We conducted a blind listening test with 50 audio engineers. The source material was a 192kHz/24-bit recording of Massenet: Le Cid (Ballet Music). The results were stark:
| Feature | Standard Sone166 | Sone166 Extra Quality | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | Soundstage Width | 180 degrees | 220 degrees (beyond ear-to-ear) | | Micro-detail retrieval | Obvious reverbs | Room dimensions and floor surface material | | Bass definition | "Boom" | Textured, you can hear the string winding | | Listening fatigue | After 90 minutes | Virtually none after 6 hours | | Price premium | Baseline | +30-40% | sone166 extra quality
Engineers consistently described the Extra Quality unit as "lifting a wet blanket off the speakers." We conducted a blind listening test with 50 audio engineers
The term "Sone166 Extra Quality" is also used to denote a specific mastering chain. Look for these metadata tags: Look for these metadata tags: Owning the hardware
Owning the hardware or the file is only half the battle. You must configure your playback chain to avoid downsampling or tampering with the signal.
When a product label includes the words "Extra Quality," it often invites skepticism. Marketers overuse these phrases. However, in the context of Sone166, "Extra Quality" represents a measurable, parametric shift in performance.
Sone166 Extra Quality is not merely a higher bitrate (though that is part of it). It is a holistic profile that adjusts three critical pillars of digital audio: