing, it's worth playing loud. The converse is not true.

[Elder Tsofu]

Music that needs to be played at very high volume shouldn't be played at all, or in a (for the purpose) specially built sound-proof room.
It really annoys me when someone decides to draw up the volume at midnight or play it so loud that the porcelain rattle on the table. :smallannoyed:

[Ravens_cry]

If a song is worth playing, it's worth playing loud. The converse is not true.
I like Bachs Ave Maria on classical guitar (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dj2tUGtTjHs). Playing that loud. . .would be missing the point.

[Klose_the_Sith]

Music that needs to be played at very high volume shouldn't be played at all, or in a (for the purpose) specially built sound-proof room.
It really annoys me when someone decides to draw up the volume at midnight or play it so loud that the porcelain rattle on the table. :smallannoyed:

Huh, I can't say I've ever encountered music that made porcelain rattle (although I have seen bass that set off car alarms). Still, midnight really isn't that bad.

Going on an energy drink bender and band practise until 5 AM? That's something you have to apologise to the neighbours over. Like, if-you-don't-then-they'll-call-the-cops sort of have to.

[Mercenary Pen]

I'll go with the 'each piece of music has a correct volume range' camp here. A song should always be played within its appropriate volume range- however, care should be taken to respect your surroundings. If you're in a public library and your music only works properly loud, turn your music off- playing it at an appropriate volume in this case might be worse than not playing it at all, but if you keep the volume up, you are in all likelihood gonna get kicked out.

[Jimp]

If it's too loud, you're too old :smallwink:
That's about it really.

[TSGames]

...Bohemian Rhapsody would still be an abominable discrace upon its genre on par with Soulja Boy.

Sir, these be fightin' words.

[Ravens_cry]

That's about it really.
Or your taste in music and and tolerance for loud sound is different. Yeesh!:smallannoyed:

[Jimp]

Or your taste in music and and tolerance for loud sound is different. Yeesh!:smallannoyed:Get back in the home grandpa :smalltongue:

[The Extinguisher]

I love music really load. I'm respectful of other people, but when I'm able, I turn my music up all the way. It just sounds better to me.

But hey, differn't strokes and all.

[Emperor Ing]

Sir, these be fightin' words.

I don't see a problem with that quote at all, you and I both know it to be true. :smallwink:

[valadil]

This is especially true when music is coming from a moving vehicle.

Actually I've got my own theory about crappy music and high volume. Nothing sounds good from 3 cars away. Nothing sounds good when it's being blasted through your floorboards at 3 AM. Traffic and floor do not make good amplifiers. Whatever sound remains is distorted in a crappy way. The music may actually sound decent at its point of origin though.

[BRC]

Some music sounds better soft. Some music sounds better loud.

However, if your music only sounds good loud enough that people three dorms away can hear it blasting through the walls, you might need to accept listening to it at a lower volume.

Why yes I have personal experience with this, why do you ask?

[Ravens_cry]

Get back in the home grandpa :smalltongue:
I'll teach you to be tolerant of other peoples opinions, you young whipper-snapper! Why, in my day we had too be tolerant uphill both ways in the snow bare foot.:smallwink:

[Dr. Bath]

Music that needs to be played at very high volume shouldn't be played at all, or in a (for the purpose) specially built sound-proof room.
It really annoys me when someone decides to draw up the volume at midnight or play it so loud that the porcelain rattle on the table. :smallannoyed:

But, but, what about noise rock? What about noise rock?! At gigs anyway. Being too loud in public or shared accomodation is pretty awful though.

[Jimp]

I'll teach you to be tolerant of other peoples opinions, you young whipper-snapper! Why, in my day we had too be tolerant uphill both ways in the snow bare foot.:smallwink: Whatever POPS I'm going to go smoke behind the bike sheds :smallcool::smallwink:

[Castaras]

Some songs need to be played as loud as possible. The Chain, by Fleetwood Mac, for instance.

Songs only sound bad at high volumes if the song is inherently bad anyway.

[Don Julio Anejo]

I'm gonna be a spoil sport, but here's a large reason why loud music sounds crappy: most people don't have nice sound systems. Anything played remotely loud will sound like it has pneumonia on $20 computer speakers or pumped up to the limit on an iPod speaker. Anything played on a high-quality system will sound great on any volume. With the difference being, it won't sound great when it's coming from 3 blocks away.

[Dispozition]

But, but, what about noise rock? What about noise rock?! At gigs anyway. Being too loud in public or shared accomodation is pretty awful though.

Noise Rock does not need to be played loud, at all. As I said before, it loses a lot of it's definiton past a certain point, and that point is well below what a lot of people play it at. Even at gigs, while it's loud, it's damagingly so...


I'm gonna be a spoil sport, but here's a large reason why loud music sounds crappy: most people don't have nice sound systems. Anything played remotely loud will sound like it has pneumonia on $20 computer speakers or pumped up to the limit on an iPod speaker. Anything played on a high-quality system will sound great on any volume. With the difference being, it won't sound great when it's coming from 3 blocks away.

This. I'm slowly starting to learn this, and actually putting money into getting good audiophile gear. Now all I need to do is spend $3-400 on a portable amp...

[Klose_the_Sith]

This is especially true when music is coming from a moving vehicle.

Actually I've got my own theory about crappy music and high volume. Nothing sounds good from 3 cars away. Nothing sounds good when it's being blasted through your floorboards at 3 AM. Traffic and floor do not make good amplifiers. Whatever sound remains is distorted in a crappy way. The music may actually sound decent at its point of origin though.

Motorhead always sound good :smallcool:

[RandomNPC]

loud music should only be used as a signal, like when you need a distraction, someone two doors down should turn up some abismally bad music, so you can go do something sneaky(tm)

However there are a few songs that are just bad when quiet, and others bad when loud. then there are just bad songs. I'll stop now before I type a book on the subject.

[Flickerdart]

Once, on a bus, the guy opposite me was blasting the TMNT theme. He is forgiven.

[SDF]

If you aren't playing punk music loud you are missing the point. But, then again the only time I ever blare Simon and Garfunkel is to prove a point.

[Shas aia Toriia]

But, then again the only time I ever blare Simon and Garfunkel is to prove a point.

Yeah! S&G!
The reason crappy music is loud is due to Murphy's law. Simple as that.

[Dispozition]

Once, on a bus, the guy opposite me was blasting the TMNT theme. He is forgiven.

The Captain Planet theme song would also have been fine.

[Krade]

Once, on a bus, the guy opposite me was blasting the TMNT theme. He is forgiven.

When I was walking home one day a PT Cruiser passed me blaring Axel's Theme (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kh3wcEFOG2E&feature=related). He is also forgiven.

[Dispozition]

When I was walking home one day a PT Cruiser passed me blaring Axel's Theme (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kh3wcEFOG2E&feature=related). He is also forgiven.

Oh, Axel-F, you are such a good song.

[Anuan]

Once, on a bus, the guy opposite me was blasting the TMNT theme. He is forgiven.

...The original late-eighties to early-nineties one, right?

>.> TURTLE POWER.

[PersonMan]

For me, I've found that playing music too loud doesn't work because of the speakers, and the people who buy giant speakers or insanely loud sound systems often play the type of music I dislike.