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The Definition of An Audiophile

My definition of an Audiophile is a person who seeks the recreation/reproduction of music in their home based on a live event.

The purpose of this thread is to gain an understanding of why the majority of people on this forum only compare components to each other. I don’t understand the terms of one amplifier sounding more musical than another. How about the “cold and sterile” attribute often attributed to Halcro amplifiers. The description “tube sounding” description sometimes applied to a solid-state amp is another example.

Whatever happened to a comparison of an actual live event? I consider myself an Audiophile; as well as, I presume, everybody else who frequents this website. How many of you so called Audiophiles have ever been to a decent live event. I’m not talking about your local Civic Center jam packed with 30,000 screaming punks smoking pot, no offense; I used to be one some time ago. How about a concert in a acoustically correct hall with minimal amplification?

The ultimate goal is unadulterated recorded music from the artist to your ears in the privacy of your home. As we all know every electronic component from the front-end source to the speaker adds some form of signature to the recording. The phrase “the best amplifier is the one that adds the least amount of unwanted distortion or noise to a signal” is a very good description. So when I read a thread on a comparison of a particular amplifier that sounds tube like or more musical then another this only mean one thing; the amplifiers are adding unwanted noise!!

Comparisons of “cold and sterile” are based on someone’s reference, most likely, to a tube amplifier or one that sounds tube like with it’s rounded off music transients to avoid the presumed solid state harshness. Have any of you Audiophiles ever thought that the “cold and sterile” attribute just might be the amplifier with the least amount of added distortion or noise to the original source?

How about the next time someone thinks about asking for advice on the qualities of a particular brand compared to another go to a live event before asking the question. That also goes for all you experts, with all the experience of multiple brand ownership and auditioning ready to give the advice. When you’re at this live event ask yourself this question; does the music sound tube like, cold and sterile, or does it sound like the real thing?
audia
rodman99999
6,131 posts
 
Audia- Here's a decent little treatise that mirrors my opinion on the subject of compression, and will save me a lot of typing: (http://www.woodpecker.com/writing/essays/compression.html)
zargon's avatar
zargon
453 posts
 
Detlof,

deeply enjoy what you have but at the same time be open for improvement

I found the description of your life long quest to be very well composed, passionate, and much like my own. Thanks for putting it into words for all of us.
detlof
1,899 posts
 
Zargon:
Thanks for your kind words!

Timrhu:
You make a good point, but perhaps there is a misunderstanding here, as well as a lack of a proper definition of what I, as well as many others of the audiophile brood, understand as "live music". This certainly need not be classical, I just took this as an example. It could be any kind of live music, though I personally find, that if you want to emulate the sound of live unplugged guitars, a live event very heavily amplified by all sorts of electronics on stage as well as being fed through several speakers, though it can sound great if on disk at home, would not be a good example. What I would see as a benchmark by which all systems should be measured is the sound of live instruments or voices. This can be any kind of instrument, any kind of music from classical to pop, world music, whatever kind. What matters, if you wish to use the sound of real instruments in a real space, no matter if in a concert or a studio, say an unplugged guitar or the sound of a kick drum as a benchmark for the performance of a similar instrument played by your system, is that you have a distinct memory of the live event(s) for your critical evaluation.
To me, an audiophile is a person who loves live music and tries to emulate and enjoy his love of music in his own home to the best of his possibilities. Whatt kind of music he prefers does not matter.
You are quite right on the other hand in pointing out to us, that most of our software is not from a live event and is highly processed in most cases. Sometimes, though not in all cases, processing in the studio can help, that the facsimile of the real thing comes closer to sound "real", sound more "live"than it would have without being processed. Hence it is quite clear that a record which an audiophile happily might describe as coming close to sounding like "real live music", will certainly not only be thanks to his set up, but also thanks to the long process of recording the event in the studio, processing it and finally, say in the case of vinyl, pressing the record. As we all know, we need next to a decent rig good software, when we want to show off with our system and I believe that we need an absolute, if we want to compare the sound of one rig with the sound of another. The absolute, though necessarily still not at all free of subjectivism would be the "gestalt" of live music, as we know and have experienced it.
Cheers,
Detlof
saki70
907 posts
 
Please forgive me for I am fairly new to this hobby and probably don't get it !
But I have never tried ,or even considered , to produce the live event in my home . It just has never crossed my mind !
I do however try to produce a pleasing rendition of the tunes that I enjoy . I do not try to achieve what is quite
unachievable . I do not have any interest in tweaking or just plain fiddling with something that isn't broken . I am a firm believer in the old addage 'if it ain't broke , don't fix it' !

For me , the hobby is music enjoyment not equipment enjoyment . I equate this to my earlier auto hobby . There were those that were always tuning , fixing and just plain fiddling with their cars . And then there were those of use that were out driving our cars !

I do not subscribe to your defintion of an 'audiophile' and I would bet that you don't subscribe to mine !
I seek equipment that makes the music more satisfying to me .
I am 'moved' by music . I find that I do enjoy some coloration . I like warmth , I like PRaT , I like detail and most of all I like my music to have body or life . This is what determines my equipment choices .

Sometimes I close my eyes , relax and yes even fall asleep ! And sometimes I am bobbing my head , tapping my feet , playing air guitar or just dancing !
Music does things 'for' me and 'to' me . 'It' is the reason !

Different strokes for different folks !
rodman99999
6,131 posts
 
Audia(et al)- Here's something you may find useful in your search for good (Minimally compressed)digital software: (http://www.digido.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=46&Itemid=36) Peruse the rest of the pages for some valuable industry insights.
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