Are you an "audiophile"? (1 Viewer)

[JediFonger]

i don't agree with that. there are a lot of "audiophiles" that are into movies only and not music. does that make them less of an audiophile? nah. i think it's more about how picky they are about the hardware itself... than the philosophy of films vs. movies or re-creating live music. it still applies even if we didn't have HT today. even back then when vinyl records were playing out of horns. some people just like to stay home and have the convenience of music playback itself without going out to hear music. and thus, ONCE again, convenience wins everything on the consumer side of things =^)./

 

[MarkHastings]

That's the definition of an 'Audiophile Snob' though

The definition is MUCH looser than that. It's not necessarily about the equipment as it is the 'passion' and 'desire'. Perhaps there needs to be 2 definitions?

IMHO, 'audiophile' is similar to 'wine connoisseur' - Just because you can't afford (or own) $500 bottles of wine, that doesn't mean you are not a wine connoisseur. A wine connoisseur is one who understands the differences between fine wines and cheap wines and that's usually where it ends.

If a wine connoisseur drinks a cheap-ass wine, does he/she automatically loose the distinction of being a connoisseur? If he/she likes it does he/she lose that distinction?? Hmmm?

 

[Kevin C Brown]

We read the same magazines, but you definitely have a different take on them than I do.

Please provide 3 examples of expensive products that either Stereophile or TAS has "slammed" recently.

 

[Lee Scoggins]

"A wine connoisseur is one who understands the differences between fine wines and cheap wines and that's usually where it ends."

Likewise, an audiophile will find the inexpensive gem like an ERA speaker that outperforms it's price point.

"Please provide 3 examples of expensive products that either Stereophile or TAS has "slammed" recently."

There are several examples but I will have to look around.

 

[IanDP]

I think I am an audiophile. I believe it can be defined, as mentioned before, as someone who's goal is to achive the most pleasurable sound reproduction possible.
The tricky part is that human's ears and the brains processing of the sound entering them, is very different from person to person. Just like people have different preferences for musical genres, people also have differing opinions on what "sounds good".
For me personally, I formed my opinion by attending various live concerts. I am a drummer, and I know what drums/guitars/etc sound like both onstage and in a studio. I've heard acoustic guitars and grand pianos, and seen great vocal performances. I formed my opinion of what should sound good based on my experiences. Others may not have the same experiences, so "sounding good" may be very different to them.

 

[Chu Gai]

Have you considered simply stealing the master tape Lee?

 

[Lee Scoggins]

No, I am not a thief and I don't have analog tape playback.

 

[Seth=L]

There are many types of audiophiles. Just because you decide to stop spending money on equipment and start buying music or movies doesn't make non-audiophile it just means you aren't so much a techy as much as you are a music lover or an avid movie watcher that happens to be an audiophile.

Seth=L

 

[MarkHastings]

True: If audiophile was based on price of equipment, Just imagine the really wealthy guy who has no idea about audio, but goes out and buys a high-end audio and HT system. Does that make him a better 'enthusiast' because he has more expensive equipment than we do?

 

[JediFonger]

the sad part is... we all know of acquaintances that are wealthy... but buy Bose and then proclaim the brand as if it was the 2nd coming.

 

[Seth=L]

Why bother with the BOSE. Made cheap sold expensive. A perfect example of what is wrong with the world today. Any audiophile or someone with some sense knows BOSE's ratio of cost to price is grossly exagerated.

 

[gene c]

After giving it some more thought and reading the responses here, I think I'm more of an enthusiast than an audiophile. Knowledge is a big part of what makes a person an audiophile and I still have a lot more to learn about this stuff. And while I agree that the cost of equipment isn't the most important part, you still need to be willing to spend as much as you can to get better performance. I could afford to move up to separates and better speakers but I'm just not willing to do so. Yet. I also love classic cars and hot rods but thank god I'm not a "hotrodder" (I think the're called "tuners" these days). I also enjoy golf but I'm not insane either. So I think it comes down to passion, and my passion is split between too many things so I think "enthusiast" is about right for me.

 

[Seth=L]

You might be an audiophile if your Home theater or stereo is worth more than you car.

Sorry Jeff Foxworthy,

Seth=L

 

[MarkHastings]

If you've ever uttered the phrase "Damn! ONLY 44kHz????? ", you might be an audiophile.

 

[gene c]

If you try to hook up your pre-amps to a Binford model 4200 Hemi powered commercial generator, you might be an audiophile. (Sorry, Tim Taylor).

 

[Seth=L]

If you have a home theater in you motor home, you might be an audiophile.

Seth=L

 

[MarkHastings]

...If you're homeless and have a home theater, you might be....

 

[Seth=L]

That it I am going to look for a homeless audiophile!

Seth=L

 

[MarkHastings]

I think most of us are on the verge of being homeless after all of the $$ we've dumped into our HT's.

 

[Seth=L]

No kidding. And then when something goes wrong, in my case my sunfire true subwoofer is in the other just humming away, we have to spend money to fix that. I think i might be losing my mind buying all this stuff and just keeping all of it.