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All I Care About Is The Sound. True Or False?

All I Care About Is The Sound. True Or False?

  • True

    Votes: 31 26.7%

  • False

    Votes: 46 39.7%

  • Not That Simple, Explain.

    Votes: 39 33.6%
  • Total voters
    116
  • Poll closed .
Definitely FALSE for me.

I mean .....the sound is definitely important. Very important. But it's not the only thing. Other things factor in. Appearance, reliability, how they fit into the area, nostalgia, reliability, etc.

And unfortunately the older I get and the more my hearing deteriorates, the less sound is a factor.
 
For me its all about the sound as this is what music is all about.....The same way when buying a TV its all about the PICTURE....I remember a sales man once telling me that this TV's picture is not as clear as the other one but it has better sound. I looked at him and said I dont care about the sound I am buying a TV to watch it so it needs to have the clearest picture. I listen with my ears and watch with my eyes.

If I need to look at the aesthetics of my sound system to make the music more enjoyable then I am the one with the problem. LMAO
 
French Bulldog Syndrome. You know the bread: ugly, screwed-up face, squashed nostrils, ears too big for it's head. They're SO ugly, that they become attractive.
For me the 70's was a haven for this syndrome. Automotive design, architechture, interior design, furniture.....It just is SO ugly, but that's why I love it so much.
Yes, it's got to sound great, but if it doesn't have 'The Look', then I'm not buying it. Conversely, I've purchased many an ugly item of hifi, only to find that the sound quality matched its' looks!

Here's my Isophon G3707's in Frankenstein's cabinets. Not many partners would put up with these in the living room.
isophon A.JPG
 
Robisme said:
Has to sound good, to me, and be in near perfect condition. Oh, and for the main system, it must fit in the rack.

Rob
Click to expand...

Ditto!

Sound quality is always #1, along with function & equipment condition. & yes... it must all fit in the rack too!!

:thumbsup:


But, back in the old days, without much money, 'Sound Quality was #1 - only. If the equipment didn't look so good... oh well, so be it... it sure sounded good!! :)
 
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True. ie.The sound I want.
Since 1969 I have been aiming for the sound I used to hear upstairs in a small Jazz club in Blackpool England (my home town) and another small venue I went to in Blackpool and heard John Lee Hooker live.
Everything I have upgraded is to that end. Sure, I like Pink Floyd and The Yardbirds and Quicksilver Messenger Service and Led Zeppelin.
But my goal was to make my system it sound like a live performance in that club.
I have done that. (But still going to upgade my speakers again)
 
vinowino said:
True. ie.The sound I want.
Since 1969 I have been aiming for the sound I used to hear upstairs in a small Jazz club in Blackpool England (my home town) and another small venue I went to in Blackpool and heard John Lee Hooker live.
Everything I have upgraded is to that end. Sure, I like Pink Floyd and The Yardbirds and Quicksilver Messenger Service and Led Zeppelin.
But my goal was to make my system it sound like a live performance in that club.
I have done that. (But still going to upgade my speakers again)
Click to expand...
what speakers are you running now?
 
You are from NZ so you may have heard of this guy who built mine. If you search Image Loud Speakers the first ones you see are similar to mine. NZ firm.
I say similar because the guy that started this firm custom made mine for me before the firm changed. So they are not the same as the ones you see on present day Image website. But still very good.
I hope to go to Trenner and Friedl which I have heard at a home in Auckland.
 
vinowino said:
True. ie.The sound I want.
Since 1969 I have been aiming for the sound I used to hear upstairs in a small Jazz club in Blackpool England (my home town) and another small venue I went to in Blackpool and heard John Lee Hooker live.
Everything I have upgraded is to that end. Sure, I like Pink Floyd and The Yardbirds and Quicksilver Messenger Service and Led Zeppelin.
But my goal was to make my system it sound like a live performance in that club.
I have done that. (But still going to upgade my speakers again)
Click to expand...
Not that I doubt that your system sounds great (maybe even fantastic) and that it has a certain live music quality to it, but I wonder about just how closely one can get a system to sound like some particular music space. Even with jazz music, which tends to be recorded with far less coloration and electronic trickery than pop records, I still hear a lot of variation in the fundamental sound qualities of different albums. Some have more of a room sound and then within that, a bigger or more intimate room sound and some have less of a room type sound and seem like you're more on stage with the band, rather than hearing it at a distance. With all of that variation in the way that the music has been been recorded, how then does a audio system make it all sound like live music from one particular room? Perhaps you're only referring to music on one label recorded by one particular engineer...?
 
Last edited:
RunOutGroove said:
Not that I doubt that your system sounds great (maybe even fantastic) and that it has a certain live music quality to it, but I wonder about just how closely one can get a system to sound like some particular music space. Even with jazz music, which tends to be recorded with far less coloration and electronic trickery than pop records, I still hear a lot of variation in the fundamental sound qualities of different albums. Some have more of a room sound and then within that, a bigger or more intimate room sound and some have less of a room type sound and seem like you're more on stage with the band, rather than hearing it at a distance. With all of that variation in the way that the music has been been recorded, how then does a audio system make it all sound like live music from one particular room? Perhaps you're only referring to music on one label recorded by one particular engineer...?
Click to expand...
Perhaps I should have said "I am so close to that I am happy"
Sometimes my son-in-law comes over (he lives right next door) and puts his bottle of wine on the table and says "Put on some Lightnin Hopkins" So I have a few live ones recorded in a club or bar somewhere, and he says "Man, that sounds like he is in the room here" I am pleased with that.
I have all tube gear. He has spent thousands on Home Theatre stuff (thats great for Bruce Willis movies) but he loves my sound. All depends what one is after.
 
vinowino said:
You are from NZ so you may have heard of this guy who built mine. If you search Image Loud Speakers the first ones you see are similar to mine. NZ firm.
I say similar because the guy that started this firm custom made mine for me before the firm changed. So they are not the same as the ones you see on present day Image website. But still very good.
I hope to go to Trenner and Friedl which I have heard at a home in Auckland.
Click to expand...
they look cool,how sensitive are your units? ss or tube amps pushing them? i to have found my system becoming ''finished'',
mike
 
newzealand said:
hey look cool,how sensitive are your units? ss or tube amps pushing them? i to have found my system becoming ''finished'',
mike
Click to expand...
EAR 834P Phone Box. 3 tubes
EAR 834 Intergrated Amplifier. 12 tubes
Tells me 50 watts channel.
Years ago I used to have a NAD SS amp. Rated up to 120 watt. This EAR amp gives me a lot more "power" "depth" what ever people like to call it.
 
vinowino said:
EAR 834P Phone Box. 3 tubes
EAR 834 Intergrated Amplifier. 12 tubes
Tells me 50 watts channel.
Years ago I used to have a NAD SS amp. Rated up to 120 watt. This EAR amp gives me a lot more "power" "depth" what ever people like to call it.
Click to expand...
12 tubes is alot ,50watts is very high for a tube amp ,is it not?i never have heard a valve set up to compare to my own
i use sony ES gear ,
have you a pic?
one of mine
mike001.JPG 005.JPG 004.JPG
 
Tube amplifiers that produce 50 Watts per channel are abundant. There are a number of 100+ Watt tube amps. If you can afford them there are some that are in the 300 Watt and up range.

I use a pair of modified Dynaco MK-III's. They are 60 Watt amplifiers.
 
vinowino said:
Perhaps I should have said "I am so close to that I am happy"
Sometimes my son-in-law comes over (he lives right next door) and puts his bottle of wine on the table and says "Put on some Lightnin Hopkins" So I have a few live ones recorded in a club or bar somewhere, and he says "Man, that sounds like he is in the room here" I am pleased with that.
I have all tube gear. He has spent thousands on Home Theatre stuff (thats great for Bruce Willis movies) but he loves my sound. All depends what one is after.
Click to expand...
Right on... Though I'm skeptical at just how much one can nail the sound of a specific venue with an audio system (with all of the variability in the way something has been recorded), I'm also of the opinion that a recording should just sound great in a completely non-objective way. As I say, "if it sounds good it IS good!" I bet those tubes do sound good! I don't see going that way for a variety of reasons but none of which have to do with the quality of the sound, as I know that they can do a particular thing that sounds really amazing. If I were to live in larger house where I could set up a second system, I think that I'd surely get some low power tube setup... and then I'd probably be pulling out those really old records to listen on it and do some time traveling...
 
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