What have you learned in your HIFI Journey

[jenson]

Jai's thread inspired me to start this thread. it was incredible to see how he found a pulz system more accessible and enjoyable for a certain period over and above his rethm setup et al.

Most of us here have 1-30+ years of experience in HIFI with all having varying budget.
if you could summarize on -
1. how did you end up with your current setup
2. how long did that excitement stay true?
3. What made you change your system, did it always involve higher costs?
4. what were the surprises/learning in this journey?

i know this content sounds all over the place, but what I'm trying to essentially understand is how one settled into their current setup. this could include room acoustics, seating, racks, speakers...whatever that could've possibly made a difference.

 

[spirovious]

You can check this thread-
http://www.hifivision.com/av-lounge/7619-pls-post-abt-your-journey-hifi-world.html

 

[Hiten]

Good thread Jenson,

On a funny note...
'Bose for the given money are not good speakers. Thats what I have learned' :lol: just kidding.

On a philosophical note ...
What I have learned is we want other people to believe our beliefs but don't want to believe theirs. That includes me. no kidding.

Forum rules requires no derailment of the thread or I will get banned. so here goes...
1. how did you end up with your current setup
my current setup is not worth talking about. But it plays music. So I am OK with it.
2. how long did that excitement stay true?
Want to upgrade but my priorities have changed.
4. what were the surprises/learning in this journey?
surprises....
1) A cheap system can sound good. I have posted this earlier. Once I visited a electronics repairman near my town. It was morning and he was playing 78 shellac of Lata with valve radio. The sound was clear, sweet and enjoyable.
2) Heard EMT with full range+subwoofers at Prem's place. The best I have head till date. SET with full range consolidated with good low end. Good (probably the best) approach for good sound.
3) Heard Clearaudio at Manav's place. Belt Drives do have torque and sound excellent.
4) styluses are delicate instruments :lol:

Best regards and congrats on new arrival.

 

[Shivam]

My learnings in the hifi journey are different from my system (for which there already is a thread as indicated in a post above me)

The things that I have learnt -

1. Audio without subs is sweet but after getting subs does one realize what was missing earlier.
2. Bass and treble controls are necessary evils.
3. Almost all the good songs / music is available in pathetic recordings but still sounds good.
4. However good my LPs may sound, pops and clicks do distract !
5. However nice HD files may be, the real pleasure is in watching the LP turn.
6. Digital sound is different from Analogue and comparing them is a waste of time.
7. SS amps perform the same as Tube amps at low volumes (I don't hear a difference)
8. Placing the speakers and listening chair properly is a necessity but I hardly sit in the sweet spot when enjoying music.
9. Cables may or may not make a difference but logical placing of cables does.
10. Buy a system that you enjoy and then stop reading audiophile magazines.

I now have a system that satisfies me after multiple upgrades. To me, every upgrade involved money except for one where I sold away a Linn DS (in favor of a Marantz DVD player and Musical Fidelity M1 Clic). Last upgrade was addition of subs that has made my system perfect to me.

 

[hydra]

Though I've been enjoying music since I was really young, I'm a relative baby in the equipment-side of this hobby. But this is what I've learnt:

1) Be patient.

2) Listen to as many setups as you can: Understand what you really want before you put down money. Take a year or two if necessary.

3) You CAN be happy with what you have.

4) Your tastes in music will change over time. Also, you will listen to (and really enjoy) different kinds of music as you upgrade your equipment.

5) The price tag on a piece of equipment does not necessarily reflect its capabilities. But when you do find something that really works for you, if you can manage to, even if it's a stretch, get it!

6) Keep an open mind. Some tweaks will work for you, and some won't. Just because something is considered "snake oil", it doesn't have to be. Try it before you "diss" it. If it doesn't work in your setup and in your room, it doesn't meant that it will not work in somebody else's setup or room.

7) The room is MOST important. Start with the room. If you can't build one from scratch, learn to make your current room sound better. Use everything possible to make the room work for you and your equipment, before you start thinking of "upgrading" the equipment. The room can always get better. Don't stop tweaking the room and equipment placement. There's always a little bit more you can get out of what you have.

8) In direct opposition to the end of point no. 7, learn to stop when it's time to stop tweaking!

9) Enjoy the music.

10) Did I mention "Be patient"?

 

[soulforged]

You maybe running a multi-billion dollar business but when it comes to audio, your wife has the last word...

(Only the latter is true in my case... )

 

[magma]

use an ipod
listen to world radio

be happy

 

[arunlouie]

A continuous journey with costly fares

 

[shaiju_o_thomas]

Jenson,

Good thread.

I started off with Paradigm v6 with Denon 2311. Next were Genelec 8030. Now settled with Pulz speakers with Marantz SR6008.

Loved the Genelec setup though I had them only for a very short period. Enjoying the Pulz sound and trying to improve the setup with suggestions from knowledgeable FMs and resources.

I sold off previous setups to friends and acquaintances. It was not my effort to upgrade but because they liked what they heard. Wish I hadn't parted with the Genelec.

I intend to keep the Pulz - enjoy, experience and experiment with them for a while. My room is "live", it is not acoustically treated but an important lesson learnt is that speaker placement does contribute to what you hear.

I do have a list of surprises but that's for another post (maybe).

 

[Vinod.R]

That I know almost next to nothing.

There are so many things being discussed in so many threads here, which puts my mind to so many possibilities. That there are so many esoteric set ups and possibilities that I have not even heard of!

That I am standing next to the ocean shore gathering pebbles not knowing what the ocean offers.

I am happy to say that I have learnt to say "I DO NOT KNOW".

 

[mano2ht]

Surprise/Learning
We will not stop at one point , upgrading forever .This is better than that ,that is better than this like wise. At one point if we think how we have started this , you will be surprised how much money we have spent to get headphone quality sound with out headphones.

Excitement stay true
Our whole excitement with our current upgrade will go in one shot , when you read or hear positive reviews of some other system which can be equal/less/superior in cost.In my own experience i started with sony home theater of 10k . I enjoyed these beast until i hear logitech z623 7k now i m with YHT-299 Htib ,svs PB1000 ,Jamo S426 floor stand.Last week i went to profx with my friend to demo a AVR for him. They showed DIE hard 4 Trailer and i felt it sound much better than my system.Then they took us to another theatrical room and showed same trailer , at that moment i felt the previous system was beast , but instantly my mind changed and i started to like the system which is in theatrical room . I asked what was the AVR used they told it is same one which is shown outside. Surprising ! .

Lesson Learned : In order to fulfill our excitement ,We dont need to invest lakhs.Go and see a Hollywood film in nice theater that will fulfill our excitement . Our setup wont even match those.But what to do we are not like that we want a theater in our house so we are investing and trying to match real theater.

Another important thing is about room acoustics.That will make big difference in our entire home theater experience.I get tight bass with yamaha subwoofer which was came with yht-299 . Now svs and yamaha subwoofer are equal to me.Except for deep bass under 40Hz.I have super chunk bass trap and two membrane bass trap.

 

[reubensm]

Allow my wife to manage my bank account

 

[Naturelover]

Allow my wife to manage my bank account

[emoji2] [emoji2]
I expect that was after the final addition to the arsenal else.....

 

[prem]

Learnt it makes better sense to spend and acquire the best software one can of the albums one listens to

 

[Aanuj]

Not to be an Audiofool.

 

[nitinsanand]

Allow my wife to manage my bank account

Lesson learnt but not implemented here. Well, then I guess lesson not learnt as yet!![emoji2]

Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk

 

[Sumanta]

1. how did you end up with your current setup
- started with earthen pot and shoebox speakers, living with OBs now. I has happy with box speakers of brands till I listened to Jamo R909. The cost of R909 helped me going DIY way. I feel I am close to what I heard 5 years back. Because that evening Armstrong sang "what a wonderful world" like never before.
2. how long did that excitement stay true?
- Last one is constantly surprising me for close to two years now (with some active cross over tweaks in between).
3. What made you change your system, did it always involve higher costs?
- The itch for some new experience and practice of earned knowledge. No, sometimes they were cheaper. Since I did not sold almost all that I bought or made, net investment added up.
4. what were the surprises/learning in this journey?
- that brain can be trained to like any music source and player combination. Brain fools us and control our ears too.
- Freedom of creativity is applicable to drivers, hence they [lay superb when they are not restricted in a box.
- Money is not important in Hi-fi, right combination of gears and user is far more important.
- We like to convince others but don't believe others.
- I made more friends through my hobbies than in office or at home.
- Mid is a dangerous range of frequencies, It varies from song to song. Handle it wrong, you are gone.
- Low frequencies are best played alone but not make the driver lonely.
- Stop searching for best is not at all easy.
- There is nothing as best for two listeners. And that is good.
- The best relaxation is to listening your music in your music system. Best happiness is to enjoy same music with friends.
- OB system is so damn cheap yet plays so well.
- Active OB is the easiest way for a poor audiophile to happiness.
- We generally take same space with stands and bookshelf speakers like an FS yet call it smaller.
- Face of a cabinet speaker ultimately end up at 2 feet away from front wall, yet we do not try for an OB.
- OBs are lighter, thinner and can be placed near wall when you are not listening. We do not listen for 80% (roughly) of our time. Yet we find OBs are big and need more space than cabinets.
- common sense breeds post la of of reading.

Note - these are my opinions and they do not need to be right for all, may be none actually.

 

[tuff]

hyeah:I learned one thing. All roads lead to Magnepans.hyeah:

 

[sunder]

I was much happier, convinced and satisfied with Two in One Boombox like 'Sharp 9595' on those Golden days than now with CDP-DAC-Preamp-Power amp- Floor stand speakers, Sub woofer and number of interconnects, power cables and Speaker cables then the placement of the speakers!

 

[reubensm]

[emoji2] [emoji2]
I expect that was after the final addition to the arsenal else.....

hyeah: still in the mood to make changes, more on the way hyeah:

but at least, there are some checks and controls in place hyeah: