Why do we do it!

[Marco]

I am listening to the music again, and not things like bass to midbass integration, phase response, grain, vocal sibilance, harmonic decays, and all the rest...

Indeed... Anyone who constantly listens in such a 'cerebral' and analytical way, has clearly taken the fun out of listening to music, by obsessing over 'hifi-isms' at the expense of forming an emotional connection with the music.

You have to get your head out of that 'analytical' zone and instead RELAX INTO the music as a whole, without 'intellectualising' [overthinking] the experience and fretting over specific aspects of the sound. Sometimes a way of achieving that is to temporarily abandon using your main (expensive) system, and instead listen to music on something upon which you place less sonic demands.

That's why you can often derive as much pleasure (sometimes more) from listening to music on something so basic as a portable radio, as you do on your main system - and also why after spending time listening on something like that, or indeed anything deemed as being sonically inferior, then return to your main system, you often appreciate how good it really is!

'Absence makes the heart grow fonder', and all that.... Essentially, the exercise can help refocus your priorities. I do that sometimes with my secondary (home cinema) system in the lounge.

It's an approach that does seem to crystallise the fact that listening to music should, above all else, be FUN, and not taking things too seriously, lest you suck the enjoyment out of the whole experience, and turn it into a mundane 'test', rather than one of life's simple but very worthwhile pleasures!

Marco.

[jandl100]

See, I'm the absolute opposite from Jerry (JANDL100) in terms of what HiFi means to me. Jerry please feel to correct me if I'm wrong, but he enjoys the journey & having different perspectives on the music, the excitement of a new take, but it doesn't affect his love of the music.

Exactly and precisely correct, Neil.

[Yorkshireman]

1) Do you find yourself regularly (or constantly) browsing ebay and/or the classifieds sections of forums, 'just in case something interesting pops up'? NO
2) Do you have a Gallery thread here, many pages long, where it's mostly you posting, telling folks about something you've just bought/done to your system? YES
3) Are your posts here and/or elsewhere, about music-related subjects, dwarfed in number by your hi-fi related ones? YES
4) Have you started more threads on forums, outlining some problem or other with your system, as opposed to ones outlining how it's delighting you? NO
5) Overall so far, have you spent *significantly* more on hi-fi equipment and ancillaries than on music, whether in a downloaded, streamed or physical format? NO
6) Is your ratio of 'tinkering to listening' *significantly* biased towards tinkering? NO
7) Do you own more equipment that's currently sitting redundant, as opposed to being used regularly for its designed purpose? NO
8) Does your listening space resemble a hi-fi shop/museum/'workshop' more than simply a comfortable space to relax and enjoy music? NO
9) Do you buy hi-fi equipment under the premise of it being 'easy to move on', if necessary, as opposed enjoying it for as long as possible, regardless? NO
10) Does the cost of the hi-fi equipment/ancillaries you currently own *considerably* outweigh the cost [what you've paid, not current value] of your physical music collection? NO

Questions done

[Pharos]

I think that what we have is two different listening modes, which correlate with different architectures in the brain.

In conversation we are emotionally involved, receptive to all that is being experienced, but we may shift, especially in conversation with someone in business, perhaps a salesman, to analysing his words and body language to ascertain his genuineness and veracity.

The former is by definition emotionally rooted, it is the natural instinct experiencing the world from a naturally integrated survival perspective, but the latter is a very analytical mode, which tries to validate and verify, seeking flaws in the presentation.

For me, often music has its impact when I am not concentrating, but analysing is necessary as a sound engineer or a Hi-Fi perfectionist, and the two are in essence mutually exclusive to a large extent IMO, so all we have to do is control which mode we are using.

[Intenso]

I've reached the conclusion that what I have sought in hifi clearly relates to some unresolved childhood issue of seeking soothing or maybe it was just the drugs!

So, when I bought that 1st system back in the mid 80s the context was that I was 22yrs old and in the middle of a grieving process of having lost my 1st love, smoking heavy amounts of weed and feeling very melancholic. No wonder the system sounded so good LOL...

Anyway, sold it and nothing for a long time ever sounded so good.

Forward the tape, following lots of box swapping. I'm now ancient, married, settled and more together than I ever was and apart from obvious mismatches of gear seem more accepting of my gear and able to listen to the music.

Having said that though, I'm currently in the market for a new set of speakers

[paulf-2007]

Rather than answering, and no I'm not afraid to face the music, it would be interesting to hear a description of everyone's internal algorithms; the directing of energy towards their systems, what they expect to achieve or do with them and how they interact with them to achieve that.

Perhaps a little indulgently;

I have far more money invested in my system than in music, but I think I am very selective with music, and am looking for a very narrow range of (artistic) things within what is available, and from within many genres.

I don't post about music because that is an entirely personal thing related to sensitivity, sensibility, personal disposition, and personality, and being a bit weird I do not share many people's outlooks.

I browse Ebay occasionally, but to contemplate old models which have a pinnacled history of greatness, eg; HF 1300s.

My desire with improved sound quality is to get closer to the original creative act and extract the most I can from it rather than a fascination with what it does as a 'show off performance' as I have seen done by demonstrators at Hi-Fi shows. (abysmal art but vivacious ebullient effusive sounds).

Tweeking or tinkering for me is not an enjoyment, but a desire to optimise any piece of gear, eg., speaker cables to get the best from an amp, and I will modify to improve if I can, especially where corners are cut by manufacturers for cost reasons, eg internal speaker bracing.

Once a system is optimised, I may ask, do I want to go any further, but I am now so happy with what I have I am unlikely to change it.

This is the first time in my life when I have had some spare unused equipment, and I cannot contemplate having more than one system because I think all my resources should go into making one system the best it can be.

I do admit that my lounge is a little like Startrek's control desk.

same here, not much spent on music compared to the kit. I know what I like and am happy to listen to what I have. I do also listen to Spotify regularly, that's a £10/month investment. I know people with thousands of lp's but they rarely listen to more than a few. They have more music than time.

[Tim]

A very interesting thread and great to read the answers to those 10 questions Marco, very well considered I might add.

Very easy for me to answer too, it's a firm NO to all ten, especially the ratio of music cost to equipment and listening to music rather than tinkering.
I reckon Macca can answer the "does my room look a hi-fi shop/museum/workshop" question

Good thread.

[Barry]

I know people with thousands of lp's but they rarely listen to more than a few. They have more music than time.

I've never really understood why people have enormously large music collections, and by large I mean much more than 2,000 titles. I have about 1,000 LPs and over a 1,000 CDs, with some duplications. Not that large a collection compared to some, but even so, I forget what I do have and need to thin it down. Being retired I can play my system for five or more hours a day when I am at home, but there are many titles in my collection that haven't seen a TT for a long time.

The only thing I do like to duplicate is classical works as performed by different conductors and orchestras.

[struth]

I found I enjoyed records more when I had less albums oddly. or is it? anyway I have already reduced my collection by 50%, and still have too many. CD's I have too many too I guess although dont know how many. I gave a pile away a number of years ago to a mate who was going through hard times. set him up with a system too. no loss what a friend gets.

[Tim]

I've never really understood why people have enormously large music collections, and by large I mean much more than 2,000 titles.

For me Barry it's that I've never stopped buying or discovering music since I started over 40 years ago and they mount up. The older I get the wider my love for differing music gets too. However, with a really good music server and Spotify, the rate I buy at has slowed somewhat in the last few years.

I guess too as I enjoy and follow a large number of artists who are still actively touring, recording and releasing music, then it's inevitable it's going to continue.

I don't understand people who have lots of equipment either - you can only listen to one system at a time right?

Suum cuique