# Why can't modern audio engineering & science deliver big sound in a little speaker package?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-modern-audio-engineering-science-deliver-big-sound-in-a-little-speaker-package/706083>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 1, 2014, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-modern-audio-engineering-science-deliver-big-sound-in-a-little-speaker-package/706083 "2014-12-01T23:35:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\
**Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-modern-audio-engineering-science-deliver-big-sound-in-a-little-speaker-package/706083/41 "2014-12-07T17:29:09Z")

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> [@Squink](#):
>
> That doesn’t mean you can start buying those off-brand cassette tapes; the cheapies that roll off around 12kHz. You’ll still want to hear the 1kHz beat frequency produced when a 15kHz tone interacts with a 14kHz tone:  
> [Beats at hyperphysics](http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/sound/beat.html)  
> [Beat frequency demonstration video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hxQDAmdNWE)

[Here’s a full sweep of frequencies in 1khz increments 12KH](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvkipAlRKq0) is the last tone I hear clearly.

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**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2014, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-modern-audio-engineering-science-deliver-big-sound-in-a-little-speaker-package/706083/42 "2014-12-08T02:38:22Z")

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But could part of it be your equipment? Computer manufacturers don’t spend money on amps and speakers that are better than what the listeners care about hearing. Mine crapped out (emphasis on the crap) around 4000Hz. With not-so-crappy earbuds anything above 8k was just a steady hiss, and that died around 14k.

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**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2014, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-modern-audio-engineering-science-deliver-big-sound-in-a-little-speaker-package/706083/43 "2014-12-08T03:35:47Z")

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> [@astro](#):
>
> [Here’s a full sweep of frequencies in 1khz increments 12KH](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvkipAlRKq0) is the last tone I hear clearly.

The test is busted. There is no content above 12kHz. YouTube cuts out at 16kHz anyway.

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**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2014, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-modern-audio-engineering-science-deliver-big-sound-in-a-little-speaker-package/706083/44 "2014-12-08T12:15:35Z")

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> [@Francis\_Vaughan](#):
>
> The test is busted. There is no content above 12kHz. YouTube cuts out at 16kHz anyway.

And that’s at “high quality” settings. Lower quality might cut the sampling frequency to 22.05 kHz which would cap the reproducible audio at 11.025 kHz.

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**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\
**Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-modern-audio-engineering-science-deliver-big-sound-in-a-little-speaker-package/706083/45 "2014-12-09T02:21:45Z")

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Thanks, you two. I didn’t know those things.

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