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Why do people think I'm nuts involving audio?

Let me start by saying that I don't drink, drug or smoke and that my only vice is audio. I've been a Mac junkie since '80 and to date, I own a Mac system that I've put $40,000 into. To me, it sounds WONDERFUL! I'm very much into music, as opposed to philes that appear to be more into "sound" than music, at least this is what I'm gathering from the stuff I read.My problem is that NOT ONE person I know has a system that's more than maybe $1500, and mostly everyone I know thinks that I'm mentally "defective", although they all love the way my system sounds! They just think that I'm NUTS! I have money, so I'm not being irresponsible to anything, I just LOVE audio. Two weeks ago, I took a 4 day trip to the McIntosh Labs in Bingimton, about 170 miles from my home. A guy from Audio Classics in that area set up a tour of Mac for me and I just loved it, BUT, took major heat from my friends about taking an "audio" vacation. SO, is there anyone out there with similar experiences with friends who can advise me on how to respond to them? Thanks, A SANE AUDIOPHILE!
sal
sc53
722 posts
 
I love the last response, about trying to explain that that box is a phono stage, and that other one is the power supply, for a turntable with a moving coil cartridge--when the inquirer has never even seen a turntable before!! And refers to the major part of it as a "needle," anyway. My friend just refers to each of my audio "boxes" on various racks and spikes as "receivers," except for the two boxes that she readily recognizes, the "speakers." She has also learned that all the strings she calls "wires" and "plugs" are actually "cables." It's really hilarious, when you think of how much I've spent, and all the time I've spent researching and auditioning and trying and experimenting with all this different gear over all these years, to hear someone refer to it all as "receivers" and some "wires." I actually get a kick out of this!
Sarah
gregm
3,409 posts
 
Sc, speaking of nomenclature... Having learned the appropriate audiophile vocab, my friend (a music-phile)has lately invented & uses her own terms esp. when talking to audiophiles. Hence, cables become "wires" (ofcourse), cartridge a "cartiledge", TT is a plastic-grinder, cdp a cd-phone; tubes, lamp(-bulbs); speakers depend on shape: heaters (Quads), freezer (big footprint), canary (small, generally), doors (panels generally); amps are "transistors"... as in, "...the wire hooking your lamps to the freezers?" or "...you're pushing the heaters with a lamp (the pre) and a supermarket transistor???"

Cheers!
audiotomb's avatar
audiotomb
1,112 posts
 
Interesting thread

not so many years ago when I was mid-fi-ing with NAD Cal etc I always yearned for the hifi end, not because I was consumed with owning it from a status end- but because of the way it would transport my living space to the vibrancy of music

every purchase I've made since then was a dramatic step in enhancing the musicality

I consider it a small price to pay for the true enjoyment

too many people are sold schlock and are convinced that they have arrived, they also typically own a small variety of music

crazy to someone else? who cares
my levels of satisfaction are immense
I don't feel I have to justify it to anyone else
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