Golden ear


 * For the mushroom, see Tremella aurantialba.

A golden ear is a term in audio circles referring to a person who believes that they possess special talents in hearing. Golden ears claim to be able to discern subtle differences in audio reproduction that typical listeners cannot.

The term has also been lent to titles of ear training CDs, which contain drills which teach the audiophile to identify different frequency boost and cuts, differing compression values, time delays, and reverb times. "The Absolute Sound", a monthly publication of audio products and production techniques, also gives out the 'Golden Ear Award' for products that break new ground in superior sounding audio equipment.

However, repeated double blind tests have exposed most "golden ear phenomena" as myths, with the purported audible differences being strictly preconceptions on the part of the listener. If the listener doesn't know which sound source is his favored-to-win candidate, invariably the differences disappear (or the favorite loses). This has been proven repeatedly in everything from cabling to amplifiers to preamplifiers to turntables and CD players.

See also: Audiophile