The reality is that most professional musicians cannot afford expensive hifi gear so that isn't even on their radar. My brother falls into this category....he appreciates it but it isn't in the cards financially.
HiFi for musicians
Hi, i'm curious if there are any musicians out there who are into HiFi and want to know if their musical training or habits have any influence over their purchasing decisions. I'm a guitarist and do think i buy tube amps because i'm used to listening to them. Not because they are magical, just because i'm used to them. I often practice in the evenings and then listen to my stereo afterward because i want to hear a recording of someone playing something different than what i was playing. Do piano players buy piano black finishes? Do horn players use horn speakers? Just curious.
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Yes, I have played guitar for 45 years, still play out, and love the fact that my system reproduces guitar tones spot on. I had collected many guitars and amps for a very long time before getting into hifi Audio. Always had a decent system until about 4 years ago, now have a very good system that is very musical. It really impresses with live recordings, which are my favorite type of recordings, especially acoustic, purest of tones. Life is good! |
I was hooked on high end audio (at least reading about it) from the mid 60’s or so, but becoming a professional musician back then required my using any disposable income (ha) on keeping guitars, guitar amps, and PA systems functioning. I had a decent home hifi rig through the 70s but pro music gear still had priority until I bailed from the constant club band scene in the mid 80s...then the audio bug bit hard and I could afford to indulge in nice hifi gear, and still enjoy the crap out of that...I also can now afford better guitars and amps, so win win. I think the percentage of hifi audio geek musicians is about the same as the general population really...I mixed a show a few years ago for the Bill Charlap trio and discovered that both Peter Washington (brilliant bass player) and Kenny Washington (no relation, great drummer) are both hifi gearheads...surprising...rare... |
Ken Micallef of Stereophile has a series about this very subject, with interviews of musicians discussing their systems:https://www.stereophile.com/search/node/musicians%20as%20audiophiles and https://jazztonesblog.wordpress.com/ Some of the various interviews are listed in this link. You can also google Musicians As Audiophiles Stereophile, etc, and the different interviews will be listed. Enjoy! |
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