I was recently asked how accurate our products are and, in the same day, how precise. At first I thought the two were identical questions until I started thinking about it.
Accuracy is about truth—how closely a system reproduces the original sound. Play a live recording of Coltrane through an accurate system, and you should feel like you’re transported to the jazz club where it all went down. Accurate systems don't embellish; they reveal.
Precision, on the other hand, is about consistency and detail. A precise system locks onto micro-details with surgical sharpness. You’ll hear the delicate decay of a cymbal or the subtle breathiness of a vocalist. But precision can sometimes be misleading. It might focus so intently on a detail that it misses the big picture—like a perfectly sharp photo of a single tree while the rest of the forest goes blurry.
So, which is better? For me, I’ll take accurate over precise. After all, I’m in this for the music, not the sound effects.
