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Feel vs. Think - take an objective look...

Greetings fellow Audiogon members,

The title of this new thread speaks volumes. Way too much for an explanation here and now. As an experiment, I would like for each of you, at your convenience while browsing any of the discussion forums in Audiogon or any other 'chat' venue for high-end audio - including the major high-end magazines, to pay close attention to the frequency of the use of the word 'feel' or 'I feel' as opposed to the use of 'think' or 'I think' in the context of discussing the various preferences, likes/dislikes, etc., of audio gear.

There is much to be learned about this otherwise minor detail and certainly much more than the casual observer would take into consideration. As a matter of personal opinion, I would venture that entire companys' fortunes and/or viability in the high-end audio community are based upon the aforementioned phrases and their underlying cause/effect upon purchase considerations.

Check it out -
gunnar
newbee
4,751 posts
 
If you say you think something then someone may be expected to ask you to explain your rational and you will have to satisfy them to gain credibility - "think" implies that you have been considering something tangible. When you say you feel something you get a pass - everyone knows that what you feel is your emotional response. Works great in advertising - that is one reason there are so many testimonials - and so few statements of fact.

At least thats what I think I feel. :-)
gregm
3,396 posts
 
So, are we experiencing the gradual demise of subjectivism??? I ask this because most of the sound effects (voicing, etc) I can now also correlate to design parametres or measurements. I'm not an EE, only practical. (Cables, of course, are too exotic for my feeble knowledge.)
rsuminsby
152 posts
 
Are you by chance drawing a comparison to the Myers-Briggs personality tests? FWIW, I'm ENTP. And I think that's pretty accurate....
viggen
838 posts
 
I pretty much agree with Pbowne. As to where the perception is from, I think "I think" derives from personal observations, and "I feel" does not. On the other hand, I have absolutely no qualm against reviewers or whoever that uses "I think" or "I feel" in their statements. The reader just have to learn how to judiciously take it with a grain of salt and when to agree. This should be inherent in the reader's literal literacy and ability to read between the lines literacy.
whatjd
1,139 posts
 
ENTJ, INTJ..who.....whom cares? The real concern is the real. We debate tubes vs. transistors...silver cables vs. copper..and the real point(s) are missed.

Ladies..and Gentlemen, your cd players have zinc/steel signal traces..that lead to zinc/steel female RCA output connectors with fake gold plate. Worse than this, they have one dollar, or less, op-amps as the "audio sections".

So, much of what you debate is not the issue..
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