The Complete Guide to High-End Audio

Bad reviews of this book seem to critique it as a science or reference book, which it isn't. I have some of those types of books focused specifically on hifi and acoustics. They're useful but not much fun to read. This book is genuinely enjoyable to read and still educational. I'm no hard core audiophile and don't presume to hear all the "esoteric" nuances that audiophiles seem to hear (or imagine they do). But Harley comes up with real definitions for things like "air", "bloom" and "grainy". And some topics he absolutely nails. For example, for years I've tried to understand how to use Small/Thiel parameters to model an isobaric subwoofer. He answered my questions in one sentence. That's impressive. This is just a fun book. At 600ish pages I'm amazed at how fast I'm absorbing it.

This book is a great introduction and reference to high quality audio (music and home theater acoustic and equipment). As other reviewers note, this book is not without flaws, but the positives outweigh the negatives. I first read it years ago (probably an earlier edition) and now I bought it as a reference as I am upgrading my home theater system. First, you should realize that high end audio is a cottage industry riddled with marketing BS and subjective reviews, rarely based on solid science and engineering. There are a lot of overprices products, some of them flawed. It is not easy sorting through the mess, which is where this book helps. The author explains what high end audio is about, mostly with an emphasis on 2-channel stereo (which is indeed what audiophiles seem to fixate upon the most). There are good sections on home theater and multi-channel playback. Ultimately, however, the focus is on stereo and separate high end components, rather than one-piece receivers and home theater, but most of the principles described in the book apply to those system and can make you a more informed consumer. For a novice, the book explains the roles and useful characteristics of different portions of the audio chain, such as preamplifiers, controllers, amplifiers, speakers, room acoustics, and what to look for. If you are a more advanced reader, the chapters at the end about how to read and interpret measurements are probably worth the price of the book. To answer some of the criticisms of this book: if you really want to get deeply into room acoustics, amplifier and loudspeaker designs, there are better books, e.g. by Floyd Toole or Tomlinson Holman. Acoustics and audio component design are complex engineering fields where new breakthroughs happen occasionally, but myths and outdated practices live long, so it helps if you read more than just this book. Bottom line: this is a nice, well-written book worth reading :)

If you are planning to purchase audio equipment costing thousands of dollars and you are not an expert, you should read this book. There are some very negative reviews posted here. You should understand that there are two schools of thought about audio equipment: one group thinks that all the important information about equipment can be determined by careful electronic measurements; the other group believes that measurements are a factor, but that the most important consideration is how the system sounds to the human ear. Mr. Harley is in the second group. I have the impression that the negative reviewers are in the first. This book has a lot of ideas about how to put together a system that sounds very musical. Choose the ideas you like and ignore those you do not. But you should read the book before you spend the money.

If you are the type of person who has a "critical ear" and is interested in learning about what is the full spectrum of options available in buying and setting-up a high quality audio system, I highly recommend this book. It will prevent you from buying equipment that you may soon become dissatisfied with and in the long run, it will save you a lot of grief as well as money. The author makes a point to emphasize that "high end audio" refers to the quality of the component/system and not the cost. However, like most things in this world, you will find that the two are usually closely related.The body of the book is not overly technical, however it does provide several appendices for those who wish to delve into the theory behind the concepts. It is also quite through and is intended for the reader who wishes to get into some depth on the subject. If your interest is only in a basic overview, I would suggest that you look elsewhere. I have read the book thoroughly and still find myself referring back to it on many occasions. It is by far the best book on this subject that I have been able to locate and should be of value to those interested in home theater as well as two-channel audio.

Harley has encyclopedic, unbiased knowledge of all things audio, most importantly, a passion for music. Everything in the book is predicated on the notion that what we try to achieve through our devotion to high-end audio is musical purity, a representation that brings us as close to the real thing (and as far away from the equipment) as possible. Harley gives no impression that he favors any particular brand or format, nor that he has any other ax to grind apart from the pleasure imparted by good sound.That said, for the budding and experienced gearheads alike, there is copious, well-crafted exposition of the technical minutae governing each aspect of sound reproduction, from the nature of digital and analog signals to their final output from the loudspeakers. After reading the first few chapters on the basics of listening to and buying high-end equipment, many readers may find it most useful to skip around the book and read the chapters or sections that are most appropriate to their present needs or questions. Fortunately, Harley has organized and indexed the book to make its use as a reference guide easy and exceedingly useful.I recommend it highly.