How have your tastes changed?

I would say drastically. I used to listen to only country. Once my system started to sound better I realized every country recording I had sounded like trash. So I started to listen to other stuff. Now I'm into a bunch of bluegrass that I would normally ever listen to. Plus, some contemporary blues and even some instrumental stuff that I would not have touched before. I would say this hobby has opened me to a whole different world of music.

I've only been into the high-end audio for about 2 years now and I know that my taste in music has changes drastically. I went from Motley Crue to Mozart. I now find myself looking for cd's that 4 years ago I would never considered buying. I don't know if I should say that my taste in music has really changed, I guess I would call it broadening my horizons. I still like my dose of heavy metal music every now and then, but not like I used to. I find myself now sitting here listening to Diana Krall, Jennifer Warnes, or Patricia Barber. I really depends on whether I'm tweaking my system or relaxing. It's kind of a surprise to my wife that now we sit and listen to more of her type of music. She doesn't complain about that but she does the INSANE amounts of money I've spent.

My tastes have grown, but I would not say they changed. I listen to more then I had when I got into this hobby and I still listen to what I did before I got into this hobby- software is the key to an enjoyable system. btw Albert your son has some great taste in music, you should be proud. I agree rap is a stretch but I heard some Outkast(I think that is the name of the band/group- and they are damn good!), but all the rest your son likes is great music(IMO) I ain't much older-21- he is off to a wonderful start. I don't have an audiophiles in my family I am curious what it would have done if I had. ~Tim

From my own experience, I would say this eclecticism is pretty typical of audiophiles in general, but I don't think in my case that much of it was due to my system per se. I just think that folks who really know music, are curious about it, and won't simply lap up what they are fed by the recording and radio industries, are more likely to become audiophiles and recording collectors in the first place. The fact that a broadening of a lot of our tastes and the entry into full-blown audiophilia seem to coincide at a certain age in our lives is probably just due to a confluence of maturity and money available. It takes time both to be exposed to and appreciate the wide world of musical styles, as well as to accumulate the disposable income, the appropriate listening space, and the listening experience that causes critical dissatisfaction with one's erstwhile system and collection - and provides the means to do something about it.

I first woke up to music with "She Loves You" by the Beatles. Greatly enjoyed lots of the '60s rock bands and some of the '70s till about '78. Rock kind of left us at that point, and I switched to Fusion, kindled by the later Jeff Beck albums. Went heavy into Brand X, Solution, Passport, and alot of ECM stuff. This caused some migration into the more traditional jazz, and I became a Miles addict. Especially the real early stuff on Prestige like Diggin', Workin', Steaming', etc. I managed to collect nearly every album he had released on excellent original prints. Also dug 'Trane, Stitt, Monk, Paul Desmond, and I started going to jazz clubs in NYC to hear some live stuff. Storyville was cool. From there, it was just an explosion into all different types of music. Classical is some of my favorite. The only stuff I can't listen to is the newer radio and MTV fare(rap, house, hip-hop, and low talent modern commercial bands). Enjoy!