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Does a listening room help or hinder?

I once had my office and my system in the same room. I did my work and listened while I worked(sounds like a Disney song). I heard lots of music. Before I had the music in my office, I had it in the living room.

Well, I got the idea that I needed a listening room, so I moved my desk and computer and put it in another room. Now, I have a listening room. It isn't pretty, but it is as functional as I can get it. It has room treatments galore. Some aren't very pretty, but all of it functional. I have one chair in it, plus a little table next to the chair to hold any drink I may have.

Lately, I put on some music and sit down. Sooner or later I have this urge to get up and go do something on the computer. Then I sit back. Soon, I get up again to get something in the kitchen. Then I sit back down again. It goes like this through the entire time the music is on.

Now I listen to music less than I did before. In fact, the music is on now, but I am in a separate room.

Where did I make the mistake? How can I fix this delima?
matchstikman
lousyreeds1's avatar
lousyreeds1
286 posts
 
I think Newbee's point is the most salient. You're obviously not enjoying listening to your music. Find something new that really graps you.
matchstikman OP
205 posts
 
Newbee may be right. However, I don't need new music. I have a stack of brand new, still sealed CDs and new LPs that haven't been heard.
lugnut
1,190 posts
 
Having read your post several times I feel compelled to respond. At this time you are simply more involved in things other than audio. Don't get upset at that opinion, please. You do not need to justify what you own or what room it's in by constantly using it. Too many people I know get hung up on not using a toy. Most of us lead varied lives and should accept that our interest waxes and wanes. One of my friends locally is very busy these days and hasn't had time to ride his Harley as much as previous years. He's getting a lot of grief about this from his riding pals. This is (pardon the pun) Hogwash. The bike is paid for, it isn't going anywhere and it's there for when he is really in the mood. The same holds true for a boat, fishing gear, bicycle, shotgun or any of a number of things we guys own. The most miserable people I know (and I like them) feel compelled to use their toys non-stop to justify the expenditure. There have been times in my life when audio has taken a back seat to everything else for an extended period of time. Guess what? When things changed the magic was there for me to use again. At these times I laughed at myself for being surprised at how much I loved it again. My gear and especially my software library is like a a very patient friend, always there when I need it. Of particular interest to me is the question of "are you addicted to computers or actually working too hard?"
chadnliz
3,736 posts
 
Excellent post Lugnut, I never thought of it the way you did, thanks for opening my eyes!
cdc
1,785 posts
 
Bigjoe, if I had my way, I'd let the whole darned neighborhood hear some music :-).
I was thinking about doing a post on "Listening habits - how do you listen to your stereo". Probably a stupid idea so never did. But I listen while working (or playing on the internet) 90% of the time. Maybe that's another reason why I don't need such a good stereo. Background music is not all bad. It makes a house a home. For others that would be drapes and carpeting I guess.
Can totally relate to the "getting your money's worth" idea. Heck, if you spend $10,000 on a stereo and only listen critically a couple days a week, why bother? Are you really getting your money's worth if you don't listen critically for a few hours every day?
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