View Full Version : What is your reason for hi-fi?
Rare Bird
13-02-2010, 00:30
I had a feeling this topic came up before but could'nt find anything.
I know lots of people buy things for different reasons. I don't buy new hifi, nor to sit down & painfully scrutinise throwing heaps & heaps of money at in the hope i can get blood from a stone.i don't do that nor do i have the desire to recreate a live performance in my living room, i'm neither intrested in that.
My heart has always been with vintage (60s/70s), vintage sound, asthetic design/build quality.Modern hifi doesnt give me the joy i get from old gear.
Yes my casual listerning is all done through lossless music files but i no way called this my main stereo listerning even though i spend more time with it.
So you know it's the whole vintage theme for me.well you may all call it vintage but i actually live my life in the times back then so it's all upto date :lol:
Ali Tait
13-02-2010, 00:57
For me,music pure and simple.The kit is secondary.I have what I have because it gets me emotionally closer to the music.A friend put it very well-A hi-fi will let you stand outside the music,listenng in.A great hi-fi will put you inside the music,make you a part of it.That's what it's all about for me.
The Vinyl Adventure
13-02-2010, 01:16
I chuffed on about this in another thread, it's about the music and the kit for me, I like my music sounding good, I like owning nice things... I also like having a hobby to ocupy my huge brain! :)
For me,music pure and simple.The kit is secondary.I have what I have because it gets me emotionally closer to the music.A friend put it very well-A hi-fi will let you stand outside the music,listenng in.A great hi-fi will put you inside the music,make you a part of it.That's what it's all about for me.
Yes agree sums it up for me too
Haselsh1
13-02-2010, 08:37
I love and adore certain types of music. My first passion would be Prog Rock and to that end, I want my music to sound a certain way. If I had no preference I would buy a JVC music centre but I have to listen a certain way and therefore for me, it has to be Hi-Fi. I guess if the truth is admitted to I am a bit obsessive about fine detail and that is why I prefer vinyl and valves.
jandl100
13-02-2010, 09:16
I chuffed on about this in another thread, it's about the music and the kit for me, I like my music sounding good, I like owning nice things... I also like having a hobby to ocupy my huge brain! :)
Me, too. ... although I'm not so sure about the large brain in my case! :eyebrows:
I wouldn't be interested in hifi if it wasn't for the music, but I do enjoy playing with different kit and trying different things. The arrival of a new box is still a thing of excitement for me.
I know, I'm a sad case :mental: (but happy). :)
For me,music pure and simple.The kit is secondary.I have what I have because it gets me emotionally closer to the music.A friend put it very well-A hi-fi will let you stand outside the music,listenng in.A great hi-fi will put you inside the music,make you a part of it.That's what it's all about for me.Yes agree sums it up for me too
+1
I'm into hifi because I'm trying desperately to find the kit which will provide me with the sound I enjoyed when I grew up (before -say- 16) : I never really listen to recorded stuff before this age, only live, not amplified music.
Mike Reed
13-02-2010, 10:41
Whereas I can enjoy my transistor radio whilst listening to my cereal (!?), when I have a session I expect, and need, to totally immerse myself; often to the point of halucinatory images and colours, esp. after a glass or three.
I therefore need a very big sound (not loud, necessarily) which is very dynamic regardless of material. There should be inky backgrounds, apart from vinyl noise. However, no hardening of string tone or other negative artifacts should be apparent.
I guess I look for control, speed, a large dynamic range and a wide soundstage in my kit. Pity valve bass doesn't plumb the depths in the same way as solid state, but what you lose on the swings........
For me, it's very simple: I enjoy my favourite music sounding as 'real' (to my ears) as possible! :)
When my system (to me) all but successfully replicates the sound of real instruments and voices, it is *this* effect which puts a big smile on my face - and for me that musical 'realism' is only available from the very best hi-fi systems. This is precisely why most of us here strive to 'go the extra mile' with audio, as that extra 5 or 10%, sonically, is often the difference which separates a merely good system from a great one, and thus one that succeeds in reproducing 'real' music rather than a poor 'second-class citizen' of such....
It is also precisely why we are members of an specialist audio forum such as this, and what separates us from 'Joe Bloggs' who's quite happy listening to his tunes on an iPod or a micro system from Tesco!
The Lockwoods, with their 15" Tannoy drivers in huge cabinets, help in respect of creating the 'realism' I strive for, as indeed Shuggie related during the discussion after his recent visit, chez-moi:
One highlight was playing my Decca SXL LP (1959, Ansermet, Speakers Corner reissue) of Adam's Giselle, which really showed off the amount of air that Marco's Tannoys can shift. There's quite a bit of bass drum banging in that recording, and it's clear that for natural dynamics, there is no real substitute for speaker cones with sheer surface area!
Quite - and incidentally, the above was played on a vinyl recording from 1965, via the Techy ;)
When the drums kicked in during crescendos it sounded and indeed 'felt' scarily like having the orchestra right there in the room (I've been to enough classical concerts in my time to know exactly what this effect is like), as the room (and indeed our chest cavities) shook with the palpable motive force created by the Tannoys shifting huge amounts of air - that was a truly grin-inducing experience, and it can *only* happen when using speakers with the largest of drive units... Sheer surface cone area rules, chaps! :eyebrows:
Similarly, Del and I went to a recent Rammstein concert at the M.E.N Arena in Manchester, and we were sat in one of the upper tiers overlooking the stage below. It was a fantastic spectacle, as these guys really know how to put on a show, but the sound was so loud and had such physical intensity, that even being so high up, the bass caused the bottom of my jeans to flap and the structure of the stand to shake!!
When we got home, I couldn't wait to play the same tracks from their new album 'Liebe ist für alle da' on my system at home and try to replicate that trouser-flapping experience and sheer sense of 'physicality' we had just enjoyed at the M.E.N....
Well, of course, it was never going to be exactly the same! *But* I still managed to create a very believable snap-shot of the physical, indeed visceral, musical intensity of the live concert we had just experienced, so it was satisfying that my system suceeded to deliver the goods in precisely the right way :eek: :cool:
Having a system which simply sounds adequate or 'inoffensive' playing unchallenging 'background music' just isn't for me!
It is creating that perceived musical 'realism', and thus emotional connection with the performance, whether it's balls-out rock music or the spine-tingling intimacy of a small-scale jazz ensemble, or similar acoustic-based performance, that for me personally is what having a top-notch hi-fi system is all about.....
Marco.
electric beach
13-02-2010, 12:38
I want to be moved by the musicianship of an artist playing, the dynamics, emphasis and shading that carry their passion and ability. A high fidelity recreation gives me access to the subtleties of their performance that imparts this.
The illusion of a real instrument in a believable acoustic is not essential to this as I've been entranced by a performance on a car radio, but the connection is magnified by the level of detail, tonal balance, note decay - all the things we say to describe the suspension of disbelief.
It's a very good question, actually.
I think it's mostly the blue LEDs.
Hi Steve,
I want to be moved by the musicianship of an artist playing, the dynamics, emphasis and shading that carry their passion and ability. A high fidelity recreation gives me access to the subtleties of their performance that imparts this.
The illusion of a real instrument in a believable acoustic is not essential to this as I've been entranced by a performance on a car radio, but the connection is magnified by the level of detail, tonal balance, note decay - all the things we say to describe the suspension of disbelief.
Great post! I totally agree with your sentiments - apart from the bit in bold, which for me is absolutely essential.
I want all of which you describe above, and indeed consider that my system delivers it, but I must be able to suspend disbelief to the extent that I genuinely feel I'm listening to 'real' voices and instruments playing in front of me in a believable musical performance. This takes a system which majors on both scale and subtlety, delivering both, or either, when the music demands.
For me, it's about replicating as close as possible what's actually heard with live music, whether it's the Rammstein rock concert I referred to earlier, or the sassy sound of a busker playing a saxophone in a London underground station...
I want my system to successfully capture the sheer vibrancy, dynamics and 'texture' of the real thing - only then will I be able to suspend disbelief in the way you describe above, and truly achieve that all-important emotional connection with my favourite music.
It is precisely why I own the type of system I do - and for me this experience cannot be genuinely achieved with music heard on a ghetto-blaster or similar low-fi audio device; therefore unlike you, I've never been "entranced by a performance on a car radio". Sure I can enjoy music heard that way, and indeed do almost every day, but only when listening to music on my high-fidelity (those are the key words here) high-resolution system at home, can I truly succeed in suspending the disbelief you describe.... :)
Marco.
Mike Reed
13-02-2010, 16:59
It's a very good question, actually.
I think it's mostly the blue LEDs.
Very funny; appeals to my infantile sense of humour.
Unlike MARCO (and I would have thought many others), I haven't a clue what a live performance is like; nor do I care; I haven't attended a concert of any type of music for at least a generation.
Is my perception of music generally or instruments individually vastly different to others? I think not.
One can listen to music through any medium, and enjoy it. What you get with a good hifi system is excitement, in all its forms. Those of a genuinely musical disposition can derive an intense involvement from a well sorted system that is denied by many humbler reproducers of music.
Am investigating the properties of various Italian wines at the moment, but that's well off-topic.
Am investigating the properties of various Italian wines at the moment, but that's well off-topic.
Do tell what your 'investigations' reveal after said properties have been duly investigated ;)
I may 'beast into' a rather nice Brunello myself later this evening with some local Welsh lamb cutlets....
Marco.
My reason for HiFi?
I was born to it!!!!!! Into the music and the reproduction gear ever since I could toddle.
I'm no longer in this sadly dying industry, so I indulge myself when able with vintage gear that still works well IMO.
As for the music, I can listen to stuff I know well on anything, but if I really want to know what it's about, I'll listen on a reasonable stereo...
Very funny; appeals to my infantile sense of humour.
I started writing something serious, but it sounded really pretentious so i went for the blue LEDs.
I'm also not very familiar with live sound (apart from vocal/choral stuff) and my memory of rock concerts is mainly that they made my ears hurt!
Ali Tait
13-02-2010, 17:36
I don't think it's really about recreating the live event in your room,which isn't really possible anyway,it's about making an emotional connection,getting lost inside the music.At least it is for me.
Hi Ali,
I don't think it's really about recreating the live event in your room,which isn't really possible anyway...
Yep, but you can create a pretty reasonable facsimile of it (as I described earlier) with the right room and system - and of course with no annoying neighbours in the vicinity! :eyebrows: ;)
Marco.
Ali Tait
13-02-2010, 18:20
Yebbut it's not just about that for me,and I didn't mean just volume-wise,I meant the emotional connection to the music.That's what I'm looking for.
twelvebears
13-02-2010, 18:21
Personally I blame (or should that be thank?) my parents.
Loved them dearly but DEAR GOD THE MUSIC AND THE SYSTEM WAS AWFUL!!
I just remember thinking, 'This music malarky seems very popular. Surely there must be more to it than the shit I'm subjected to?'
That, combined with a need to know 'how stuff works' and a hi-fi repair shop over the road, did the rest.
Personally I just LOVE music, and enjoy a bloody good tune played on anything, even the crappiest car stereo. BUT, and this the key bit, the enjoyment just gets better and better with the quality of the reproduction.
I guess it just makes me feel I'm a bit closer to the same feeling to the people who originally put the recordings together, or were stood in the front row at the concert.
Yebbut it's not just about that for me,and I didn't mean just volume-wise,I meant the emotional connection to the music.That's what I'm looking for.
Yebbut, yebbut, did you miss the last paragraph in an earlier post where I mentioned precisely that (and I'm not talking here just about 'volume'):
It is creating that perceived musical 'realism', and thus emotional connection with the performance, whether it's balls-out rock music or the spine-tingling intimacy of a small-scale jazz ensemble, or similar acoustic-based performance, that for me personally is what having a top-notch hi-fi system is all about.....
And also here:
I want my system to successfully capture the sheer vibrancy, dynamics and 'texture' of the real thing - only then will I be able to suspend disbelief in the way you describe above, and truly achieve that all-important emotional connection with my favourite music.
You can have both 'realism' and 'emotional connection', you know! In fact, I'd say that successfully achieving the former almost guarantees the latter ;)
Marco.
Yebbut, maybebbut, I dunno.... :scratch:
Marco.
In any case, emotion is all that counts in hifi : in that we all agree. The fact that we take different paths to reach it is less important, imho... ;)
Oui, c'est vraiment la vérité!
Marco.
Ali Tait
13-02-2010, 19:59
Yebbut I know the headbanging levels you like to listen at!
Hehehe......
Aye, but only with the right type of music ;)
I guess the more serious point I was making is that sometimes people strive for some romantic notion of achieving an 'emotional connection' and forget all about how real music is supposed to sound!!
Marco.
Mike Reed
13-02-2010, 21:24
Yebbut, maybebbut, I dunno.... :scratch:
Marco.
Argumentative, indecisive lot!
Mike Reed
13-02-2010, 21:34
Do tell what your 'investigations' reveal after said properties have been duly investigated ;)
I may 'beast into' a rather nice Brunello myself later this evening with some local Welsh lamb cutlets....
Marco.
Unfortunately investigations require either notes or memory; both of these tend to go awry with further investigation; catch 22?
Lucky bugger; there used to be (and may well still be) some good butchers in Wrecsam (Whoops ! Wrexham, I mean). Or are you a DIY man?
Not a lot of Welsh lamb around here, I'm afraid (nor butchers, either!)
I really didn't want to go off topic.............!
Rare Bird
13-02-2010, 22:36
God i'm so alone
As you should know by now, Mike, thread drift is an AOS tradition :)
What were the Italian wines you were trying then?
Marco.
Mike Reed
14-02-2010, 08:58
What were the Italian wines you were trying then?
Marco.
Google Giordano Wines (sorry, don't know how to link yet). Have been having them delivered for yonks; the food/wine/gift packages are interesting initially, too. Unfortunately the alcohol content has risen a little over the years, but so has that of every other country's wines.
Everything over 13 1/2 percent is a fortified wine in my book, and tastes it!
At which point does thread drift become thread abandonment............ apologies to all, including 'Only The Lonely' (Big A).
jandl100
14-02-2010, 09:59
Let's see if I can divert the thread back from the binge drinkers :drunk: ....
In any case, emotion is all that counts in hifi : in that we all agree.)
Hmmm ... yeah .... well .... I'm not sure that I do entirely agree with that. :scratch:
Unless you accept a wide definition of emotion - i.e. any subjective response, which seems a bit wishy-washy, really.
I've sure been to some live concerts, and have heard many recordings, where the emotion generated in me was boredom! :lol:
Amongst the fairly wide range of music I enjoy I'd include complex fugues by the likes of Bach and Shostakovich .... now you don't generally have an 'air guitar' or 'air conductor' emotional reponse to that but an intellectual one, where it's the almost mathematical rigour of the music entrances and mesmerises.
Just saying you want 'emotion' from your hifi doesn't seem to take you very far, imo. I think you need to be more specific. :)
Just saying you want 'emotion' from your hifi doesn't seem to take you very far, imo. I think you need to be more specific. :)
You need an intellectual definition to "take it far" ? :lol:
So be it. To get to "emotion" you need to connect the music heard to earlier memories. Some people don't need high-fidelity for that. Others do.
What do you think of this ? ;)
You need an intellectual definition to "take it far" ? :lol:
So be it. To get to "emotion" you need to connect the music heard to earlier memories. Some people don't need high-fidelity for that. Others do.
What do you think of this ? ;)
The other day I was playing Eric-Clapton's Money & Cigarettes, a record I bought back in 83 or 84 when I had to listen on my mum's Saisho music centre (with Ruby stylus!) - I think I remember how that used to sound. Now it sounds so fantastically better it is unreal - that for me is the whole point of hi-fi and the money and effort involved. Otherwise I would have kept the Saisho... You can't be 'into' music and have a rubbish replay system. it's a non sequitor in my book.
Hi Mike,
Google Giordano Wines (sorry, don't know how to link yet). Have been having them delivered for yonks; the food/wine/gift packages are interesting initially, too.
I know Giordano very well - nice stuff. My uncle used to know the owner of the company (and vineyards), as he lived not far from where my family come from in Tuscany ;)
A few years ago I could've got you a few cases for almost bugger all!
Marco.
jandl100
14-02-2010, 11:15
You can't be 'into' music and have a rubbish replay system. it's a non sequitor in my book.
.... and yet most music lovers seem to manage it! - including many professional musicians. :doh:
It's one of life's mysteries as far as I am concerned. :scratch:
.... and yet most music lovers seem to manage it! - including many professional musicians. :doh:
It's one of life's mysteries as far as I am concerned. :scratch:
Especially when you think that for £200 you could get a TT amp and 'speakers second hand that, if carefully considered, would sound fantastic for the money- what I mean is - you don't need to be wealthy to have decent replay. There's NO EXCUSE;)
.... and yet most music lovers seem to manage it! - including many professional musicians. :doh:
It's one of life's mysteries as far as I am concerned. :scratch:
It baffles me too. Many of my musical 'epiphany' moments have been via cheap transistor radios or bog-standard stereos.
I think the very best music (of any genre) transcends the system it's played on.
So, why hifi? Because, in my case, it helps me listen to complex music that might lose something in translation via more basic equipment. Maybe professional musicians can do without that help.
Mike Reed
14-02-2010, 14:09
Let's see if I can divert the thread back from the binge drinkers :drunk: ....
...........where it's the almost mathematical rigour of the music entrances and mesmerises.
Just saying you want 'emotion' from your hifi doesn't seem to take you very far, imo. I think you need to be more specific. :)
Bach has always appealed to the mathematical mind, but I'm not sure a quadratic equation is required to delineate emotion !!!!!
I wonder how long it'll be before somebody creates a website called E- Motion (but I'm sure they already have).
What is the reason for hi-fi? Well, the simple answer is to make the most of the music software that you have.
In some ways this thread parallels a thread that I started:
http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=4835&highlight=Fidelity+what%3F+expensive.
Having posed this question, there has been some carefully thought out and worded responses, particularly those of Chris (TGW), Ralph (REM) and Martin (Macca). To my embarrassment, I realise that I have yet to reply. I’ll use this thread to both respond to Andre's question as well as reply to some of the posts on my thread.
For me and I imagine those of us who can attend concerts, especially those that are un-amplified, I want my audio system to provide a believable facsimile of such concerts. From the many aspects that a system has to satisfy in order to achieve this ambition i.e. one of realism, I place tonal fidelity and image focus at the top of the list; I cannot stand colouration and like the sound stage to be well defined and fixed. Next I would place a good sense of dynamics and the achievement of realistic dynamic range. Along with this comes the whole issue of ‘pace, rhythm and timing’; depending on what is playing, I can tap my toe, snap my fingers or ever ‘boogie’ around the room. Lastly would come the ability to reproduce deep bass or ‘bat squeak’ treble.
What I don’t want is the sense that anybody is playing in my listening room. I cannot understand those who say “it’s just like (insert artist) was playing in the room”. What I want, and this is a bit difficult to describe, is that beyond a plane, near to the plane of the speakers, the walls of my living room magically disappear and I hear the music and the environment in which it is being played. The thought of hearing the Vienna Philharmonic or the LSO (an orchestra with which I’m most familiar), as if they were all playing in my living room is frankly absurd. I want to ‘hear’ the walls of the acoustic in which the performance occurs, whether this is a simple folk guitarist, sat on a stool in a folk club, or a full-blown orchestra. Again what I don’t want is a sound that is ‘more exciting’ than the original – but unless you attend concerts this is difficult to assess.
For those recordings that are studio recordings, for which there is no obvious reference, I would like to think that I am hearing what the mix-down engineer heard. But I can never know, so have to aspire to a ‘good sound’, whatever that may be.
Finally there are those enthusiasts who rarely, if ever, attend live concerts, or enjoy the performance of those artists of whom they do not, or cannot, hear in concert. For these, I can only assume that the goal here is to provide the emotional response that these artists engender. Unfortunately, this is a purely subjective aspect, and often invokes the indefinable quantities of ‘musical engagement’ and ‘insight’. At times I’m moved to tears of joy or sadness when listening to some music, or the hairs on the back of neck stand on end, from the sheer thrill.
Regards
What I don’t want is the sense that anybody is playing in my listening room. I cannot understand those who say “it’s just like (insert artist) was playing in the room”. What I want, and this is a bit difficult to describe, is that beyond a plane, near to the plane of the speakers, the walls of my living room magically disappear and I hear the music and the environment in which it is being played.
Barry - that is it exactly for me. It's a truly magical experience - like 3 dimensional TV but without the picture to distract from the sound - if you get my drift
Virtual reality audio :)
Once you hear your room size change to something else , you're hooked. Strangely enough , I heard this when I had my starter system and find it quite difficult to do it now I've improved the gear..
Also I don't watch TV so music is on none stop all day I'm home (which is alot lately as I have man-flu!)
Jeremy Marchant
15-02-2010, 00:07
For me,music pure and simple.The kit is secondary.I have what I have because it gets me emotionally closer to the music.A friend put it very well-A hi-fi will let you stand outside the music,listenng in.A great hi-fi will put you inside the music,make you a part of it.That's what it's all about for me.
I agree. My dealer and I have come up with the phrase 'music system' for what you call a 'great hi-fi'. It stops being hi-fi and starts approaching the state of music.
The Grand Wazoo
15-02-2010, 00:31
I don't think I can add to what I said in the Thread that Barry links to except to endorse what Barry says here:
QUOTE: Barry - At times I’m moved to tears of joy or sadness when listening to some music, or the hairs on the back of neck stand on end, from the sheer thrill.
............those hairs on the back of the neck & shivers down the spine moments are why I made the investment in my hi-fi.
I want to recreate the original performance and be there, wherever 'there' might be - either the live event or the performance in the mind of the recording engineer. My hi-fi system is a window to that event and should not get in the way.
The actual demands made on the system in order to achieve the above are considerable and my engineer's mind appreciates the electronics and the ergonomics of the equipment itself. These are two distinct but mutually compatible pursuits for me.
Virtual reality audio :)
Once you hear your room size change to something else , you're hooked. Strangely enough , I heard this when I had my starter system and find it quite difficult to do it now I've improved the gear..
Also I don't watch TV so music is on none stop all day I'm home (which is alot lately as I have man-flu!)
'Virtual reality audio' sums it up exactly! My kit can do it but I've heard it done better. And the effect varies with the recording and with your own state of mind when listening.
In theory any half-competent kit should be able to acheive the effect - it is the room and the 'speaker set up that are the real limiter. 'Speakers need to be a couple of feet out into the room as a minimum and with nothing in between the 'speakers - seating, equipment racks, bookcases or a chimney breast all detract from the effect.
Peter Galbavy
15-02-2010, 16:20
Short answer: "For fun."
While many of you strive to recreate a live performance and get pleasure from both the end result but also the journey to your audio nirvana, for me much of the content of the music I listen to has never seen an analogue stage before hitting the output of the DAC. I get a great thrill from lots of different music, but there is an ineffable shiver that I get when the whole thing just "works".
If you ain't enjoying it, you're doing it wrong.
Haselsh1
15-02-2010, 20:37
I remember my parents Dansette Tempo when I was around five years old and the fact that I was never without music of one kind or another. The first seven inch single I was bought by my mother was 'Shapes of Things' by the Yardbirds. It was inevitable that I would develop a passion for music; in that respect I had no choice but it wasn't until I had a life changing accident that real Hi-Fi took over.
I now find that music through my present sound system sends me into a near hypnotic trance of relaxation and for that I love CD. I love the fact that I can listen for seventy minutes and not have to turn the bloody thing over four times. I love the fact that my room has no real boundary as the stereo effect moves the walls backwards and sideways. I love the fact that there is just so much detail and precision. Most of all, I love the fact that I am transported away from reality.
Steve Toy
15-02-2010, 22:46
The sister thread from when this forum started:
http://www.theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=20
My answer is my opening post although I now realise that all four are possible provided you can live with a certain intensity of experience, which I can and want.
Steve - I agree with you and further suggest that all four properties are vital in a high end, well balanced system. Any deficiency in any of these will lead to disappointment.
Hypnotoad
15-02-2010, 23:51
It seems to be a man thing, how many women are on this forum?
Boys love to tinker with things and when they grow up they love to tinker with more expensive things.
What better to tinker with than a shiny turntable, an amp with lots of buttons, knobs and settings to play with and a myriad of different speakers to try.
Then at the end of it you can have glorious stereophonic sound and collect as many records as you can. It's not harmful to your health, maybe your hearing and you're not staying out late at night.
What's not to like about hifi music at home?
The Grand Wazoo
15-02-2010, 23:56
It seems to be a man thing, how many women are on this forum?
Boys love to tinker with things and when they grow up they love to tinker with more expensive things.
I'd say you were a little shy of the mark there. I think the ladies just aren't interested in the tinkering about or discussing of it - there are just as many females who recognise the value in high quality sound.
Filterlab
17-02-2010, 13:21
What is your reason for hi-fi?
One day back in the late 80s a friend of mine brought his Tannoy speakers round to my place. We hooked them up to my midi system and the sound just blew me away!
Since then it's been a search for really crisp and accurate sound, and that's what I have now (which is nice). :)
Beechwoods
17-02-2010, 19:56
My reason for hi-fi? To get sound off media, best I can :) Primarily tape, but I'm not fussy! I'm also a collector, an 'archiver' of gear and recordings... so sometimes I like gear for it's historic value as much as it's performance. Sometimes, as in Elcaset, there's great performance and great historic interest. Sometimes, as in 8-Track just the latter! But it's all fun!
Steve Toy
18-02-2010, 02:58
What better to tinker with than a shiny turntable, an amp with lots of buttons, knobs and settings to play with ?
Answer: an amp (preamp) with an on-off switch, preferably round the back, a volume control, an input selector and f*ck all else!
My preamp has no on/off switch (it's always left on), an input selector and a nice big volume control. As you say, nothing else is required.
My preamp has no on/off switch (it's always left on), an input selector and a nice big volume control. As you say, nothing else is required.
Surely you need a source, power amp and speakers too?
Surely you need a source, power amp and speakers too?
:)
I'm currently having great fun re-discovering my upstairs system. Last night was a Motown marathon featuring Stevie Wonder, The Temptations and Marvin Gaye.
Most of my listening here is done via Stax headphones, thus bypassing both power amp and speakers. I'm pondering new speakers and am following the Harbeth thread with interest.
One thing strikes me though; the system is connected together with some no-name interconnects I had lying around, is sat on a sideboard, and uses captive mains leads plugged into a Maplins distribution block. And (yet) it sounds wonderful.
Get some Mark Grants! ;)
Marco.
I might just do that, though I've already got a bag load of spare interconnects!
Seriously, I can't distinguish interconnects through headphones, whatever the headphones... :(
Hypnotoad
19-02-2010, 03:22
Seriously, I can't distinguish interconnects through headphones, whatever the headphones... :(
That should tell you something right there!
That should tell you something right there!
What did you say ? Speak louder, please ! :lol:
What do you mean ? :scratch:
Hi Dimitri,
It means he's saying that headphones (and/or the amp they're connected to) aren't always good enough for revealing the often subtle differences interconnects make :)
I would tend to disagree, though.
Marco.
This would be quite easy to test. I might do that one of these long winter evenings and report my findings! (Current i/cs are no-name ones bought from Maplins a few years back.)
Hi Dimitri,
It means he's saying that headphones (and/or the amp they're connected to) aren't always good enough for revealing the often subtle differences interconnects make :)
I would tend to disagree, though.
Marco.
I'm like you Marco : I disagree.
My headphones (studio + ATH-W1000) are *much* better in terms of sheer distortion etc.
No, I think the problem is rather psycho-acoustic : my ear distinguishes more easily subtle differences through room reflections than through direct sound. Or something like that. ;)
jandl100
19-02-2010, 11:06
Seriously, I can't distinguish interconnects through headphones, whatever the headphones... :(
Yep - I've found that too. And I have some really quite nice Stax 'stat phones. Very strange as I percieve significant cable differences thru speakers. :scratch:
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