Why Don't More People Into Music Reproduction At Home Play Around With Musical Instruments

for those interested in a great portable recorder, I can highly recommend the ZOOM H6, for the digitalphobic a Revox A-77 and two decent mics….and away you go. …

I started playing fingerstyle acoustic guitar when I retired about 6 years ago.  I agree with some of the other posters - very challenging to play an instrument with any proficiency.  I'm certainly not proficient, but I have fun and it's something I wanted to do since I'm a kid (not learning would have been a regret), and an activity that hopefully I can continue to do as I ripen and mature. 

As another poster mentioned - there are some really nice boutique guitars out there.  It's no problemo to spend $5k on an acoustic guitar. Sort of like high end audio gear, I've gotten into  buying and selling boutique guitars - just a few a year.  If you know what you're doing you should only lose hundreds, not thousands when you sell a guitar :-).  But just as in audio, if you don't you'll get hosed.  It's amazing to play beautiful instruments.   Music is spiritual.

Love of music is certainly the common denominator between playing and listening for me.  Different sides of the same line.  I love my nice stereo system and have had many iterations over the past 35 years.  My kids were brought up with jazz playing 24x7 in our home when they were young.  My son is a fine musician today and my daughter - not so much.    

@tomic601 

The mikes I used for this recording are modified Oktava MK-012 mikes.  The mod is supposed to make them into a clone of the Neumann KM84.   The guy (Michael Joly) who did the mod gave it up in 2018.   It's a very popular mod and chances are you can find a used pair as I did.   I paid $600 for the pair.

I don't do enough location work to justify dropping the $2000+ it takes to get something like a pair of real Neumann mikes.  So far I'm happy with these.

"In the pursuit of music reproduction in the home it is my firm belief that you must listen to live music every now & again so that you know & understand how real music,with real instruments,in real physical spaces sounds..."

Although I've only been into audio for the past twenty years or so, I've been playing guitar (both acoustic and electric) steadily since the mid-seventies. Not once has it ever ocurred to me to utilize the sound of a guitar "in a real physical space" as a benchmark for my audio system. 

As a player, I'm acutely aware that there are potentially millions of different "real" instrument sounds. Ask twenty players to play the same instrument and you will get twenty different "real" sounds. Same thing goes with "real physical spaces"-- play the same guitar in twenty different settings and odds are, you'll hear a lot of variation. So who determines the benchmark, when there are so many potential possibilities? 

Too much work with no practical benefit.
No interest. 
Too much time spent becoming proficient. 
Incongruous to sound of most recordings. 
Money wasted that could be applied to system or media.
Potential to skew system sound and accept underdeveloped quality. 

I have known too many musicians, and it does not translate to superior systems automatically.  I would not turn to one to build a rig.   

For me, playing music and listening to music are parallel interests. I seldom equate one with the other on a judgmental level. Yeah, when I go to a concert I'm constantly playing the "Is it live or is it Memorex" game.  But when I'm playing, it puts me in an emotional place where the sound quality is a given.

My post on page one stands the test of time.   

The one thing I would add, if someone did want to learn to play a musical instrument the one they should choose above all is the harmonica. A really good one can be had for only about $50. Small enough to fit in your pocket. Good enough, and with enough volume, to entertain a group of people. Yet with enough range to be played quietly.  

Harmonica calls for all the same breath control and embouchure skills as other wind instruments. All the same vibrato, note bending, and dynamic shadings apply. It is a genuine musical instrument, with tremendous range. You can learn to play Oh Susannah within minutes, then spend a lifetime trying to master it. Which like all instruments you never will do. But unlike all the others, you will have a lot more fun in the process- and a lot less complaints from the neighbors. 

I play Blues Harp I'm not Little Walter though.