Some people just dont get it.

The real issue here is the listener's ears and how trained or untrained they are. When I first started into this hobby (oh too many years ago) a friend who had been into it for some 4 years already taught me something. If it sounds impressive on first listening - it has been deliberately designed to do so. That's going to make you tired of listening pretty quickly. They do that to get the WOW impact for a quick sale.

Since then I take my time listening on any new equipment buy looking for neutral and transparent sounding equipment that just sort of disappears from the sound.

Many of those with untrained ears are looking to be impressed the first time they listen to a system. Doesn't do it for me so my system is singularly unimpressive upon first listening.

Never been sorry with a purchase since.
 
Some of my best friends are 'audio illiterate'.

Most of it is explaining what 'true surround is' when they belive 'well its got sound coming out of it so its setup right, right?'. I had one friend who setup her system drunk and put all the speaker wires in one output. I about had a heart attack. But the killer was that she wouldnt let me fix it. So I had to sit there all night knowing how messed up it was. I had nightmares.


Ive know ppl who dont even know their DVD player plays CD's.

I had a freind who pruchased an HTIB and still had L&R RCAs to his reciever from his DVD player. He was listening to everythin in Pro Logic mode. Once I setup his system correctly, he was AMAZED!!!!!. His whole system cost under $100 But he was happy.


I think once we start hearing 'better' sound, our tolerance for 'bad sound' diminishes.
But then I think we get to a point where 'our' system is better no matter what.
 
Really I got a kick out of this story and learned a little something too.

You guys have brought up some really good points here, my system will sound better to me because it is MY system and I have built it for me.

I do rather enjoy demoing my gear to people though and getting those looks of amazement and enjoyment, its alot of fun especially in a college environment where there are so many types of people and most of my peers have not been exposed to even decent audio.

I'm in the process of helping one of my friends put together a system with a couple of my left over speakers however the poor girl didn't even know what a receiver was until I explained it. One day she called me saying that she was at walmart with $30 to spend and that she wanted a stereo NOW, I almost cried. It took me half an hour to convince her that a little patience would solve all problems.
 
I don't mind when people don't know much about audio equipment. I mean, I know nothing about a lot of people's hobbies. Trap shooting? Cross Stitch? I got nothin'. What ticks me off is when they talk like they know stuff, and start to brag, when they really have no idea what they're talking about. Like the guy who sat next to me at the Roger Waters concert last year, and wouldn't shut up about his 800 computer speakers.

I'm lucky in that most people that come to my house have a love of music, as most of my friends and a lot of people my age just are really obsessed with it. So when they hear my main system, they're usually pretty impressed, usually by the sound, but sometimes by the sheer size of it when they're used to iPods or at most a home theater in a box. The Dahlquist DQ-30s stand about 5 feet high and probably approach 80 or 90 pounds, which is pretty imposing to begin with, and the tuner is bigger than most receivers they've ever seen.

Who knows, though. One of my neighbors in this little artist loft community has an SX-1250 and he had no idea it was anything special. It was just passed down through the ages to land on his milk-crate stand for it. He didn't brag or anything, he just liked it because it was old. But it's amazing what can happen to peoples systems when you simply move their speakers to make some sort of coherent sound stage. "Oh, man, it sounds 3D now!"

And that's just it...you can try to teach them something simple, to help them. I'm still learning myself, so I know how it feels. It can be intimidating. And there are some people, like the neighbor in the original post, who will never learn. They think they know everything, and that's the quickest route to never knowing anything at all.
 
I think its kind of funny when I talk to older men and they are all snoody when I say that I like vintage gear, and then they soon realize I know a lot more than they do, its just because I read a lot.
 
Sir.Byrd said:
I think its kind of funny when I talk to older men and they are all snoody when I say that I like vintage gear, and then they soon realize I know a lot more than they do, its just because I read a lot.
Click to expand...

I had that experience in a vintage audio shop I discovered today.

'... Can... I... help... you... ?'

... Moments later...

'See you around, dude!'

Walked out with an isolation transformer he had kicking around in the back.
 
Most people who come to my house raise their eyebrows when my Thorens is spinnin', but mostly they don't care.

It's cool w/me cause my rig is FOR me.

:)

Matt
 
Co-worker told me they got a brand new 48 inch HD LCD and the BOSE 3-2-1 system. They went out and bought 5 HD DVDs or Blu-rays and thought since there TV was HD, the BOSE would play them. I didn't want to tell them about returning opened movies.

I did offer my help and I did say I could get a Denon HTiB(w/upconverting DVD) for $450 cost, but they thought the BOSE at $2500 was better.
 
Welcome to the fringe, I guess. Some people just don't care how things sound as long as there is background music. Some folks don't care what they drive as long as it is reliable and gets good mileage. Some folks smoke cheap cigars or drink box wine, some don't. My mother in law has a multi thousand dollar sewing machine for making quilts. I don't even know what it does and I really don't care. But, hey, that is her hobby. People are just different, into different things. Those that are really into music but don't realize what's possible with good systems are probably the ones who will be impressed. Would love to demo my setup to others but not sure if I know too many who would appreciate it.

Michael
 
Well being of the younger generation and liking to show off my system I have observed something. In my system, the speakers are the first thing that gets their attention. Probably has something to do with them being 6cf each and having 15" woofers. Most of them say "wow those must be loud" (which they can be) or "those must put out a lot of bass" (which surprisingly, they don't). But I have yet to meat a person who was not impressed by the sound. :thmbsp:
 
i have a young friend (compared to moi) that has a system in his (tiny) car that
is ridiculous.

i do not listen to rap or much newer music. he does... as well as trance and all
the other pinball sounding genre, but to each their own. i digress.

i played a sly and robbie cd in his car, tweaked the knobs so it was
realistically balanced, and i blew his socks off in his own car.

then i brought him in the casa and played a reggae rekkid on my vintage tt & gear.
(i have many different old players, victrolas, etc)

i think his jaw is likely still wide open, weeks later.
 
Just curious, anyone else have any other stories where they have had to educate the audio illiterate?
Click to expand...

Several times. I always love the "I had no idea it could sound that good" comment.
 
My kids (20, 18, and 13) all have decent vintage systems. Only the eldest was into it voluntarily at first. Several years ago my now 18 year old daughter, soon after getting hers (Under protest), was telling me how all her friends’ boom boxes and mini systems sounded so bad to her now. NOW she won't turn loose of it.

Some of their friends appreciate the better music, but for most of them, Ipods, shitty ear buds, and computer speakers, as well as their HT home systems have made their expectations so low that they don’t know any better.

Some people are willing to listen and those people I will spend time helping and educating. Others couldn’t care less, and I don’t waste my time or energy.
 
I showed a 34 year old work colleague a picture of my Reel to Reel player. Her response was, "Throw it away!"

I realize an RTR is pretty exotic nowadays, but that answer floored me.
 
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