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Why Don't More People Into Music Reproduction At Home Play Around With Musical Instruments

 In the pursuit of music reproduction in the home it is my firm belief that you must listen to live music every now & again so that you know & understand how real music,with real instruments,in real physical spaces sounds...
 With that as a foundation I used in judging equipment's "voice" I also believe that playing around with a musical instrument is an excellent way to gain first hand experience with musical sound...EVERY person that reads this can learn a few musical notes,on ANY musical instrument on the planet..For instance I play around with electric guitar.NO I can NOT play,but I can play the notes EFG,on first string & BCD on the second string...Now  I know those few notes & easily recognize them in any song..I am just this coming week going to start playing around with an electric keyboard....So I wonder,why don't more audiophiles simply play around with real instruments as part of their pursuit of honest reproduction in the home?Surely the education in reality is worth the $100.00 it takes to get an entry level guitar,keyboard,horn etc...
freediver
edcyn
1,876 posts
 
I'm addicted to both playing musical instruments and listening to good audio, but despite the fact that both obsessions have to do with the love of music, society considers them very different beasts.  A lot of society thinks of audiophilia as nothing more than the wallet-emptying exercise of plugging a bunch of overpriced stuff together to get something they could easily get by pushing a button on their car radio.  These same gimlet-eared folks, however, will at least admit that getting good on a musical instrument does take discipline and resolve.
saintsaens_op61's avatar
saintsaens_op61
59 posts
 
Fine instruments can cost less

How many 8-digit audiophile systems do you know of?
edcyn
1,876 posts
 
There’s lots of misunderstanding when it comes to how much a musical instrument costs. Yeah, the seven figure price of a Strad gets the publicity, but if you’re a working fiddler you can do more than fine when you got five figures in your pocket. A good Steinway grand can be gotten in the $60,000 neighborhood. I haven’t been to the Guitar Center lately but I’d be surprised if Gibson Les Pauls have made it into the five figure realm. Pre-CBS Stratocasters (the coveted ones) currently cost in the low five figures.
oregonpapa's avatar
oregonpapa
4,867 posts
 
^^^ I have a step-grandson that plays the bassoon at concert levels. He's amazing. I love to hear him play/practice. The Bassoon he is currently using cost $35,000. He tells me that the model he has is at the bottom price level of what that particular manufacturer offers. We could put a pretty nice audio system together for 35k, that's for sure.

Frank
saintsaens_op61's avatar
saintsaens_op61
59 posts
 
Most of the time five figures will buy a very nice instrument. Only professionals need instruments that are more expensive. Even the cheapest violins in the “Big Five” orchestras (plus LA, STL, etc.) will be six figures. The Messiah Strad, possibly the most expensive violin in the world, is worth around $20 million.
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