You know you have audiophile system when...

@simonmoon + 1

@simonmoon - I'm not sure that I agree with you that the majority of audiophiles are "music first" in their enjoyment.

I know way more people that enjoy music than enjoy audio equipment.  People that are truly music first seem to be able to equally enjoy music live, on the radio in the car, or over the speakers that grocery store equally.  In my experience, most of them don't even recognize the value of an high end system.  It's curious to me why so few people will listen to a system like mine and not immediately recognize how superior it is to anything that they have heard before, but even within the subset of those that do recognize and enjoy the difference almost none feel any need to get into high end gear.  My conclusion is that for the vast majority of people the actual sound quality of the music doesn't improve their listening experience in a meaningful way.

Obviously, audiophiles do greatly enjoy music or else they wouldn't invest so much of their time and resources in the hobby, but I think that if sound quality is a factor then the music itself is already taking a step back.

On a related note, I queued up some music for my wife last night that I know she enjoys and the end result was an Amazon search for a better quality recording.  It was an exceedingly poor recording that was unlistenable even for her. I was prepared to gut it out with the goal of her truly enjoying the music.  Even her music first approach to listening has its limits.  I wonder if I played it through my home theater receiver with some processing if it could be salvaged?

when you have at least an 8-figure net worth and a portfolio of blue chip stocks and bonds. when your system elicits oohs and ahs from whomever you deign worthy of showing it off to. when you listen to the worst recordings and it still gives you a palpable feeling of "being there."

You know you have an audiophile system when you have learned acoustic...

If not, you upgrade to a very costly system...

It is almost useless...Igear improvement without acoustic improvement are deceitful...

Sorry...

it is incredible and revelatory of the situation if i am the only one to claim that..

I'll approach this from a slightly more humble and less judgmental direction (odd for this room I know). And first of all, I have no problem with being called an audiophile. I don't wear it like a badge, but it doesn't bother me. And I couldn't care less what snarky things people in a record store might say about me. I have filthy c**t w**re b***h white trash sister-in-law who works in a wine shop and in a voice dripping with ridicule calls their more discerning customers "cork dorks". And these are the people who put food on her table!! Like I said, white trash. Anyway, to the point.

An audiophile is someone who listens to music on the built-in speakers and their iPhone and says, "Wait minute!, this can be better", and goes out and buys a bluetooth speaker. They're on the path. It's the person who listens to their old Pioneer receiver through their old Advent speakers and says, "Wait a minute, this can be better", and goes to an audio store or online and starts their journey, their search for the "better". It's the person who's still listening to their old dorm room stereo of the first stereo they bought when they moved out of their parents house. It cost $350 with speakers and might even have a built in cassette deck and one day they realize, "this can sound better". (maybe because music coming from the stereo in their new minivan sounds different and better). I'm sure all of you have been to the homes of good friends, smart people, clever and at times even a bit sophisticated who still use that old stereo when they listen to music, which likely isn't very often.  It's about the pursuit of better access to the music. Audiophiles don't use music to listen to their system. That's pithy but ignorant. They only time they do that is when they add/are breaking in a new addition or trying to figure out where that booming bass comes from every once in a while.  We're all chasing the music, and better systems are more immersive, they pull us in, relaxed, enveloping and they take us into the sonic artform to which, for whatever reason, we humans seem to be drawn.