• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

Do you think this hobby is dying ??

Oh how we all love to hear a "WOW holy $#!t that sounds good!"

I once approached a guy dressed up as Elivs at a grocery store and I said "how ya doin Elvis" and he smiled and replied in a completely joyful way "just tryin to keep Rockabilly alive". Thesed days it seems that I'm trying to keep Hi Fi alive and I'm just as happy about it as Elvis was about Rockabilly.
 
I don't see this hobby dying anytime soon, mainly because there is so much vintage gear out there and skilled knowledgeable people willing to repair & restore it. I have another hobby that is always a day closer to death because there are only about 500,000 units in circulation in these United States, and just a handful of skilled armorers that really know how to work on them.
 
GChief said:
AK expensive or normal person expensive?
Click to expand...
"The kids wearing other peoples' clothes" expensive. That is, irresponsible spending on audio or other not really necessary hobby equipment such that fiscal responsibility is compromised. That might be someone with a $20K or a $200K annual income overspending it.
 
egellings said:
"The kids wearing other peoples' clothes" expensive. That is, irresponsible spending on audio or other not really necessary hobby equipment such that fiscal responsibility is compromised. That might be someone with a $20K or a $200K annual income overspending it.
Click to expand...
Ok, so normal people inexpensive then, not the much cheaper AK inexpensive. :thumbsup:
 
Most still have ears and still like music, so the hobby is not going anywhere. It's just changing and changes occur in spurts like the LP in the 50s and the CD in the 80s. We started with the crank victrola and morphed to the 17 inch boxes that served us the past 60 years. We are now transitioning to cell phones, chifi mini amps and active speakers.......different hardware.......same hobby
 
Not beating a 'dead horse' but ... maybe I am a little bit. Just thinking out loud. Nothing else to do tonight.

It sure would help if the 'newer music' being played nowadays was of a 'better/higher quality/standard'. To me, it's just not all that much 'quality' music. There is just nothing there, nothing happening, and no musical 'Movement'. A lot of flash & bling with 'no bang', a lot of 'look at me - love me' without 'musical depth' or 'true talent'. Musicianship:dunno: Not all new music - but a lot of it I wouldn't even cross the street to see the band or singer for free. Not interested.

I don't know if you know what I'm trying to say.

It's just a poor-quality repeat of what has already been done before. "New music is about as deep as a birdbath" as David Crosby stated. It really isn't very 'deep'.

OK... stereo systems.

Who needs a new quality mid-fi., or hi-fi, component stereo system to hear mediocre music? No one.

Why invest in a fine component stereo system if the newer music isn't great. There is No Need for a good stereo system. Smartphone will work just fine. Computer speakers will work perfect on a computer. Take the money and spend it on a new computer or some other 'digital gizmo' which will give you more satisfaction. The old saying: "Computers in - Stereos out. Folks can afford one or the other but not both".

I don't know. We all here have real stereo systems and love them! The hobby may not be dying but it sure seems to be 'crashing'. You can't even go to Best Buy anymore and buy a regular CD Boombox to play CDs on anymore. What's that telling you? 500 trillion CDs 'out there', or however many there are ... and no boomboxes or cars that play CDs anymore. Albums are over. I guess the new generations just stream 'songs' they like and play those on their computer gizmos.

Music is ART form. "Art is music that you can see. Music is Art you can hear," (Miles Davis)

The ART of music has deteriorated. It's not what it used to be. So... if you're a younger person ... 'what's the need or desire' to own a nice stereo system anymore? And everything has gotten so damn expensive 'just to live' - what's the sense in investing in a stereo? Who has the money for a stereo? It's even just hard to find a place to 'live' and afford it. A nice stereo and no place to 'set it up'. >> What's the sense? :dunno:

Even folks I know that were 'really into stereos and music' in the old days have strayed away from it totally. They have looked my system and have even told me: "Your still not into THAT, are you???" "Well, yes, I am." Then you play something they say: "Oh!! I remember THAT sound!!" with a big smile on their face. True story. But they just aren't into music or stereos anymore. Other 'pressing life issues & problems to deal with'. We all know that now.

So... it seems to me like the hobby is 'crashing'. The Death of stereo? Maybe for the most folks.

Will it rebound?
I think the only way it can EVER POSSIBLY REBOUND is:

1. that there has to be a musical 'MOVEMENT', an 'event' of sorts, and music will be the 'audio fuel' to power 'Movement'. Without the 'event' - no rebound to rally around. No event - no hard core 'audio fuel' required. It will just be a lot of lalala music - like it is now.

2. The economy has to get much, much, better where younger folks can afford a place to live, get a good job, live in a more 'stable' environment where they could 'set up' a good stereo system, afford a good car and just afford to live normal. Then maybe...

Maybe I'm totally wrong. That's my take on it.
 
Last edited:
bluesky said:
Not beating a 'dead horse' but ... maybe I am a little bit. Just thinking out loud. Nothing else to do tonight.

It sure would help if the 'newer music' being played nowadays was of a 'better/higher quality/standard'. To me, it's just not all that much 'quality' music. There is just nothing there, nothing happening, and no musical 'Movement'. A lot of flash & bling with 'no bang', a lot of 'look at me - love me' without 'musical depth' or 'true talent'. Musicianship:dunno: Not all new music - but a lot of it I wouldn't even cross the street to see the band or singer for free. Not interested.

I don't know if you know what I'm trying to say.

It's just a poor-quality repeat of what has already been done before. "New music is about as deep as a birdbath" as David Crosby stated. It really isn't very 'deep'.

OK... stereo systems.

Who needs a new quality mid-fi., or hi-fi, component stereo system to hear mediocre music? No one.

Why invest in a fine component stereo system if the newer music isn't great. There is No Need for a good stereo system. Smartphone will work just fine. Computer speakers will work perfect on a computer. Take the money and spend it on a new computer or some other 'digital gizmo' which will give you more satisfaction. The old saying: "Computers in - Stereos out. Folks can afford one or the other but not both".

I don't know. We all here have real stereo systems and love them! The hobby may not be dying but it sure seems to be 'crashing'. You can't even go to Best Buy anymore and buy a regular CD Boombox to play CDs on anymore. What's that telling you? 500 trillion CDs 'out there', or however many there are ... and no boomboxes or cars that play CDs anymore. Albums are over. I guess the new generations just stream 'songs' they like and play those on their computer gizmos.

Music is ART form. "Art is music that you can see. Music is Art you can hear," (Miles Davis)

The ART of music has deteriorated. It's not what it used to be. So... if you're a younger person ... 'what's the need or desire' to own a nice stereo system anymore? And everything has gotten so damn expensive 'just to live' - what's the sense in investing in a stereo? Who has the money for a stereo? It's even just hard to find a place to 'live' and afford it. A nice stereo and no place to 'set it up'. >> What's the sense? :dunno:

Even folks I know that were 'really into stereos and music' in the old days have strayed away from it totally. They have looked my system and have even told me: "Your still not into THAT, are you???" "Well, yes, I am." Then you play something they say: "Oh!! I remember THAT sound!!" with a big smile on their face. True story. But they just aren't into music or stereos anymore. Other 'pressing life issues & problems to deal with'. We all know that now.

So... it seems to me like the hobby is 'crashing'. The Death of stereo? Maybe for the most folks.

Will it rebound?
I think the only way it can EVER POSSIBLY REBOUND is:

1. that there has to be a musical 'MOVEMENT', an 'event' of sorts, and music will be the 'audio fuel' to power 'Movement'. Without the 'event' - no rebound to rally around. No event - no hard core 'audio fuel' required. It will just be a lot of lalala music - like it is now.

2. The economy has to get much, much, better where younger folks can afford a place to live, get a good job, live in a more 'stable' environment where they could 'set up' a good stereo system, afford a good car and just afford to live normal. Then maybe...

Maybe I'm totally wrong. That's my take on it.
Click to expand...
Hard disagree on the new music sucks angle. It's totally subjective, and really, one person's opinion is equal to another's given that statement. Different music moves different people in different ways.

I do heartily agree that the cost of living today is disproportionate to what it was a few decades ago, which leaves little cash for what is a very niche consumer electronics purchase. I've had to hit my peak earning potential to get what was mid-fi in the 1970-80's. Granted, if it were more important to me, I probably could've managed a nice system when I was younger. Even now, I'm like...uhh, should I be spending money on this?
 
bluesky said:
It sure would help if the 'newer music' being played nowadays was of a 'better/higher quality/standard'. To me, it's just not all that much 'quality' music. There is just nothing there, nothing happening, and no musical 'Movement'. A lot of flash & bling with 'no bang', a lot of 'look at me - love me' without 'musical depth' or 'true talent'. Musicianship:dunno: Not all new music - but a lot of it I wouldn't even cross the street to see the band or singer for free. Not interested.
Click to expand...
This is a very important point. I find that a growing number of people listen to what I grew up with in the 60s and 70s and what they consider to be truly worthwhile music tapers off from there. I feel the same way. The occurence of music that I truly apreciate started falling off pretty fast in the 80s. There was some sort of commercial push to make a big change and it wasn't good from my perspective. I try to give all forms of music a chance but some of it has such bad production and/or no redeemable musical quality that there's just no point.

Where then would the motivation come from to want Hi Fi? It seems that the answer is not new popular music but rather something "alternative" or old. There are always exceptions, but the only music produced recently that I find exceptional came from performers that could not possibly qualify as famous or mainstream. And that music is VERY good and the production is mind boggling. It demonstrates to me that my gear is better than I think.

And yes, I argree with the music is subjective part and that is no doubt a complex subject on it's own.
 
Last edited:
Vintage receivers are novelty items to most people nowadays. If you had one when you were younger or experienced one in your life, they become things of legend - novelties - and become sought after. In the same way today, younger people now in their teens and 20's find one or see one in the same manner older people did and the cycle continues. There is always going to be a demand for cool things and, as we all know, so many of these vintage electronics are COOL. They will continue to be.

But I think the real turn from these types of components for younger people is their size. Certainly the performance of today's much smaller components are similar to vintage gear and in some ways superior. I think this is particularly true with speakers. There seems to be a preference for sleeker components. And this is clearly similar to the turning away from console systems, separates guys my age (54) preferred - altho my experience has me always looking for one cool console to own.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but functionality often dictates the decision. A sleek system today with smaller components and speakers is often just more functional. I'd love to have some nice cabinet speakers from the 1970's - especially the ones my uncle gave me that were covered in gold velour or thick velvet material, they were a delightful mess in the best sense of being kitschy. I have no idea of the brand, but knowing him they were good quality. But nowadays, finding the right spot for them to function properly - other than just using them as end tables (lol) sort of makes my point about size being a limiting factor with these kinds of things anymore.
 
I don't really buy the idea that our hobby of vintage gear is diminishing because of new music. The amount of music out there seems far greater than anything we experienced. I don't care for her music, but TS puts out a record and it's quadruple platinum in minutes, it seems. People certainly have unprecedented choice nowadays in music. They need something to play it on, but the availability of digital sources have enabled smaller and smaller devices on on which to play music. Maybe it's diminishing because of the form the music is delivered in... I mean the furniture industry changed from the perspective of storage for LP's... Finding an entertainment center anymore to hold multiple components, a tv, records, etc just doesn't exist anymore.
 
drjohnnyfeva said:
But I think the real turn from these types of components for younger people is their size.
Click to expand...
And weight. There needs to be receiver or integrated amplifier made that can be small, light, Hi Fi, and of course cool. Why isn't that so? These days you could even have an analog tuning with a vintage looking needle without the big variable capacitor etc.. It could also use a modern switching supply to power a pristine linear/analog power amplfier.
 
DVjorge said:
Hi everyone,

Every single day, I see less and less Hi-Fi stores and equipment. At least, in Miami, where I live, most of the dedicated stores are closing. Hi-Fi equipment manufacturers are presenting less lines, less models, and many of them are switching to commercial electronic or other branches. I don't see young guys interested in Hi-Fi. I see them completely toward to Ipads, Iphones, Wireless Headphones, and storage chips.

For me, someone who has been enjoying Hi-Fi gear for more than 40 years, it is a sad thing.

What we love is about playing music using the best possible way, according to our possibilities. But, most of us can not negate we are equipment lovers, probably more than music lovers. I can not think of myself enjoying a record using a computer speaker set ,or listening to MP3 music, or from a memory stick.

What do you think about the future of this hobby ?? What are your predictions ??

Thanks
Click to expand...

I am not quite sure about the significance of future. Let us enjoy our gear, our records today, at this VERY moment. At this moment, seperated from past and future life does occur. Nowhere else. Past is over. Future is not our cup of tea if we live in the very present.

Just spinning an Oscar Peterson album and everthing is fine. I think that this is what Zen is about. Be there.
 
Retrofier said:
And weight. There needs to be receiver or integrated amplifier made that can be small, light, Hi Fi, and of course cool. Why isn't that so? These days you could even have an analog tuning with a vintage looking needle without the big variable capacitor etc.. It could also use a modern switching supply to power a pristine linear/analog power amplfier.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I agree. What's super interesting to me at the moment is to see some of the mods people here are doing with non-working vintage components with inserting raspberry pi boards in to control broken parts. I forget the thread, but someone cobbled together an entire raspberry pi controller that controlled a streamer that, in it's time was very good, but had failed. I found it really interesting.

Kids get this kind of electronics building and designing in tech classes starting in MS where they work with raspberry pi and other similar products to solve simple problems. Of course, kids have been building full size arcade cabinets with raspberry pi boards running ROMs for a couple decades now, it's only natural that they find some cool 80's and 90's stereo components and fix them with those tools.

The hobby might look different, but stuff that's cool is found by cool people and continues to be cool by fixing it or adapting it. I love green LED's lighting my little Fisher 170. It wasn't built that way, but I like the look and figured out how to do it.
 
Retrofier said:
This is a very important point. I find that a growing number of people listen to what I grew up with in the 60s and 70s and what they consider to be truly worthwhile music tapers off from there. I feel the same way. The occurence of music that I truly apreciate started falling off pretty fast in the 80s. There was some sort of commercial push to make a big change and it wasn't good from my perspective. I try to give all forms of music a chance but some of it has such bad production and/or no redeemable musical quality that there's just no point.

Where then would the motivation come from to want Hi Fi? It seems that the answer is not new popular music but rather something "alternative" or old. There are always exceptions, but the only music produced recently that I find exceptional came from performers that could not possibly qualify as famous or mainstream. And that music is VERY good and the production is mind boggling. It demonstrates to me that my gear is better than I think.

And yes, I argree with the music is subjective part and that is no doubt a complex subject on it's own.
Click to expand...

Thank you davidhun, retrofier, & Michael!! Most appreciated.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom