Is “Dedicated Listening” becoming a lost art?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Khorn, Aug 3, 2022.

  1. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    The “wake up in the wee hours listen” on my bedroom system is where I enjoy the propagated streaming playlists. They can be really involving specially when discovering new material or just chilling out.
     
  2. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    I wonder how many listen to music only when they’re forced to? Like when they’re sitting in waiting rooms and the like.
     
  3. Doctor Fine

    Doctor Fine "So Hip It Would Blister Your Brain"

    Your average pervert junky can find three hours per day to devote to shooting up.
    Just sayin...
     
    Khorn likes this.
  4. mkane

    mkane Strictly Analog

    Location:
    Auburn CA
    Not having a job helps seat time.
     
    bever70, Dave and Khorn like this.
  5. Jaxjax67

    Jaxjax67 Samantha Fish @ small venue

    Location:
    Toledo Wa
    Same..
    Of course I do casual listening too with most anything including work, but when its serious music time for my soul its sit down dedicated without out disruptions if possible.
     
    Linger63 and Khorn like this.
  6. Static

    Static Forum Resident

    Location:
    NY
    As a musician who has had most of my musical ability torn away by physical issues. I find that I have been able to mostly replace my love of performance with my love of listening. All listening is good to me. In the car ...in the background ...everywhere. But. When I have the choice its all about going into my dedicated 10ft by 12ft music room. Turning on the system. Taking the cover off of the TT. Grabbing a record. Placing it on the TT and wiping it with an Anti Static brush. Turning on the dedicated over head light. Brushing the needle. Watching the arm drop. Grabbing my selected beverage. Lowering the lights to almost darkness. Then sitting in the "sweet spot" for about 2 hrs a day. I would rather do this than just about anything (other than performing myself). Just saying.
     
    GyroSE, popol_vuh, mreeter and 8 others like this.
  7. merlperl

    merlperl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Omaha, NE
    Not sure why anyone who does not spend as much time as possible listening to music with rapt attention would frequent these forums!?

    You would assume if you have a passion for music and it’s recording/ reproduction, then you would find SOME time to do so…
     
    acefactory, bever70, Dave and 5 others like this.
  8. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    Thanks for sharing. Your experience must hit home to many here.
     
    Dave likes this.
  9. Static

    Static Forum Resident

    Location:
    NY
    My daughter loves music. I bought her a turntable when she was 7 yrs old and a set of powered speakers when she was 5. She has always been a Beatles fan. Not because of me but because I used to sing the songs to her when she was a baby. Every night she plays a record before she goes to bed. My other daughter uses her media player and loves Norah Jones. My other daughter now wants a turntable and she loves Trolls movies and the music in the movies. LOL. Why do I say this? All of them know I love music and appreciate all kinds. They see my music room with my system and musical instruments hanging on the wall. Various album covers. It peaks their interest the older they get. Soon they will be able to explore the extensive cd tape and record library without me breaking a nervous sweat. LOL. Why do I say all this? Because. The reason I love music and stereo systems is because of my Uncle. He had the coolest set up when I was young. Ultimately it is up to us as parents and relatives to pass along our passion. Not to force them to listen and get into it.. but to show them how cool and fun it is. There is nothing better to me than sitting with the 3 of them and listening to the new Trolls vinyl-which happens every once in a while. LOL.
     
    acefactory, Dave, doctor fuse and 2 others like this.
  10. Dave Mac

    Dave Mac Retired Sophisticated Gentleman Of Leisure

    My listening habits have been a mostly solitary pursuit for many years and were born out of a desire for "me" time without the obligations of socializing. I managed record stores for several years where contrary to popular belief it was actual work and you couldn't just listen to whatever you wanted whenever you wanted. So when I got home (and if our "party house" was at low ebb) I could sometimes put something on and wind down without too many distractions. Later on in more amenable living quarters I could embrace my listening more fully and that has continued to this day.

    Retired now I live alone and have The Man Cave with 40 years worth of records and accumulated high quality audiophilia with my La-Z-Boy parked in the sweet spot, and I can put something on, dim the lights, and not so much seriously concentrate as let the combined and/or sometimes different aspects and parts of the music wash over me and take me . . . somewhere else. Not being a musician I am constantly amazed at the quality of what an individual or a group dynamic can create.

    And a nice pour of a high quality Whiskey doesn't hurt. :righton:

    I don't have music on my phone -- it's a phone! -- I've never had an Ipad or ear buds or even a Walkman. My listening has for the most part been at home, personal and reasonably private. And I wouldn't have it any other way. I could feel sorry for the newer generations and what technology has wrought for and to them but why bother? It's their world now but I still have mine.

    Dave Mac
     
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2022
    acefactory, mrz80, Gramps Tom and 4 others like this.
  11. rockin_since_58

    rockin_since_58 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Simi Valley, CA
    You hit the nail on the head!
     
  12. MonkeyMan

    MonkeyMan A man who dreams he is a butterfly?

    I think it's getting rarer and rarer. I even catch myself once in a while screwing around with my phone.

     
    Khorn likes this.
  13. Sckott

    Sckott Hand Tighten Only.

    Location:
    South Plymouth, Ma
    I used to feel like this.

    Dedicated listening comes with listening to LPs. More people are buying LP records than ever before. Streaming is also up.

    I say, music is more important, more expensive, and more convenient than ever before.
     
    Dave, Khorn and Static like this.
  14. MattHooper

    MattHooper Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    Like some have said it depends on what you mean by "dedicated."

    Personally, I've never been attracted to the whole "man cave" thing, in terms of building some bunker in the basement that I alone would go down to, sequestered to listen to music or watch movies.

    That's why I'd always had my 2 channel listening system in our living room, the front room of our house. We actually did most of the family living in the back living room, which left that room mostly for me. But the accessibility meant the kids could join any time and I didn't feel at all disconnected from the rest of the house.

    When I got the Home Theater bug as well in 2009, I had the same feelings. I didn't want to build one of those separate rooms or basement home theaters which, in some cases, people end up not using much because it feels isolating. So I re-designed my living room/listening room in to a double-duty system - projection screen, surround speakers, but also still using my 2 channel speakers as a separate system for music listening. It was tough to manage everything I wanted in a relatively small room but in the end I did get everything I wanted. I use the room every day, either for music listening or watching something, and it's very family friendly and not isolating. (Pulling the thick curtains along the room opening suffices to cut off outside noise and light for movie watching).

    Here's a couple shots of the room, one from our front hallway just outside the room, showing my Thiel 2.7 speakers and a bit of the home theater set up:

    [​IMG]

    Just inside the room, when my Joseph Audio Perspective speakers are set up:


    [​IMG]
     
    Dave Mac, Dave, Khorn and 3 others like this.
  15. Uglyversal

    Uglyversal Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney
    I don't the necessary time, I can't listen to much more than a couple of songs when the sound attracts me to the stereo, the rest is always at a distance while doing other stuff.
    I would not use a phone, no way!
     
  16. cdash99

    cdash99 Senior Member

    Location:
    Mass
    The porn industry seems to have this figured out for the poor souls that haven’t yet found their way to SHF.
     
    Khorn likes this.
  17. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    Funny? In action?? It’s absolutely hilarious. I can just picture the looks.

    Not me though. Half the time I’m jumping around in my seat in time with the music! I think they understand (maybe).
     
  18. Bill Hart

    Bill Hart Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin
    Nice looking room, dood! :) I got the projection bug back in the mid-'90s b/c I was traveling a lot and on the occasions when I was home, I didn't want to deal w/ VTA, I wanted to push "On" and be entertained. Two channel audio was there, but separate.
    I did a few dedicated theatres, nothing too garish, and got to a point where I didn't need the theatrical experience for everything I wanted to watch, but boy it was fun when I was doing it. Now, dedicated room for main system, and I guess you could say the vintage system is in a dedicated room as well, but that's where we watch a 4k flat screen. I'm streaming HD 4k or whatever it is labelled, not all of it is latest tech on the film files but that's ok. When I started combining video with audio-- back in the mid-80s, it was a Sony Pro-Feel + hi-end electrostatics, tubes, ribbons and woofer in front, and digital delay/out of phase in the back. There were very few home theatre processors back then. I even experimented w/ 4 channel audio from stereo, with mixed results.
     
    MattHooper, Khorn and doctor fuse like this.
  19. ThinWhiteDuke

    ThinWhiteDuke Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Zealand
    Some of the opinions expressed in this thread ... sigh...
    • I can assure you the younger generations can concentrate for hours and hours on the things they love best, you should see a 7 year old boy play Minecraft (think of Lego's as an architectural computer game)
    • Many younger teens today listen to music through their headphones at bed time for hours as they fall asleep, doing nothing other than listening to music with their full attention
    • Body movements don't always imply inattention ... in fact for most dancers they pay greater attention to the music to remain in time. Big band swing players are a great example of concentration and movement.
    • Anyone who has heard a young man's car stereo boom as they go by rattling your house windows knows that the kids of today still appreciate music and are willing to pay thousands for their gear
    • A lot of '60s bubble gum pop is terribly simple music, and the 3-chords and basic drum beat of early Beatles stuff is quite boringly simple. Once upon a time Beatles songs were given to school children learning to play musical instruments precisely because it was such simple stuff. Thank God Paul learned to play bass! Modern music such as some well known rap artists can be full of intelligent articulate thoughts with complex music produced by classically trained musicians, turning out wonderful stuff. They just wear a lot more jewellery!
    • Most of us do at least some multi-tasking whilst doing so called 'dedicated' listening... e.g. drinking, smoking and reading the covers of what ever we put on, it's rare we do 'absolutely nothing' but sit rigid and listen for 180mins straight. Mainly because one has to get up every-so-often to "flip the rekid" and have a pee :D
    • We sat around and listened and did nothing else when we were younger for hours because there was bugger all else to do
    lastly, with emphasis, young people don't have disposable income which this hobby requires in abundance.
     
    acefactory, kyouki, Dave Mac and 2 others like this.
  20. Lenny99

    Lenny99 The truth sets you free.

    Location:
    Clarksburg WV
    O
    I must agree.
     
    Khorn likes this.
  21. TarnishedEars

    TarnishedEars Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Seattle area
    Yep. I used to spend multiple hours a day doing dedicated listening. Today I'm lucky to get 20 minutes of serious listening in during a day. I'd probably listen more, but between other time commitments and tinnitus making it less fun than it used to be, I just can't listen for as long as I used to anymore.
     
    Khorn and doctor fuse like this.
  22. Musicphil

    Musicphil Forum Resident

    Location:
    West mids uk
    It's taken me nearly 40 years to get a dedicated listening room.
    No other electronics allowed in, pure music from our system.
    I try to spend a couple of hours in the early evening on working days and a few more when it's a day off.
    When I sit in there and put a record on my turntable, it gets my foot tapping and puts a smile on my face! And that's what it's all about for me.
     
  23. slovell

    slovell Retired Mudshark

    Location:
    Chesnee, SC, USA
    Likewise.
     
    Khorn likes this.
  24. shug4476

    shug4476 Nullius In Verba

    Location:
    London
    Yes, in "real life" (i.e. off this forum), I can't name a single other person I know who gives their full, devoted attention to music listening.
     
    Dave Mac and Khorn like this.
  25. P3ESRXD

    P3ESRXD Arnaud, still enjoying...with what I have

    Location:
    Montpellier France
    When I was student, with my future wife, we listened to music on records.
    That was all what we needed to "communicate" with each other.

    Later on when we worked, rare occasions ("no time" as most workers ?) were blessing moments when we listened to our old musics.

    Now I still appreciate when she comes to "listen" to my music which takes me many hours a day.
    For many years I discover so many LPs that I need more and more time-to-listen and even I rediscover CDs for serious listenings.
    This of course is individual.
     
    Lenny99 and Khorn like this.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine