Jump to content
IGNORED

Article: Editorial: What's Wrong With You?


Recommended Posts

2 hours ago, ronfint said:

Jascha Heifetz called it “Hifooey”.

 

For me, the test is, if I could go back in time, would I lust after great records or fancy tubes?

 

1 hour ago, Paul R said:

There an be any question?  Great records! :) 

 

For some people it’s tubes for others it’s tunes and for many it isn’t one or the other.  Either way, who really cares. 

Founder of Audiophile Style | My Audio Systems AudiophileStyleStickerWhite2.0.png AudiophileStyleStickerWhite7.1.4.png

Link to comment

 

The playback qualities

3 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

For some people it’s tubes for others it’s tunes and for many it isn’t one or the other.  Either way, who really cares. 

i think I'd let both pass, I wouldn't be locking myself up in a room in the 60s.

 

Much more fun to be had in other places. Yeah baby.

Link to comment
4 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

For some people it’s tubes for others it’s tunes and for many it isn’t one or the other.  Either way, who really cares. 

 

Nobody should, but if you went back that far in the past, there really wouldn't be any great equipment to use the tubes in, not by today's standards. The nostalgist sound we might long for would probably be very disappointing to us now, especially if it was the best sound available.  Also, no digital music at all. Thus, the only logical thing is to hunt down records and keep 'em until Roy Gandy gets busy in the 1970s. :)

 

 

Anyone who considers protocol unimportant has never dealt with a cat DAC.

Robert A. Heinlein

Link to comment
5 hours ago, Summit said:

I liked the editorial and can certainly get tired of some of the audiophile bashing and comments like audiophiles don't listen to music, they listen to their gear etc. But I suppose that “we” likewise can find some "ugly truth” behind those comments and also some adequate reasons why we maybe should care a little about how “Audiophiles” are categorized and how we are behaving. No smoke without fire so to speak. And Chris original question can be flipped 180 degrees and we could ask: What's wrong with many of us so called Audiophiles?

 

To be clear I’m an audiophile and am not pretending to be Mother Theresa or anything, but still like to know:

 

  • Is it really necessary to purchase two of the latest FOTM, and every year?
  • Why does the big audio shows and its attendant focusing so much on systems that cost more than a house?
  • Why are HIFI magazines so obsessed about reviewing audio gear that cost more than a “normal” working audiophiles can ever buy? And equally important why do audiophiles like to read all those reviewing’s about DACs, AMPs etc that cost more than a new car?
  • Back in the day then I started out Quad and some other (often British) companies made good gear without the bling and fancy boxes, and took pride in it.
  • My main concern is how does the FOTM Audiophile lifestyle equal the goal of sustainable development? All other branches of industry are to some extent trying to “sweep clean in front of their own door”. I have seen very little about that in High End audio. Does for example any reviewer ever point out that this product is more “environment friendly” because it consumes much less energy, can be recycled and are made without any substance on the REACH candidate list and so on?
  • Maybe it’s simple and the bragging right of owning the latest, most admirable audio gear, is very important to many audiophiles and it doesn’t matter in the end if those big speakers won’t sound very good in your small room.

 

 

Happy Easter

 

LOL! I think the answer is pretty easy -  because it is FUN to read about, listen to, look at, talk about things most of us will never buy. Or can afford to buy to be honest, me included! ;)

 

There is always some fun things included everywhere that are affordable. My jaw dropped when TAS had a review of an $800 AT turntable, but I was glad to see it there. It ain’t an AirForce but it is something I might buy sometime if I wanted to... 

 

Best place to find reasonable and reliable reviews of affordable gear? Right here. 

 

Anyone who considers protocol unimportant has never dealt with a cat DAC.

Robert A. Heinlein

Link to comment

actually, car magazines have run articles on Lada,Trabant and Yugo - C&D (car and Drunkard) even put a Yugo on the cover once; I'm not sure if Rod & Truck (R&T) ever did a spc. panel on it tho

 

I do agree that high buck, aspirational cars can often be more interesting to read about.

 

They are also good for development.  When Porsche made the world beating 959 super ca,r they sold a small number to well-heeled enthusiasts, and used the $$ and info garner to further their development of the "regular" cars.  10-20 years later a magazine compared the 959 to stock Porsche and it was equaled -- for a much lower price.

 

Now, do audio co.s do that?  Some, yes.

Link to comment

I am not sure if it is that much different in the USA, but in the UK we a range of magazines that are clearly aimed to appeal to different markets.  If you want a hifi magazine, you could buy "What HIfi", which is likely to feature reviews along the lines of "Best budget earbuds" or "Our favourite speakers under £800", this kind of thing.  If you are more interested in the more esoteric kit, then "Hifi News and Record Review" might be more to your taste.  In fact, you might buy it for the record reviews, irrespective of what kit you might own or aspire to.  Plus there are a range of other magazines, all aiming at their own niche market.

 

It is much the same with car magazines, if you want to read about the high performance or supercars, or just read reviews about more sensible choices to get you to work reliably every day, then one of the available magazines should fit the bill.

 

So what about the UK's Hifi shows?  The Windsor show (now moving so will be the Ascot show) does tend to feature the odd system that costs the same price as a house, but we also have the Bristol show that features many systems at the more affordable end of the scale.  Manufacturers like KEF attend the Bristol show every year, they always take a big room, and they may demo stuff like the Blade and Reference series, but they will always include products like the LS50 in the demonstrations.  I have seen B&W doing similar, and manufacturers doing rolling demos, 2pm to 3 pm the cheaper stand mounts,  3pm to 4pm the more expensive floor standers, this kind of thing.  Maybe some manufacturers are using the expensive kit to tempt folk into the demos, then showing them just how good the affordable kit can be while they are there.  Why not?

 

Then we have the Hifi Wigwan Show.  This is something else entirely.....

 

https://hifiwigwam.com/forum/topic/132773-wam-show-2019-photos/

 

There does seam to be a tendency to drift into certain generalisations regarding audiophiles, audio magazines, hifi shows, hifi manufacturers and so on, but the world seams far more nuanced to me.

 

As a final thought, I quite like going to hifi shows and listening to speakers that cost the price of a house.  I have no intention of buying a pair though. 

Windows 11 PC, Roon, HQPlayer, Focus Fidelity convolutions, iFi Zen Stream, Paul Hynes SR4, Mutec REF10, Mutec MC3+USB, Devialet 1000Pro, KEF Blade.  Plus Pro-Ject Signature 12 TT for playing my 'legacy' vinyl collection. Desktop system; RME ADI-2 DAC fs, Meze Empyrean headphones.

Link to comment

Okay okay I’m sorry to read that my post has been read as I would like to somehow stop people from buying or reading whatever they want. My rant was just a twist, or aimed to be, to the editorial: What's wrong with you? Thou a 180 degree screwball back at “us” audiophile, myself included.

 

I know very well that we have different audio magazines, audio shows etc. for different pockets, and that’s great. My thought is still that the audio industry and most audiophiles are living like we had infinitive resources on planet Earth and no negative impact on the environment. I mean in the year 2019 is this constantly changing of gear for minor improvements in SQ really sustainable? I think not.

 

Of course not all audiophiles are the same and like I said it’s supposed to be a twist but with a bit of a reality check at the same time. I know am not a very good English writer, so maybe what I tried to say didn’t come thru or at least not as it was intended.

Link to comment
23 hours ago, Summit said:

 

I understand that those super expansive gear can be nice to see and read about ones in the while. I also get that some people may be interested in reading and looking at 100 000 USD gear they can never have, over and over again. I personally like to read impressions that focus more on good gear that I can get and which that match good together. It absolutely doesn’t have to be the audio equivalents of Lada or Trabant, more like a better Volvo, Toyota, Hyundai or WW etc.

 

I'd like to see more of that too, but so far in the US no one seems to have made more than a token effort to run an audio magazine along these lines. That says to me there is at least a possibility they found it didn't sell very well when they tried.

One never knows, do one? - Fats Waller

The fairest thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science. - Einstein

Computer, Audirvana -> optical Ethernet to Fitlet3 -> Fibbr Alpha Optical USB -> iFi NEO iDSD DAC -> Apollon Audio 1ET400A Mini (Purifi based) -> Vandersteen 3A Signature.

Link to comment
12 minutes ago, Tin said:

But as things are, my setup costs more than my car, and my watch is broken and I can't be bothered about it.

I love it!

 

It's all about priorities in life. To my family, I am crazy to even look at a speaker cable that isn't sold at Ace Hardware for $10 per roll. However, I think some of them are crazy for paying $600 per round of golf at Pebble Beach. 

Founder of Audiophile Style | My Audio Systems AudiophileStyleStickerWhite2.0.png AudiophileStyleStickerWhite7.1.4.png

Link to comment

it's about the pebbles...

 

re value - I'd think value would relate more to the increment in SQ per $$ (or per unit of DIY hassle, etc.)

 

to get at "better SQ" - I'd recognize that better is really a multi-factorial concept, and different people rate those factors differently - e.g. getting the max. bass extension is not always well correlated with Bass slam", much less "getting the mid-range right" (my fav Brit. Fi term - and they are right...)

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



×
×
  • Create New...