What kind of stereo you have is really not important here! (REVISITED)

I thought to bring up an really old thread topic that Steve Hoffman started ("Members, a reminder: What kind of stereo you have is really not important here!") that was done in 2005, 2 years before I joined on. Since that thread is in the archives and can't be revived, I thought I would start a new thread on this.

Being impressed with a lot of the gear that many members have posted here, I am glad to be part of a community that doesn't judge you in what gear you have/don't have. I think the best thing is that everyone has their own preferences and that we all enjoy the one thing we have in common: listening to and enjoying music.

In my case, I was born in the late 70's (will be turning 35 in two days) so I missed out on all the good stuff from that era. But in my age now I do appreciate and love older gear since they not only hold their value quite well, they also sound just as good (with proper care).

Haven't posted all that much here but the main point is, it doesn't matter what equipment you have or to use, the main important thing is to enjoy what you have. I am in awe of some of the gear I have read about and seen on this site. But I am not envious of it because though I lack a dedicated listening room, what I have and what I use and what sounds good to me is what matters the most. And as long as you are enjoying it then that is all that counts. I still have the JBL D38 bookshelf speakers that I bought sometime in the 90's, at Montgomery Wards and it was like $80 for the pair. Still have them and sounds good to this day, though hasn't seen regular use. But I have always cared for my gear so they can last as long as they can.

I don't know if I have filled out my profile completely, but now I think I will go ahead and see about finishing filling it out. I can understand how some people can shy away because of the fear of being condemned for 'non-audiophile' gear. I admit I don't know a lot when it comes to speaker systems and the technical info that goes with it, but I am glad to know to learn new stuff here without feeling like a dunce.

On that note, back to enjoying our tunes!

 

Amen to that.

 

The important thing is enjoying the music! Sometimes the hardware interest gets in the way of the music for me, I have to remind myself to relax into the music.

 

I agree with you 100%. I've had expensive (well, relatively expensive) gear in the past that I can't use under my present living circumstances, and my lo-fi gear doesn't get in the way of my enjoyment of the music. I did my research, bought what I thought was appropriate for my circumstances, and enjoy the hell out of my setup. I don't look back.

 

Absolutely, the point is to enjoy the music. I can enjoy an SACD at home, but I can just as well enjoy the XM radio in the car.

 

That term "Lo-Fi" seems so wrong in many ways.

Ive seen it used mostly on the forum to separate "high priced" stuff from "lower priced stuff".

As long as something sounds relatively good, I would label it as "hi-fi"

Lo-fi seems to be a condescending term to differentiate things that are very pricey, from run of the mill "normal" priced stuff, that many times can still sound great.

To me "Lo-Fi" equates to a bad car stereo or a crap boombox, or table radio, or old phonograph, or really cheap bookshelf stereo and so on.

Mid-fi is another term that has worn out its welcome also.

All those terms do is cause consternation between members. Like ive asked numerous times, where does one end and the next begin?

Nowhere is the answer. They are simply mildly condescending terms that are not descriptive at all as far as actual sound quatlity, but simply build barriers between members and the amount of money they want to spend to obtain great sound.

Highly resolving and "low" resolution is more of the same. Seems the goal is to not truly describe sound quality per se, but to separate forum members as if their equipment is sub-par.

Ive heard so called "highly resolving" systems, as described by their owner, and found that often what one determines to be more resolving is often something completely different. Often some mistake peaked treble or a rising high end, or rolled off upper bass etc, as making something sound "more resolving", when in reality they are simply hearing response abberations that in their mind seem to accenuate certain sounds that they like and gives the apparent feeling that they are hearing more detail.

 

As a new member here I agree with the OP's thoughts. Although to some I seem like a gear obsessed freak, I am much more about enjoying music. And that is what makes me hang out here. This site really seems to be about music, and how to make listening more enjoyable.
Honestly I keep waiting to see the petty squabbles that occur on so many forums; it just doesn't seem to happen here. And for that, I'm thankful.

 

Having a better system than I used to is a wonderful luxury but the reality is I enjoy listening to music through anything.

 

When it comes to discussing the music we love or hate I don't believe that the equipment plays an important roll.

But when discussions of the finer points of the sonics take place the equipmant being used does play a role...IMO

 

Enjoying the music is the goal. Whether by earbuds, AM radio or whatever. However, my best listening experiences and enjoyment have been through high resolution systems. You just hear so much more of the music. All of the little things that the musicians take so much effort to make great music.

IMHO there can be no response to the "What is the best sounding release of the xyz CD/LP?" question if you don't have a system capable of resolving the differences. So if you are consistently looking for the best audiophile releases, you need to have a very good system. But this doesn't mean that one can't thoroughly enjoy music using an inexpensive device.

 

The term "audiophile" has taken on such a negative connotation with the general public and even here to some extents. My defenition is "anyone who strives for the most accurate presentation of recorded music". This can be through choices of media and mastering and also gear. I think here we try to help each other optimize not only the equipment we have but also the dollars we intend to spend.

The comments about lo-fi, mid-fi and hi-fi are some what out of place because they are rarely used to degrade other peoples equipment but usually by the posters themselves to help clarify where they think their own systems fall. Myself, I would classify my Marantz/Rega based system as upper mid-fi or enty level hi-fi. I don't think anyone here would ever or has ever said anything negative about it.

I would ammend this statement only to say that equipment is important to the enjoyment of the music we love because I have had equipment that made the enjoyment almost impossible because it made brickwalled, over compressed CDs worse.

 

Amen

 

It is all about the music.

 

I agree that it's all about the music. I always have tunes playing....whether in the car or at home. Only time I don't is when I'm walking or cycling....just can't handle them earbuds.

 

Its all about the music. Personally, I love to tinker with my toys ( lame pun, sorry) but in the end I just love to listen to music. I've read letters in various publications from people who absolutely would not listen in cars because car audio reproduction wasn't of a high enough standard for them. IMHO you either love music or you don't and you could care less where its coming from if you do.
Regards, Sam

 

Good thread, AVTechMan. But how does your system work when

Speaker Cables
None at this time



I hope you are laughing with me.

 

Imo, I can enjoy music on a lesser system such as my car stereo, but not nearly as much as my home rig. Which is not ultra high end, it's a mix of mid-fi (sources and speakers) and high end (amp, preamp, and cables), but it does the job well. However, there's always room for improvement...

 

Same here. If I'm goin' mobile I can listen to anything but at home I like a little better sound.

 

Ha, indeed. Yeah you're right, a system can't work without cables....I just use the standard 14AWG speaker cables. I know there are tons of expensive brand name cables but hey, as long as the cables do their job then that's all it matters

Home is where the heart is!

 

The only time I feel that the gear is important is when I'm reading a sound quality review that a member has posted. Knowing what kind of speakers they use helps me to understand what they are reporting.

 

Great thread!

That's the spirit, enjoy the music

Over the last few months I decided no to upgrade anything or change this for that anymore. At least for a couple of years. Now I really enjoy the music, whether it's from my crappy MP4, my hi fi (by no means "high end"), etc

 

You just won't ever give this a rest, will you....

 

I enjoy music in almost any situation, kit-wise; for example, at my pal Alan's home (Bose Wave system) and my girlfriend's (iHome iPod systems, the size of large clock radios, scattered around her home).

I still enjoy my (modest) Rega-based system; and sometime miss my $10,000+ Naim setup. I lose no sleep over it, though.