Is 'What It Sounds Like' All That Matters'?

[Pieoftheday]

[QUOTE=Marco;943292]Why? It's all just harmless discussion (thread drift) - certainly nothing to take too seriously

I often can't help chuckling when blokes bring up the 'handbag and shoe' thing, in reference to their female partners, during hi-fi discussions, as if somehow it was a 'given' that's all women cared about!

Marco [dislikes superficial stereotyping with a passion].[/QUOTE.oops don't know what appned there,!!

[Marco]

Personally I have never had a lady friend who was interested in shoes, handbags, hairstyles or any of that. I've had the opportunity to go out with 'girly' girls many times but always shied away. Not sure why.

And as far as generalisations go, I'd suggest most women regard hi-fi equipment as 'gadgets'.

I think most women are 'into' the stuff you mention. My point was that that isn't likely to be the ONLY thing they're into - if they have a brain and an education...

Del's actually quite girly, in terms of her overall demeanor and the clothes she wears. You'll almost never see her in trousers, and pretty much exclusively wears dresses, in pretty feminine colours, always plaits her hair, so it's curly (naturally long dark brown), etc, which she keeps immaculate, and doesn't really need to wear much make up, other than a bit of lippy [she hates the plastered 'orange' look, which seems fashionable at the moment].

So of course she loves nice clothes, shoes, etc. But if you asked her what she was most 'into' or passionate about [in the same way I am about hi-fi, cars, music, etc) or what she would spend most money on, given the opportunity, handbags or shoes would be pretty low down on the list!! It'd more likely be gardening equipment/furniture, vintage cars, antiques or books

I'd agree with you on the generalisation front, in terms of hi-fi, although as Del loves music, which we often listen to together, she also LOVES big speakers, as she's a bass freak

Marco.

[Marco]

My GF is very accommodating towards my hifi love- she now even has a little setup of her own that I gave her consisting of Rega Ela speakers and a Mistral valve/ss hybrid. Says it made her fall in love with music again after a long period of disinterest.

Respect! Now you see, you've got a partner that you share common interests with, which you enjoy TOGETHER. For me, that's what it's all about. Why on earth would you go out with someone (far less marry them) who hated the things you liked, and that you had little in common with??

Sometimes it seems the only things couples have in common these days, married or not, are the kids they've had together - and that's not enough to maintain a long-term and happy relationship, if otherwise they're polar opposites.

You do read a hell of a lot of adverts for gear elsewhere with the "wife says they have to go" explanation- but maybe that's all it is- a very convenient explanation, that in some cases is not exactly truthful...

I know, and every time I read that it creases me up!

Why would "wife'" be the sole self-appointed decision maker over something that might not even be her property? Worse, if she truly cared for you, she wouldn't try and FORCE you into selling something you love and are passionate about, for what is often a trivial reason.

No, like you say, something is seriously amiss, and it's not just the fact that there are too many subservient little doormats out there, posing as 'men'...

Marco.

[Mike Reed]

I s'pose I should be gratified that my Taiwanese wife often joins me on the sofa, regardless, it seems, of what I'm playing. Her ears are excellent and immediately acknowledged the musical superiority of, say, my E.A.R. 509s over my 135s; took me a few months of swapping ! She had no trouble identifying the same in my 2905s over my ProAc Response Fours. Again. it took me many months. She has no knowledge or history of music and actually prefers quiet.

I'm a bit nonplussed, though, when she sometimes sits there doing her computer coding lessons on her laptop when the room is filled with Fairport or Led Zepp. or whatever. I can listen to music or do things; never both (except for driving, but that's different !). The difference between focus for her part and a few glasses of pinot noir for mine, possibly.

[alphaGT]

My ex wife never cared about shoes or purses, in fact she ran around barefoot for the most part. But she understood that the stereo was my thing! She never tried to tell me what to do with my stereo, except turn it down on occasion. And like Mike’s wife she had a great ear! I always took her with me when I went stereo shopping, if I wasn’t sure if I was hearing something she could be sure, obviously she could hear better than I could. And yes she enjoyed the music, when we returned from a party at a friend’s house she would say, “the music sucked over there!”, her ears spoiled at home. I gave her a pair of 6 inch heels one year for Christmas and she said, “I can’t walk in these!”, to which I replied, “You won’t get far anyway!”. Ah to be young again.

Russell

[alphaGT]

True; things have changed in that respect, but so has much else. It got me wondering what was considered high end in, say, 1970 when I went to college. I bought a 401, SME 12" and V15 to go with my Leak (later Revox) pairing of amp. and tuner plus Tandberg and Revox R2Rs. I don't think I ever considered those as high end at the time, and can't really remember anything that much more esoteric, despite Japanese super-integrateds and stuff coming in.

HiFi was hifi, was affordable, was considered normal by any audiophile wanting a half decent system, and, stretching my rose-tinted memory, there really wasn't much on the market and most was British anyway. Yes, the Swiss TD124 was more expensive than the 401, but certainly not thought of as the high-end stuff is nowadays. The quadraphonic era of 1973 to 1976 approx. did usher in stuff costing well over a grand (Marantz oscilloscope receiver, e.g.) plus the expensive add-ons. At about that time, Japanese stuff was pretty well established in model ranges (Pioneer, e.g.) which could stretch the wallet a bit, but high end? Nope.

I recall the 70’s quite well, when I too assembled my first stereo. A 25 watt Technics receiver, AKL speakers (junk), and a nice ADC turntable. Back then, the High End was old guys who pulled the tube amps out of an old console to drive a pair of Klipsch horns.

It seems to me that the high end as we know it began with the Nakamichi amps and preamps. SAE was there, many names popping up, but I do recall the Nakamichi PA7 was it? Being the first I ever saw. Then Threshold popped up, the modern high end exploded onto the scene. Now, maybe they existed before my time? But those are the first brands I remember that were “cost no object”, offerings. Of course that’s not true, I’m sure they worked to a price point, but you catch my meaning. And I’m also sure it looked somewhat different from across the pond than it did in the states?

Russell

[Macca]

In these cases the women are not enthusiasts, they just enjoy music. So they can give an unencumbered opinion. You get too deep into thjs hobby and you can end up not being able to see the wood for the trees.

[alphaGT]

In these cases the women are not enthusiasts, they just enjoy music. So they can give an unencumbered opinion. You get too deep into thjs hobby and you can end up not being able to see the wood for the trees.

Funny, my daughter and her husband have the same dynamic. He’s a stereo nut, but she really enjoys the music. She would rather let him sweat out the details, as long as they have a nice system in the house.

Russell

[Mike Reed]

I recall the 70’s, when I too assembled my first stereo.

It seems to me that the high end as we know it began with the Nakamichi amps and preamps. ......... and I’m also sure it looked somewhat different from across the pond than it did in the states?

Russell

You say 'I too', but I'd been going for 6 years by 1970. My eureka moment was when my friend and I went over in 1964/5 to buy a Jason valved integrated in a Maida Vale flat. The chap put the 'Grand March' from 'Aida' on his t/t (with Ortofon arm, I remember), playing through Wharfedale W3 (their biggest) speakers. We were both gobsmacked.

I think the American stuff (ARC, Krell, etc.) might have been at the forefront of so-called 'high-end'. Having said that, the Revox amp., tuner and A77 I had cost a pretty penny; looked pretty, too !

'High-end' long ago become part of the hifi lexicon, but I wonder (a) when it was coined and by whom, and (b) which products initiated this ostensibly sound valuing system. Was it simply based upon a price threshold or actual performance; or both?

[Barry]

Not sure who actually coined the phrase "high end", but it used to mean the better, and more expensive, of the high fidelity gear available. It is said that Mark Levinson exemplified the 'high end' in offering "cost no object" products.