Getting friends into Hi-Fi

Buy them some SE535's or AH-5000's.

Proselytizing doesn't work very well.

Personally, I've been giving out iGrados and SR-60i sets without making much of them. Some are amazed, some not. If they come back raving about thensound and wondering how I knew about them, then I'll draw them in.

So far, it resulted in my parents taking my AMT-1 speakers. Hey, they're happy and listening to a lot more music.

So you want your friends to get into a paycheck-sucking hobby despite their blatant lack of intrest. Some friend you are. XD

 

In all seriousness, most consumers are lazy when it comes to this stuff, so if one of your friends is contemplating paying $150 on a pair of Beats (You over the Head with Distorted and Muddy Bass) by Dre, they're going to think it's a great pair of cans. Why? Because Monster's whole corporate policy is to trick people like your friends into thinking these are audiophile headphones. They think that bass quantity is important, so any headphone you perscribe them will have to be cheap and comparable.

 

My advice would be to reccomend a Superlux or Samson set, as they're cheap, have good SQ, and aren't horrible to drive. I'd also reccomend reccomending a cheap amp, like a fiio e5 or something comparable. And you can always convince them to buy CDs instead of using iTunes, and change their rip settings to Apple Lossless without telling them. :)

 

You can give them a copy of a stereophile type of magazine and Music Direct catalog not really for them to buy stuff but to give them then an idea of what's out there. I have a friend who likes good stereo gear but has no idea of the "cult" of audiophillia. I gave him a copy of Music Direct catalog and it opened his eyes. He never realized how expensive things were and never heard tubes before which is a common lack of knowledge for the general public unless you lived as an adult in the 50s and 60s.

 

I think if a person thinks his audio system is top notch and suddenly becomes aware of the "hidden" audiophile world, he may rethink his opinion. This can be bad in a way because then the human mind could play tricks on you. One may think, maybe my Mozart isn't sounding at it's proper potential when the person should really be enjoying the beautiful music instead. So in that case, audiophillia awareness can be a distraction and counterproductive.

 

I will comment that car audio can be highly enjoyable IMO. Yes, it's not the ideal place for serious music but in a closed environment, the car contains the sound waves in a unique way that I admit it can be pleasing even if it is lo fi. I would not try to convert anyone though. I also have a co worker who enjoys listening to music on youtube through cheap stock headphones or cheap computer speakers and he enjoys it. I have in casual conversation mentioned higher quality stereo systems and turntables and but never in a way for him to try to get into buying something. I don't believe in that. Most people actually have simple and somewhat limited taste in music anyway so for them to get into hi-fi when they only own 10 CDs is somewhat ridiculous.

 

But getting back to your point, if your friend loves his rig, let him love it. I've seen guys with ugly girlfriends and wives and I never question it. What works for you is what matters and happiness is relative.