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RE: Why we are audiophiles....

Posted by thump on January 6, 2017 at 19:10:36:
why listen to crappy sound quality if you don't have to and pretty good entry level gear can be had cheaply at that?

my entry into the audiophile ranks is a bit ironic. before i ever owned anything beyond the sound system i cobbled together out of an old gerard turntable i fabricated an unmeasured angled headshell for to replace the ceramic cartridghe, a simple in/out radioshack preamp, & a "toy" portable system i scavenged the amp (powered by the stripped motor/transformer) and 5 1/4" open back full range speakers from, i used to visit stereo shops whenever i was in the city.

after i bought a car stereo and boombox, i used to visit the FOUR closely spaced shops on the boulevard & ponder starting a system. i heard all kinds of gear including klipsch, but i was never blown away by anything until i heard a couple talking heads' albums on a buddy's B&O turntable & 50wpc denon receiver on a pair of $100 (!!!!) 4 1/2" sealed infinity reference 1000 speakers. i was amazed at both my first experience hearing pinpoint stereo imaging as well as lightning fast UNDISTORTED bass. i'd never heard drums thump so precisely. of course the bass was very light, but it wasn't sloppy & boomy sounding like most of the speakers being sold. it was the QUALITY that wowed me more than the quantity.

THAT's what set my tastes in gear in stone... little acoustic suspension minis that image like crazy and the smaller the better sealed subs. it would be later that i'd learn about dispersion, driver mass, resonances and air springs so i understood the science as to WHY i like what i do. (punchy dynamics and as little distortion as possible and porting creates distortion no matter how many bass reflex fans refuse to admit it DESPITE decades worth of established science & listener experience)

so, the irony is that i turned audiophile NOT because of exposure to $1,000+ systems, but a humble sub $500 entry level one that told MY EARS that anything beyond a sub sat system is just bogus marketing hype that in the case of ported speakers, sounds even worse than $100 minis.

that's why i'm an audiophile as well as why i always look for the best value and DESPISE that no one will make a $500 pair of "super duper superzeros" and that the mission & energy in particular minis i bought both had better drivers than my NHTs, but LOUSY USELESS RESONANT cabinets when you try to make the port resonance STFU. it's a conspiracy to sell bigger & more expensive speakers i say.