@noromance I have a SME sitting in storage somewhere, donated to me by a friend when he passed away (it’s being retained in his memory)....but, i don’t use it because i’ve got Daniel Hertz Master Class, which takes my digital files straight back to the genesis... the sound of analog master tape when i want it.
Ah, I see that you’ve been botching up the pristine hires digital studio masters and pressing it on vinyl for xtra audiophile cred.
Nevertheless, could Levinson/Daniel Hertz’s master class software make me a real audiophile? What do you think?
@deep_333 Not sure why you’re making such a big deal explaining what fresh orange juice is. Anyhow, you’ve no turntables listed in your Virtual System, so you can’t be a real audiophile.
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I recently read that you can add 9 years to your life by running 40-50 minutes, 5 times a week. Perhaps we should be skipping the next DAC upgrade and investing in a good pair of running shoes to sustain the useful life of quality audio gear? And postpone the day our widows will rejoice when all our stuff is out of her house, perhaps indefinitely?.
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I'll enjoy this hobby for as long as I'm alive and able to do so. What happens after that is of no concern to me.
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@deep_333 Not sure why you're making such a big deal explaining what fresh orange juice is. Anyhow, you've no turntables listed in your Virtual System, so you can't be a real audiophile.
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It’s funny you don’t hear Porsche, Lamborghini and Ferrari making the same dire claims!
The audiophile hobby only has the manufactures and audio magazines to blame for this demise of our hobby. Have you been to an audio show lately or read a later audio magazine? The last show I attended had new manufacturers making products that cost 4x to 10x more than a competitor of just a few years ago. Same goes for the products that the audio mags promote as the best ever when I have listened to these products and others costing 1/5 as much and preferred the cheaper model. I was comparing a speaker that was going to cost me over $100k and preferred the $23k speaker.
Back in the 90’s and 2000’s when CES/The show were the best, audio products were more reasonable, still expensive but achievable.
Porsche and Lamborghini for example can charge $1M for a car and they will s ll out, and nobody claims Porsche charges too much, except for the people that can’t afford them.
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I go to this mom/pop Thai restaurant. Mom/pop are constantly arguing/fighting the entire time grub’s made and it is cheap. Service is poor (eat a lot and get your ass going seems to be mom/pop’s motto). But, omg, the food’s amazing!! Filet mignon was always a huge fail in comparison. Some barbarian who had no idea of a spice or flavor profile ever in life cooks a chunk of meat and throws salt on it..he claims it’s ’high culture’ thereafter in his red poppy suit & tie, charges an arm and a leg....Fail
Fine Cabarnet?..Fail again.....Some Austin starlight vodka and some freshly squeezed...fresh...fresh...fresh...(Put it on the squeezer right in front of ya fresh) orange juice creates way more euphoria.
The filet mignon crap you got sold as high culture is a big letdown, in reality. Remember that.
(Doko bell is for the patriots, of course, manna from their gods).
In my experience you can’t make someone crave filet mignon and a fine Cabernet when they are happy with Taco Bell and Angry Orchard
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I have the same concerns regarding my library. Legacy can be a fickle mistress.
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For a group of people that love to change cables, change dacs, change fuses, we sure are afraid of change !
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60% of audiophiles are immortal??!
Yes, you see there's this fuse, you know, it's costly but once installed, your lifespan is extended indefinitely. Oh, you also need the cable that comes with it. Also expensive. But just those two things -- fuse and cable. Oh, one more, there's a power conditioner (pricey) but after that, no more dying.
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None of this is news. We are dying off and most of our prized gear and physical media will end up in landfills or museums. I feel for the younger ones that are feeling lonely; hell I feel lonely; I know perhaps one audiophile in my bubble of the world. I’ve tried proselytizing but I guess I’m no good at it. Maybe you guys are better at it. In my experience you can’t make someone crave filet mignon and a fine Cabernet when they are happy with Taco Bell and Angry Orchard
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60% of audiophiles are immortal??!
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Why should audiophiles care about whether the future generations care about this hobby? I have no skin in the game in the sense I'm not generating income from this, and beside the people who know about my obsession with the hobby think I'm crazy. Music is simply background noise for help in setting mood while involved in other activities for vast majority. Sitting in the dark listening to music played over a high end system for hours without distraction isn't a consideration in the hectic world of today.
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As a septuagenarian still acquiring new gear I'm fully conscious of whistling past the graveyard. No relative surviving me will want any of this stuff. My estate auctioneer won't even discover the hi-fi aftermarket. But that's OK. Got a dear friend, serious music lover and an old soul despite having parents younger than me. Apparently I did him trifling kindnesses many years ago -- forgotten by me, but momentous to him. Having connected in recent times via gastronomical events, last October we sat up until 4am downing 5 bottles of wine (good stuff) and grooving on 2-channel audio with The War on Drugs plus a great deal else. Pretty sure he would take my amps and speakers if he gets a dedicated 2-channel room by the time I croak. So there's that, and that's something.
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High quality audio should always be in demand.
Will always be to me anyway….
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I have not yet read the posts, nor any of the responses to it. I cannot help but laugh my ass off at the title of the post.
bent
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Worrying about things beyond my control is fruitless. Bitching, moaning, and finger pointing in the hope that “someone else” will fix is also mostly fruitless. I try to avoid such things especially dwelling on negative items.
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I look at the nice equipment but don’t agree with 1/2 his decisions
synergy is far more important then the amount of $$ monies spent.
i have 40 years + in Audio as a Audiophile ,owned a Audio store for a decade
as well as many years in sales I would never sell a product I didnot believe in in for its quality and value , let your ears be the judge , not the $$ money !!
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No reason for dramatic whistleblowing. Bigger part of audiophiles are just not public. They don’t participate in any forums and community discussions and just peacefully enjoying their hobby. I personally know a couple such audiophiles. One of them is high level physicist with bunch of patents, who built his system based on his scientific knowledge and principles and doesn’t care about any trends or opinions, just enjoying great music in best available quality for him.
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He who isn't busy being born is busy dying. I think Bob Dylan said that.
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thanks @mahgister for starting the thread. i do think that people are moving away from traditional hifi setups towards streaming, wireless and stuff that "just works" with lifestyle etc and i do agree with @deep_333 re: the cheaper stuff now is a lot better than it used to be.
unfortunately it seems like global demographic collapse is also upon us. and in this situation, i really do not seeing younger people being passionate about hifi like previous generations did...
i'm curious though, as of 2025 - what are your most impactful recent discoveries. since you mention the importance of acoustics etc alot in other threads. (i mostly agree with you, btw, so asking for your latest tips!)
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Listening Jay video i realize how much we are different...
He said that he enjoy visual cues because in the dim light music can become boring. He said that visual cue are more powerful than sound.
I prefer darkness.
Sounds may be less "attractive" in the first moment then visual cues but music and voices are way more powerful coming slowly more deeply inside us than any visual attractions.
Sounds wait for our attention to give meanings. Visuals cues impose themselves. We must decipher music with total attention or a voice in a way visual movie or scenery is all prepared like a ready to cook meal.
Music is the first way we communicate in the womb and the last perceptive meanings to disapear.
i never listened as Jay did all the time from upgrade to the next, the "performance" of my gear pieces. I used acoustic experiments and listening experiments for a long period to set the system/room right for my ears. I ought to learn how to do it and nobody teach that. I listen music now, it is done and i know how to do it. The system /room is not there as an obstacle or a limitation, because it is optimal (for price paid)
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I am not worry about audiophile country population...
I dont give a damn...
But i like Jay as human...
Myself my system cost 1000 bucks speakers+ headphone and i am not envious one second about any Jay's gear pieces...
Acoustics rule...
I posted this because it is a reflection about a change in society...
i dont think we will think a lot about audio this year...
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I did not watch the video.
20 years ago, we were waiting for SACD to die. Now we are waiting for audiophiles to die? Not complaining - but SACD/DSD did not die. So hoping the same for this hobby as well.
Probably there are a a lot of younger folks who do not like to post here because of the "old world" biases that they might not like. And I don't blame them. Folks here keep dissing Class D Vs AB Vs tubes, Analog Vs Digital, etc. So, I would not really care for anything about audiophiles dying. We all will die one day - just enjoy what you have now.
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you cant take him seriously he pulls up a graph of the age groups who watch his Chanel obviously they are going to be older people who can afford his products.
most younger audiophiles are interested in streaming loud speakers and systems and headphones all these products t are way less expensive then the ultra high end products jay reviews
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Quoting Firesign Theater: "Give me immortality or give me death!".
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I used to be worried about this issue. Now I’m so worried about other things that I don't have the bandwidth for this.
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Look at the prices of what Jay’s is selling. He caters to a very rarefied clientele and one that is likely of an age advanced enough to be able to afford that stuff and advanced enough to be approaching death at the same time.
As for demographic collapse, no other country can compare to China. Of course, China is also facing financial collapse. Used equipment sites in China will be vast in number. This could ultimately be one of those situations in which high end equipment can be had for low prices thus jump starting another round of audiophile discovery and enthusiasm.
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So what happens with all this equipment we have when we die, could be costly to bury with the body, could also have it incinerated for those who choose cremation. Being ;perceived as worthless junk by younger set means it goes to the landfill, think I'll choose incineration.
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I’m the same age as Jay and yeah it’s lonely in this range (and younger) in the USA. I’m good friends with the 3 I know around my own age in a LARGE metropolitan area. I’ve encountered a few more here and there (gear buy / sell) -they’re certainly out there but it’s rare. Part of it is the USA’s culture shift - a few other regions / cultures have more of an audiophile tilt.
Some of the older dudes I get along with great, and others - well, there’s a reason we get associated to some bad tropes & stereotypes. The women have always been rare as hen’s teeth. There are a few here and there, but in general they’re wired differently and have priorities that don’t lead them down this particular path. And that’s OK - don’t force what’s not there. Anyways if I hooked up with an audiophile gal I’d probably be broke on the streets in a month; I’m bad enough as is.
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On the bright side, once we are gone, we won’t care about such things anymore and those still around will have one less group around to tell them what they should do and how to do it.
So cheer up folks!
The Bright Side
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He is wrong about a few things.
The 'bullsh' 'cheap' headphones actually sound pretty good these days. I am shocked by what I hear from a cheap pair of hifiman headphones these days.
My area has lots of 'younger' hometheater dudes, diy'ing their subwoofers, room treatments and all that... very enthusiastic crowd, the energy's all there....and guess what? Their stuff sounds pretty good, quite entertaining and it works for the different things they like to do, watching movies, listening to 'young people' music, playing 'call of duty', etc.
Why would they want to deal with some monster one trick pony hifi rig that doesn't even sound all that good...
It's a cultural shift. Hifi 'purism' killed it all, imo.... Deal with it.
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So, he should be courting Viagra and Depends as advertisers on his website. We should think of products and services to target older males who make up almost all of the serious audiophile world--I think high end hearing aids is an example.
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