Purchases Today

[Madiel]

Not sure what I meant, spell-check knew better...

Hehe. Well, if the spell-checker doesn't know the difference between the French and the Irish, that's unfortunate.

[Mirror Image]

While I absolutely cannot buy another Shostakovich cycle (if I did, my dear wife would find that act bitterly provoking) I look forward to your report.

Will do, Karl. I'm hoping to start ripping this set tomorrow. In the evening, I'll be listening to the 4th to start things off. This is a difficult one to get right.

[DavidW]

Will do, Karl. I'm hoping to start ripping this set tomorrow. In the evening, I'll be listening to the 4th to start things off. This is a difficult one to get right.

Why rip it?  I thought you only listened to physical cds on your stereo?

[Mirror Image]

Why rip it?  I thought you only listened to physical cds on your stereo?

I used to listen to my stereo a good bit, but not much for the past 4-5 years. I've basically turned into a 'headphone guy', so for the past two years or so I've been ripping a lot of my collection to my computer and saving the files on two 1TB SSDs. Everything is arranged alphabetically via Music on my Macbook. I'm quite content with this arrangement and it's served me well so far. The CDs themselves are like my hardcopies and I still like reading the liner notes to recordings. Nothing will ever replace the sound of a good stereo amplifier, but since I live with my folks, it's kind of out of the question. Also, I like the analytical side of listening through headphones. For me, it's difficult to hear a pianissimo passage through speakers, but with headphones I can hear it clearly.

[Florestan]

Die Meistersinger is clearly one of my top 5 operas ever, and IMHO Act III is absolute perfection (musically and dramatically). Even if it sounds exaggerated, Ignacy Jan Padewerski's famous dictum on the piece , 'the greatest work of genius ever achieved by any artist in any field of human endeavour", is not far off the mark.

Actually, it's just as cursi as Tchaikovsky's praise of Mozart as "the highest, the culminating point that beauty has attained in the sphere of music." 

Good day, Rafael.

[Carlo Gesualdo]

Ensemble Luca Marenzio Italian Madrigals LP, whit Luca Marenzio and obscure strangers to my knowledge, other Italian madrigalists.


The other LP, is Spanish Renaissance music release in 1960 this album a total mystery, sound'S awesome hey, what about thiese purchase?

Have a nice wonderful, splendid day full of sun and joy 

[DavidW]

I used to listen to my stereo a good bit, but not much for the past 4-5 years. I've basically turned into a 'headphone guy', so for the past two years or so I've been ripping a lot of my collection to my computer and saving the files on two 1TB SSDs. Everything is arranged alphabetically via Music on my Macbook. I'm quite content with this arrangement and it's served me well so far. The CDs themselves are like my hardcopies and I still like reading the liner notes to recordings. Nothing will ever replace the sound of a good stereo amplifier, but since I live with my folks, it's kind of out of the question. Also, I like the analytical side of listening through headphones. For me, it's difficult to hear a pianissimo passage through speakers, but with headphones I can hear it clearly.

Oh that is funny, we basically went opposite ways.  I'm now a stereo guy that sometimes listens on headphones.

[Mirror Image]

Oh that is funny, we basically went opposite ways.  I'm now a stereo guy that sometimes listens on headphones.

Indeed, but you're also into streaming and all of that, right?

[Florestan]

It's been years since I've last listened through loudspeakers. Ninety-nine per cent of my listening time is through a portable mp3/FLAC player (FiiO M3K) and headphones, one per cent streaming through my laptops (I have three in two different locations). I'm super happy with that, honestly.

[Mirror Image]

It's been years since I've last listened through loudspeakers. Ninety-nine per cent of my listening time is through a portable mp3/FLAC player (FiiO M3K) and headphones, one per cent streaming through my laptops (I have three in two different locations). I'm super happy with that, honestly.

Indeed and I would be as well. There's no point going through life in search of audio perfection, because, at the end of the day, it's about what sounds good to your ears and what is convenient for you. I've arrived at a compromise that I'm willing to accept and I have no regrets about it.

[Florestan]

Indeed and I would be as well. There's no point going through life in search of audio perfection, because, at the end of the day, it's about what sounds good to your ears and what is convenient for you. I've arrived at a compromise that I'm willing to accept and I have no regrets about it.

Precisely. The audiophile obsession is completely alien to me, so much so as most of my top 10 composers' music was originally heard in less than ideal performances and venues and certainly by a misbehaving audience --- judging by our standards, that is. 

[Mirror Image]

Precisely. The audiophile obsession is completely alien to me, so much so as most of my top 10 composers' music was originally heard in less than ideal performances and venues and certainly by a misbehaving audience --- judging by our standards, that is. 

I can only nod my head along with your own, Andrei. My dad, essentially an audio engineer without the 'proper' training, has admitted that he don't understand these audiophile people.

[Florestan]

I can only nod my head along with your own, Andrei. My dad, essentially an audio engineer without the 'proper' training, has admitted that he don't understand these audiophile people.

Your dad would go along very fine with our Finnish fellow 71dB (Poju), also a professional acoustics engineer, who repeatedly made very similar points about audiophiliia.

[Mirror Image]

Your dad would go along very fine with our Finnish fellow 71dB (Poju), also a professional acoustics engineer, who repeatedly made very similar points about audiophiliia.

Yeah, they'd definitely show how big of nerds they are...oh wait, we do that here without the discussion of fidelity.

[DavidW]

Indeed, but you're also into streaming and all of that, right?

Yes so we are completely different.  I mostly stream and listen on speakers and you mostly listen to ripped cds on headphones!

[DavidW]

It's been years since I've last listened through loudspeakers. Ninety-nine per cent of my listening time is through a portable mp3/FLAC player (FiiO M3K) and headphones, one per cent streaming through my laptops (I have three in two different locations). I'm super happy with that, honestly.

That is funny because listening on a FiiO dap is LITERALLY THE AUDIOPHILE SOLUTION!  Everyone else just uses their phone.  People that are not audiophiles have no clue what FiiO is.

And MI don't even start, I know that you took effort in the past to buy audiophile grade headphones.  Neither of you can pretend that you're salt of the Earth when it comes to your gear!

[Mirror Image]

Yes so we are completely different.  I mostly stream and listen on speakers and you mostly listen to ripped cds on headphones!

That is funny because listening on a FiiO dap is LITERALLY THE AUDIOPHILE SOLUTION!  Everyone else just uses their phone.  People that are not audiophiles have no clue what FiiO is.

And MI don't even start, I know that you took effort in the past to buy audiophile grade headphones.  Neither of you can pretend that you're salt of the Earth when it comes to your gear!

Well, yes, I do own several pairs of Sennheisers (namely HD 598, HD 560S and HD 600) plus some other headphones from Phillips, Audio-Technica and Sony. Like Andrei, I also use a headphone amplifier (a FiiO K5 Pro), but haven't in the past few years. I guess when I think of an audiophile, I'm thinking of someone who owns thousands of dollars worth of equipment and this is just to play a record. We haven't even gotten into the amplifiers, speakers, etc.

[Florestan]

That is funny because listening on a FiiO dap is LITERALLY THE AUDIOPHILE SOLUTION!  Everyone else just uses their phone.  People that are not audiophiles have no clue what FiiO is.

Well yes, FiiO may look like audiophile when compared to phones, but I agree with John that

when I think of an audiophile, I'm thinking of someone who owns thousands of dollars worth of equipment and this is just to play a record. We haven't even gotten into the amplifiers, speakers, etc.

I mean, you can't say that this



and this



are both audiophile, can you? 

[The new erato]

I shudder to think about your reaction to dear Harry's setup.....

I have cleaned up my act (see upper picture) a little the last few years, but the fact is that one can get amazingly good sound from some streaming services and good headphones. But I feel that the ambience of a room makes a great difference for extended listening if you have the possibility. But it takes up space. In small rooms I feel that phones in many situations may be the best option if they agree with you (but please spend some money on something better than plugs! And a decent phone amplifier is a must). I guess 500 USD will give you a very decent setup with amplifier and phones.

I feel some claustrophobia with phones for longer listening though.

My living room (lower picture) setup has great ambience and agrees with my wife somewhat better than the mancave (where I'm currently listening to the Beaux Arts playing Beethoven), even though it has been somewhat tidied up. BTW: Most equipment has been bought secondhand and accumulated over a period of many years. I'm not a great fan of mulling over sound, and in fact have owned only 5 sets of speakers over 50 years of listening in a number of rooms and locations. 3 of these sets are shown in these pictures and are currently in use.

Secondhand buying can provide great deals, if what you buy haven't been actively abused/misused it normally can provide you with listening pleasure for tens of years. HiFi nuts that need the latest often are prone to sell previous years models at a great discount, and there's not like there have been made amazing breakthroughs in sound reproduction.

[Artem]

Nice artwork on the wall, by the way.