Friends hi-fi system not very good, what do you do or say?


So you're going over to someones home and they give you a tour and they have a hi-fi system in a room. And while visiting of course they turn it on for you not knowing that you have a very nice system in your home and you notice immediately it's just not very good.  But then you're used to the very in you're listening experiences. So what do you do when they ask you what you think?

Do you say sounds really good?

Do you make suggestions?

Do you feel a desperate need to tell them about your system?

Personally, I try not to mention any details about my system. If I'm driving around in a Lamborghini I would prefer to be invisible so I don't get stared at when I get out of my car. If they had a really nice system with interesting components I would probably mention a few of the things I have and then we could bond with our common interests.   Ideally, it would be cool to be in the presence of someone who knew a lot more than I did and a real learning opportunity.

Audio systems tend to be private affairs I guess.  I don't necessarily want to hang out with someone and listen to tunes. Those wonderful College days where it made a lot of sense are long gone.

emergingsoul

 

audioisnobiggie

78 posts

 

A well asked question. I go with just telling people it sounds really good on my system after we find a common performance to talk about, even though that performance is the main thing, except the gear part is the not so personal preference part of playback. My neighbors prove they are total masturbators compared to the person asking your question, by already telling everyone someone could BEAT my system, same as someone could beat my Corvette if I got that before the Supercar I’m working for, and that’s why it can’t be me. Except if someone said that, and then showed them your question, they would get into how anyone could be a good guy, compared to wanting it to be what’s next first all the time after that, so they’ll all go around saying you just have to be a guy who asks that all the time, so what? They were all already perverts so that it could be their private parts alone, men and women, and now they only ever want it to be because everything sucks and is boring compared to when their private parts are doing it. They’ve all long since gone due to just having to be criminals, so it’s past a chance to be going off of any of the biggest selling entertainers, like lots of big eyed women at least still can, after trying going solo first.

Usually, it’s just because they think a $50 blue-tooth speaker is already even better than their smart tv screens. I just tell everyone that until they swap up to feeding a full sized dedicated amp, their sound automatically requires sounding like NO power, even though it retains it’s "doing something with it" effect. But don’t expect it to make you HAVE to tap your feet along with your favorites, otherwise you don’t even actually care about it, and it’s probably because you don’t know very much at all about what’s really going on, during each track, that you don’t at least tap your feet. Yeah, that’s true, don’t even try listening to anything else when you own my system set up for reference monitoring at home. After that, audio forums prove god is on the internet, by proving that even though lots of other people complained since 2005 that my HD600’s were unbalanced, and sounded veiled compared to the Grado’s, many had the great gear advice I was looking for, and Paul McGowan from PS Audio became the audio setup Guru by answering audiophile’s questions on his YouTube channel, and proving that actually nobody even knows anything about setting up a system properly in the first place, let alone what to listen for in better gear, and why some tech types are supposed to be superior to the norm.

Yep, not into listening to tracks with someone else. This part, I like, though, everyone keep it up, even if you still argue that mp3’s are the smart guys already knowing the part people care about the most of all, so that’s what proves it’s actually the killer ni--ers.

$600 for a 20mb hard drive that operates at a similar speed to 1x CD, when optical storage got discovered to work. You couldn’t fit a whole track on, even if only DOS was on the drive. Except at that size, and then DOS... Yeah, early days for PC gaming there, no doubt. But really, Super-Mario getting coins while he’s on mushrooms? Actually, if he does want to be on mushrooms as an action star, ok, compared to the usual stars. But Eminem will prove everyone at home is losing to a guy on foot getting chased by a helicopter, even if you’re a video gamer 100% until right before and right after that video anyways, so ymmv. You should all listen to criminal rap primarily, so that you stop being able to care about trying for anything besides it was already you in the first place, anyways, and that’s why you don’t care about what you play rap on, or even if the biggest $ rapper buys your streaming service, and then charges 2x $$ to make everything, even his own tracks, sound wrong, in an unnatural and irritatingly fatiguing way, since he went along with another guy’s plan to make everything else gay also, for buying into his bandwidth-saving fake compression tech. I was arguing against the mp3’s are perfect fans for a long time, until people stopped watching the threads due to already having seen the final output comparison to an original test. Oh, and since you can’t let it be the good guys, you have to make sure it can’t be the gear makers, most of all. killer ni--ers need the tv to sound better than everyone else’s, otherwise they won’t be the next big thing after proving Watson was the guy we actually need everyone to know is always getting with all the women because of what losers all those AG Bell guys always are, especially regarding their sexuality, for going around being those guys everyone knows never even gets with the women instead because of it, so that’s really why it’s never them anyways. Everyone knows I’m the guy who’s always with all the women, instead of just watching porn instead the whole time you’re listening to all that stuff. It’s your problem you didn’t find out who everyone actually thought it was, since the very day you were born, suckers.

See, boring compared to masturbation is everyone else around here. I have to go to a movie theatre to try to beat big dance-club Marshall’s sound somewhere else also. They argue for flat or in-wall multi-placement creating a soundstage you are on also. They can also beat anyone by playing a movie copy that’s only compressed down from 1.5TB to still 225GB, compared to your second best chance, a 4k disc at 80GB, followed by streaming at `30GB, which happens to have been roughly DVD’s original size. The women in Hollywood aren’t for real unless they demand that all compression of their work be determined to be illegal, and the men aren’t for real unless they demand at least a 30 foot screen height dimension, hehehe. Yeah, the movie making industry probably all have the fastest in internet speeds going on, so that the producer can pass around the original copies to each person who needs to add their own work to them. Hollywood buys the best camera’s in the world, and it’s their job to be what high-speed GPU’s don’t have a hope of being able to simulate in Bruce Lee’s framerate wet dreams, making sure that Hollywood actors look better than anyone else on screen. Except they’d actually still prefer it if it were only their studio with that nice new camera, it’s just that it’s their job to go for that, while they’re at it.

Yeah, I need to grow Toronto, or cheat and get us a major Hi-Fi trade show anyways right away myself. I’m not sure what to go to a local headphone meet for unless someone has a part or complete system that can beat me somewhere. Except, if it’s just one part, that may not work out too well. Unless someone goes with the new $8k headphone offerings to hear, on anything, but you know who’s gear is waiting for the $20k pair to come out, first. A Hi-Fi trade show is where playback quality competes with live performances, and don’t think those attendees haven’t been to live performances before.

For better or worse, bad people have to be bad, because they automatically didn’t know that the good people couldn’t be doing any of that stuff, either.

 

@livinon2wheels Good plan, offering setup advice about what they have, but don’t speakers at the wall reflect everything else first? If we seek electronic instrument playback, they are mic’ed for a headphone amp’s presentation. An acoustic instrument will want to be played back having to assume that they are at that venue, and there are 2 mics covering the whole stage, which people choose 1/3 into the room, as a rule that comes before any room other than that venue’s reflectional quirks take over. But yeah, mic’ing instruments particularly, but also mic’ing any other than a pair of mic’s at the front of every stage performance, breaks the rule that was allowing speaker setups to try to replicate at home. You can’t do it, because the mic man will want one next to every cymbal and drum, including the kicks, before he gets his budget done, and then the guitars were made to play straight from the pickups into your amp with a left or right pan or centered angle possible, same as with a voice mic. Studio recording seems made to swap to home headphone with drivers that trade dynamic impact for higher-speed playback. Meanwhile, stadiums just load up on Marshall stacks for even that guy in the back row, except wouldn’t the fans prefer at some point to trade loudness levels for dynamic impact of the sound, through new extra-impact speaker driver types? Then, you can really get the part you really can’t be getting at home, except people will be allowed to also, except 24hrs,7days/week with those ones even more, until city by-laws have to make a rule about sound pressure without loudness levels, even more.

 

I’m too sexy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u49L-Nu0gGo

Sorry.  Listen to your gear better.  The voice of god?:  Planar headphones, and extra dynamic impact speakers for stadium concerts instead of extra loudness, for what you can't be getting at home events.  Also, studio recording is just trying to make everything reach an electric's pickup position anyhow, and it's also asking all musicians that use that format, to use it in their home systems for a home stereo recording playback piece snob award, except you'll only know your own instrument properly.  As studios increasingly dial in their mic'ing, to the point where everything is like the instrument's pickups, and are dialed right in position-wise, convert to a headphone listening presentation, unless of course there is someone else with you.

 

@deep_333 :

You're the only one thinking of such things, I can't even hear her properly if she shows up on my headphones first, yet!  Even worse, I'll have to keep the intense reality of headphone monitoring to my secret self, because who else wants her to find out about my DAC's headphone output chain?  Pure copper cables for the dynamic driver speaker chain, let her be as slow and warmed up as possible, at all times, compared to just me alone.  Well, maybe not, since that won't be as good.

@thecarpathian 

Fine, it sucks that you don't have anyone to find out what they listen on.  Actually, everyone else bought at least the next model up from all your stuff.  Sucker.  I bet you swear that's all it ever sounded like before, too.

....since I've no recent 'listening session' on anyone's' gear, I'll fall back on what I used to do:

Try to be diplomatic in relation to perceived sophistication of the person involved and IF they're asking for advice, commentary, or both.

Tread carefully, since pride and ego lurk...esp. if existing gear is of a substantial value that I'd have to dispatch said owner to own such....

Have a good week.

What I do not do is start a thread asking what I should do or say about a scenario that is either hypothetical or has already happened.

Epic trolling though.

@audioisnobiggie ,

I see you don’t want to come down from whatever you’re on before you post.

Your life....

Odd fellow; some of your past posts are well thought out and rational while others are unhinged, vulgar and inappropriate with a sprinkle of racism thrown in. There is help for you, but you must seek it out.

@thecarpathian 

Sorry if I have been unclear.  I have to admit this was a topic in the forum I wanted to get more into, and I probably rambled.  I'll try to keep things short.

What I do not do is start a thread asking what I should do or say about a scenario that is either hypothetical or has already happened.

Epic trolling though.

@macg19  + 10!

Interesting question. Any comment I would make would be heavily influenced by a few things. 1) do they like the system? If so then I would be complimentary. If they like it then that is all that matters. Peoples ears and listening habits are different so don't judge.  2) Are they asking for my advice? I would try to determine what they wanted to improve and make a suggestion. Tread lightly unless they are really unhappy. 

I am pretty open minded and have had people listen to my system plenty of times. For many it's amazing, but for some with high level equipment I could tell they might think something here or there could be improved. Buddy of mine up the street has some Klipsch Heresys hooked up to a vintage Marantz with a VPI table and Ortofon Black cartridge. He loves it.  I have a hard time with horn loaded speakers, especially in nearfield listening but it works for him. I think he views my main stystem as being a little lacking on the top end but good otherwise.  He is younger than me though and I am sure his hearing is probably less sensitive. Lots of variables as to what sounds good to some and not others. 

Forgot to address the " do I mention my system question". I don't really talk about mine in detail unless asked. I'll mention it in conversation and invite someone to listen if they are interested. Unless they want to know details, I keep it there. 

I usually speak of how my understanding of audio equipment changed over the years and how certain little changes MADE A BIG DIFFERENCE.  Simple no cost changes like moving speakers away from walls or using furniture to limit first reflection will lead to owner asking about what else can be done. 

Yea, I've heard one $2500 in total system that really sounded good, and I remember a $70,000 that really stank.  In this hobby, there can be no correlation between cost and quality.

If he asks your opinion, give it.  If he doesn't, let him enjoy his stereo.  Just try to not get invited over to listen.  Offer to have him come over your house, and maybe he'll figure it out on his own and ask advise.

I remeber an old friend who was an absolutly terrible cook, and he would always invite us over for dinner . . . .

This situation has happened to me twice and both times they wanted my opinion -- neither was awful but to improve would have required better speaker placement and room treatment, both of which were not acceptable to their wives--so all i said was "sounds great, let's do a gummy--and of course after that everything sounds better--could have been a transistor radio and would have been fine.

Your opinion of good or bad is irrelevant. If you stumbled upon another person that demonstrates some dedication to this hobby, you should bond over your shared interest instantly.

Any further conversations about your subjective takes will either be solicited or not. No need to fret it. The bond over the interest is more important, anyway.

Don't be D, we have enough narcissistic ego babies in this world. Ask them about their system. Engage with them how they put it together and what was most important to them in sound. Maybe they had financial limitations, or maybe they like detailed and you like distortion or vice versa and to them yours sounds like crap or you reveal to your friend you don't make good decisions with money. See where this could be going? So be engaging, listen and appreciate your friends system. I mean if your friend wasn't as good as you at something would you tell him he's not any good bcs he doesn't live up to your standard? However if you mean this from a place of genuine narcissism and you just can't get out of your own way, then invite him to go check out a system at some audio store and let him hear some different peaces of equipment. First it would be fun and it saves the friendship from any kind of resentment due to your personal needs of everyone having to know your opinion that's not all that important in the end. Just saying....

@daniel25 

Very insightful.  It's all about the ego isn't it. People love to put other people down it's resisting this temptation that proves most challenging. We as humans tend to be very judgmental about what people do …

If someone 45 years ago bought a Pinto or something else equally disturbing, it would be very troubling.  

Every few days I see a Tesla cyber truck parked in front of my house and it's really cool looking and there's only about 3000 of them that were made. I don't know if this is a DeLorean experience being repeated but they are super cool to look at 

And lest we forget, "No good deed goes unpunished."  Attributed to the Bible and other sources.

I usually either find "better friends" or bring a bottle of tequila to inhance the listening experience. 

The other option is to tell him he needs a sub woofer....everyone can relate to that. 

I always try to be diplomatic, keeping my own HiFi journey in mind—the decades it has taken, like for most of us, to get to where we are. With that perspective, I make thoughtful suggestions that align with incremental financial steps, understanding the costs involved. I also highlight the value of the used market and recommend brands that hold their resale value, so if something doesn’t work for their space, they can easily try something else. It’s about planting seeds to help them begin their audiophile journey. 

Of course, there are caveats. If something sounds genuinely bad—like a blown tweeter or another serious issue—I’ll point it out. But if it sounds decent, I’ll encourage them by focusing on what’s good. Ultimately, if it’s a friend, they’ll probably end up at my house for a demo anyway.

My mother used to often tell me "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all".

Do you tell people that they are less attractive than you are?  That their car or house isn't as good as yours?  Why do you need to say anything?

If they ask about improving their system, then offer helpful advice.

. . . or if your friend's system was not up to your standards, instead of following my previous suggestion, you could simply kick the dogcrap out of the woofers of his full range speakers and then tell him, "Look, dude, I just did you a favor--this will give you a reason to start upgrading this piece of crap system."  The time will come when he will thank you for this..  

Even if a close friend pressed me to tell them my opinion of their system I'd be inclined to say. 

"My opinion is not important. It is your system. The important thing is whether or not you like the sound of it".