Audiophilism is a hobby
This post grew out of another discussion on music vs. sound. According to a poll taken in that discussion, it is clear most A’goners claim they listen to their rigs primarily for the music. Although I don’t doubt the truth of that, I maintain that much of the listening is as a hobby, with music being a very important component. I’m not saying we can’t be profoundly moved by the music but rather that a lot of our enjoyment comes from the sheer sound emitted from our speakers. Great music is of course a vital part of the experience, but with all the manipulations we do with our systems, we are fascinated by the idea of sound in itself as a hobby.
Wow, staying on Audiogon is paying off. 😊 I’ll get Blue Heron Suite and Build Me Up From Bones, and take it from there. I’ve seen Sarah’s name mentioned numerous times over the years, but just never connected with her. Now if I could get people to listen to Iris DeMent, I’d feel like I’ve made a difference.
For those who haven’t heard Julie Miller, here’s a rather disturbing video about her. Do artists have to be tortured to be genius? Going on the evidence of Julie and Lucinda, apparently so.
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The assumption or theory that paying attention to your gear can have a negative effect on how you feel about music seems ridiculous. If that's the case you need therapy. As a long time musician I can create music (the absolute sound?...hmmm) myself without my hifi rig (dozens of guitars, mandolin, ukulele, drums, bass...blah blah). The joy of this hobby is taking the reproduction of great recordings and having fun with them by making them sound as good as you think is necessary. My relatively modest system sounds astonishingly good and once in a while I improve it. I Recently added a Schiit Loki Max having no idea how much fun it would be (I sorta knew as I have a couple of Lokis)...I recommend this thing to anybody...but you MUST add "chicken head" knobs to it for even more fun. |
+1 @hilde45
We figured in a previous thread that there less than a million audiophiles in the US and of that group only a small number care enough to post about it on internet sites. Attempting to deny a love of sound on this site is akin to attempting the requirement to breathe oxygen. So why the angst? There are those who feel some guilt about the tired old canard that they enjoy reproduced sound more than the actual musical content, that they may be just as happy listening to sounds of trains, or voice sans music. If we enjoy the nuances of the ways that different gear reproduce the music that we love, and are willing to pay to appreciate those nuances, there is nothing wrong with that. People wear $5K watches because they appreciate the craftsmanship involved, when they could just get the time from a much cheaper watch or their cell phone. They drink expensive wine when they can get Kirkland, and expensive autos when a Toyota will perform the same transportation function. Why do audiophiles feel guilty about their hobby.? Do car, watch and wine lovers spend time trying to justify dedication to their hobbies? I am genuinely wondering |
Sometimes, I'm just happy hearing music coming from an Echo in my bedroom. Sometimes, hearing poorly recorded or reproduced music distracts me from the content. Sometimes, I will only listen to well recorded and produced music on my main system. Sometimes, I'm happy listening to MP3 level streams from Pandora. I think it all depends on my general well being and the extent my OCD is kicking in. |
I only enjoy my rig if I love the music being played. I mostly stream Qobuz and every week I cruise the new selections. I try new artists I haven't even heard of and new hi-rez selections that I know. Hit or miss on the unknowns, maybe one in ten that I play all the way through. I'll stick those in my favorites file. |
