What’s the difference between timbre and tonality?

I find myself sometimes using them interchangeable but then sometimes not. I’ve described a headphone (to myself, I haven’t written a review yet) as having good tonality but bad timbre (the Hifiman Edition XX). The Edition XX seems like a great example to differentiate the two. Big picture it has good tone but on closer inspection everything sounds plasticy.

is tonality more broad strokes and timbre more the subtleties within those strokes?

 

Maybe tonality comes mostly from FR while timbre comes from more subtle aspects including distortion characteristics.

 

I'd guess that timbre is related to distortion. Something similar to 2nd, 3rd, etc., harmonics in amps.

 

Use it in a phrase, like "the timbre of a violin" vs "the tone of a violin". The timbre is what allows you to distinguish one violin from another. It's what makes that particular instrument unique and stand out from the others. The tone is the sound that violin produces. You can play different tones on different violins, you can tell if the tones are played well or played poorly, and you can still tell which instrument is which through timbre.

That's my take on it at any rate.

 

Speaking tone vs timbre on a headphone, tone is mostly the tonal balance, or the balance and linearity in the frequency response. Tone plays a good role in determining the timbre. But timbre needs much more than tone. Aspects like transparency, sustain, decay, microdynamics influence the reproduction of overtones of a musical note, which in turn have an influence on timbre. Some also associate smoothness with natural/analog timbre, which I don’t agree with. For example, on a DAC+Amp combo capable of reproducing convincing timbre, my modded HD800, which is still tonally quite bright, displays much better timbre than my EQd LCDi4, despite the LCDi4 having a more even/linear tonality and a smoother sound. I found this to be true, when I compared the modded 800 to a Hfm Arya too. At least a few of my friends feel the same about the DD vs Planars.

 

This site has an excellent breakdown of tone, timbre and texture for good measure as it applies to music played by instruments: https://www.musical-u.com/learn/music-timbre-texture-tone/

Timbre is the quality of a sound that allows us to differentiate between different sources playing the same notes (piano vs guitar, stringed instruments vs woodwinds, or two different models of guitar for example).

Tonality is the quality and frequency of a sound compared to itself. The example they give is a guitar with the tone control set to the low end then flipped to the high end. The timbre of the guitar remains the same—it’s still identifiably the same guitar—but the tonality has changed even when the same notes as before are played.

Tonality is a factor among many in how we perceive timbre. So they’re related but not synonymous.

The article mentions tone deafness. Those who are tone deaf cannot discern between contrasting frequencies, but can recognize the distinct timbre of different instruments.

So when we discuss the timbre of a headphone, we’re discussing how it sounds compared to other headphones. The HD800’s timbre is brighter than a LCD2’s timbre. When we’re discussing a headphone’s sonic characteristics compared to itself, we’re discussing tonality.

Perhaps a good illustration here is the Andromeda, whose FR changes audibly based on the OI out, and we can compare how the sound of the IEM changes compared to the sound it creates at a different OI. But you won’t confuse an Andromeda at any OI for a HE-6.

 

Don't forget our timbre thread:

https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...or-audio-smart-people-to-discuss-timbre.4105/

 

I really like Stapsy’s post in that thread, especially the discussion of the elements necessary to accurately reproduce the sound of a piano:

 

In audio, I think of "tone" or "tonal balance" just as synonyms for frequency response. Adjectives like warm, bright, dark, etc.

 

Modern Planars with 'nano' diaphragms and Estats both of which have very fast decay somehow felt to exhibit an odd timbre to me. Vintage planars that I've tried like modded RP18 and HP1 didn't have this issue. Don't know whether burst response can be an objective measure of this.

 

Interesting thread, I have a new Phono pre a hybrid transistor/tube and I wondered whether it‘s appeal was due to timbre or tonality. Looks like it is it‘s timbre which is responsible for the fact that I listen to vinyl that much lately. Orchestral music just sounds so right. I now have an inkling why people like Saga or Freya.

 

Timbre = distortion, over and undertones of a sound. Resonance characteristics of the housing also contributes to the timbre.

My Final E5000 and HD650 have great timbre. Though the E5000 is a bit too aggresive with synthesized instruments, due to the upper-mid emphasis and strong dynamics.

Otherwise the timbre is pretty flawless as far as I can detect.

HD650 is smoother and more pleasant, but I don’t think it’s more accurate in timbre than the E5000. It makes everything sound correct and smooth, since this hobby is all about enjoyement, is the reason why the HD650 are so pleasant for most people.