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An unscientific poll: How often are you happy?

What percentage of the time do you just break out in a smile and thoroughly enjoy the music *and* the sound when you fire up your system? 10%? 50%? 99%? (The other times: you hear something wrong, something lacking, needs tweaking, needs upgrading, colorations, distortions, you hear a noise, a tube might be going, not musical enough, can't suspend your disbelief the way you want to, your expectations are disappointed, it doesn't sound like you remember the dealer's system did, doesn't sound like you remember your friend's system did, you made the wrong move with the last upgrade, you doubt the money you recently spent really made a difference, the recording is too flawed, you wonder what it would sound like if you changed this or that, you enjoyed it more in the car, you question whether you've truly got your priorities in perspective, etc...) Give your %, and list the approximate $ investment you have in the system (specify new or used valuation). Mine: happy about 15% of the time, valuation around $17,000 if all bought new. Conclusions - if any - drawn later...
zaikesman

Showing 4 responses by ozfly

ozfly
887 posts
 
Actually Scotland is stealing millions of dollars from the audio industry. I can't tell you how much more I'd be spending on tweaks and upgrades were it not for Dalwhinnie, Balvenie, Aberlour and MaCallan. Wine works too!!
ozfly
887 posts
 
I'm having trouble taking this a step further since I'm laughing so hard, but here goes ...
Let's face it -- the electronics, mechanics and acoustics of our systems and room won't exactly reproduce the live sound for all types of recordings. With the right dosage of scotch, the imagination fills in the missing details. Detlof was kind enough to share the perfect test album. When you can hear "said wind", you've got a great system and you are still coherent enough to know it! When you can smell it, proceed to a maintenance level of drinking (or let out the dog): This will take time to achieve and I would strongly recommend meditation exercises. If you can hear it and smell it and the system isn't even on, seek help but you probably have a great artistic career ahead of you.
ozfly
887 posts
 
Excellent thread and responses! I have about $50k (MSRP)in my main system. If the recordings are good to great quality, I'm very happy about 60% of the time. That rises by about 5% with each scotch. After six scotches, even the bad recordings start sounding good. I do not have perfect pitch (what is the opposite of that?) but think that about 75% of my recordings are good to great quality. The rest don't get spun very often.
ozfly
887 posts
 
I know it's not allowed here, but I did an A/B comparison between Dalwhinnie and Lagavulin on jazz/blues. With the Dalwhinnie, the midrange seemed to expand a bit and had more air. With the Lagavulin, the bass seemed to have a bit more heft. Switching back to the Dalwhinnie, it appeared that the soundstage seemed ever so much broader. Switching back to the Lagavulin, the bit of congestion in the upper end seemed to lift. Switching back to the Dalwhinnie, the pacing sseemed to improve. Switcching back to the Lagavulin, thngs seemed to shift toward the lwoer midrange a bit. Dalwhiine, a bit more sluggish in the upper end. Lagvavuln, jst stlighty off key. Dalvin,m, basss very goog but candt seem to get all the powere of the vocals. Lavgmuln, just not cocomming togehter. Dalvine, music shchumsic, where's my wife ... ?
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