[sebastian589]

We're not critical or judgmental at all, at least that is what I would tell you if you used the "too" instead of "to" in your title.

 

[nrwilk]

I, for one, am very happy that people speak in such a detailed manner of their cans and accessories. It has vastly helped me.

nrwilk

EDIT: just to clarify, I am a very new user, but I have close relatives that consider themselves audiophiles. So, I had been accustomed to people speaking like this already.

nrwilk

 

[terriblepaulz]

I had the same thought after coming here the first time. In fact, the first thing I thought of was my brother the wine geek, and how he described what we were drinking at X-mas dinner.

But after a while I realized that the differences in the sound of various headphones (like differences in wine), while subtle, are very important to matching a 'phone to a listener's taste (like pairing wine with food).

I am only at the beginning of what I hope is a long journey through multiple pieces of gear. Exploring the music I love through new gear seems like a blast to me, and that's why I spend so much time reading reviews, impressions etc., so hopefully, I will not make a bad choice (like drinking a big Cabernet with a delicate fish entree).

I am a big believer in the "wisdom of crowds". In other words, if you read a lot of different impressions of the same piece of gear, you will be confused in the short term, but a rough collective opinion will emerge eventually. That led me to the KSC75 - the best $20 I ever spent. So while I agree that some reviews or impressions seem overly analytical, those same opinions serve a valuable purpose in the context of the collective opinion about any piece of gear.

 

[rb67]

I agree with you to a point. If you like the way the headphones sound then that's all you need. However, everyone has different tastes in what they want in a headphone. When you get into the headphones most head-fiers have then you are at the point where they all sound great. However, one's taste may make them prefer one over the other. The really descriptive headphone reviews help those who may not have had the chance to personally listen to headphones imagine what they must sound like.

 

[Fitz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by terriblepaulz /img/forum/go_quote.gif I am a big believer in the "wisdom of crowds". In other words, if you read a lot of different impressions of the same piece of gear, you will be confused in the short term, but a rough collective opinion will emerge eventually. That led me to the KSC75 - the best $20 I ever spent. So while I agree that some reviews or impressions seem overly analytical, those same opinions serve a valuable purpose in the context of the collective opinion about any piece of gear.

I find the collective opinions on here wrong just as often as they are right. A lot of people comment on gear that they've never even heard, or shape their opinions to match what they've heard from other people (I saw in one person's meet impressions they described some phones using the exact same words I said at the meet, even though I was using that description with a much different context and meaning). I'd rather go with individual opinions from people who've shared similar opinions on other gear I've heard.

 

[Jokieman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by newgnr /img/forum/go_quote.gif ok, you convinced me with that. but aren't there instances where ppl often go a little overboard?

Absolutely. One of the first things I do when looking at reviews is to completely toss out the ones that are either 100% positive or 100% negative. Both of these types of reviews really bug the crap out of me. Though the 100% positive reviews bother me more because the simple fact is that there is not a perfect pair of headphones or IEs in existence.. And a perfect review is often a sign of 'I own them, so I think they're perfect.' Which is, in my experience, never the case.

There are pros and cons to every pair of IEs or Headphones, and an objective reviewer will list both.

 

[Wmcmanus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by captian73 /img/forum/go_quote.gif i think it's because we are all at different stages of a headphone history. until i joined headfi, i thought having 10 pairs of headphones was fairly obscene.

It is. I mean, really, it is. But that doesn't bother some of us, and we need to learn to accept ourselves.

 

[Vicomte]

Being analytical is what this hobby is about. That's what a hobby is, you know: a thing you enjoy doing so much that you decide to do the Hell out of it.

Why do we analyze? 'Cause it's fun!

You have to understand that the majority of audiophiles are in it for the music. I like watching television, but I enjoy it more in High Definition. I like sitting in chairs, but I like comfy chairs better. It's the same with music. If we were in it simply for the gear we would all be listening to sine waves and pink noise.

I'm still relatively new here, but Head-Fi has taught me to listen to music like I never have before. Most people hear music, I listen to it, and, consequentially, enjoy it more than I did before.

The gear is part of the musical experience. You could strap a couple of Dixie cups to your ears with some magnets and coils of wire and pick up AM radio stations playing polkas in the wee hours of the morning, if that's what gets your rocks off. I prefer a somewhat more complicated (Or perhaps less so

) route to musical happiness.

If you want to just rock out with the cans that sound 'good', that's fantastic. But some of us are going to be in the corner discussing how colored the midrange is and how there's a touch of sibilance in the treble. Or how well-extended the bass is, or how wide the soundstage is.

Some people juggle geese.

 

[TheMuffinMan_01]

It's not too analytical, its just at a certain point people don't hear the music any more they hear the sound, and until they spend enough money to make the headphones completely transparent, with everything sounding pretty much real, no one will be happy. I know I'm not

 

[luckybaer]

That's a really good question, and one that deserves a well-thought out answer.

Let me get a few people together to read some of the posts about headphones and amps that exist on this site.

I'll have them read enough posts to get a good statistical sample and then I will have them answer questions about the posts that are developed by a professional polling organization.

After combing through the results, I will do some low-level statistical analysis in Microsoft Excel and depict the findings through a handful of colorful charts and graphs.

Once I've proofread everything and I've let a statistical professor and an editor of textbooks give it a once-over, I will publish the results here and on my personal website.

My gut instinct tells me that this site can be a bit over-analytical, but I really won't know for sure until I complete what I briefly described above.

 

[redrich2000]

I think the problem is that there are two kinds of people that use this site, proper audiophiles who have well trained ears and are concerned about very subtle differences, then there are the music lovers that want decent sq but are going to be happy with a wider range of gear. The opinions of one group are not always that useful to the other.

I am one of the second group. A music lover. I orginally got sucked in to paying a lot for phones and amps that really were better than I needed to enjoy my music. Most of them have now been on sold. I also find that phones that are criticised here are not nearly as bad to my ears. For example I recently bought some PX200s after nealry deciding not to after reading opinions here. But I couldn't be happier with them.

I actually think it would be a big improvement to head-fi to have two categories of forums: audiophile and music lover. People could still browse both but it would make it much easier to work out what advice will suit your needs.

 

[Televator]

Quote:

Originally Posted by redrich2000 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I actually think it would be a big improvement to head-fi to have two categories of forums: audiophile and music lover. People could still browse both but it would make it much easier to work out what advice will suit your needs.

or you could just make that devision in your head... I'm new to Head-fi (as a poster, not as a lurker)... but I haven't read much reviews that didn't say: "this phone is great...but" and then went all analytical on my @ss...

If all you want is music appreciation at the lowest cost possible:
- do a decent search (limit by using words like 'budget' or something
- stop at the 'great'/'plain evil' part of a review
- learn to interpret the rest with a grain of audiophilic salt...it's not because someone writes it, it is the truth FOR YOU

If you are indeed trying to make a hobby out of Head-Fi and HiFI-listening:
- expect to spend more than you expect now (aka the 'sorry for your wallet' remark after every two posts here on Head-Fi)
- expect to listen to your equipment AS WELL as he music
- expect to be talking strange lingo like 'pronounced mids and overly tight lows' within no time yourself

but most of all:
- make that decision yourself (I myself am not even sure of my own head-fi approach... but I sure can miss another expensive hobby

)
- do not blame others for your lack of character! if you came here to learn to enjoy the music, either learn to distill what you're looking for from the posts, or search on for a music-aapreciation forum but don't deny these ppl their hobby

 

[Rrose Selavy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aaroncort /img/forum/go_quote.gif It seems to me that this, like any form of obsession that people develop, is an destraction to divert their attention off of parts of their emotional lives that have become unmanageable. The arguments and obsessive thought distract while the discontent is temporarily soothed by spending and upgrading only to crash and start the process over again. Sprechen sie Cathartic?!

Ja dude, ich spreche Cathartic!

 

[Happy Camper]

The diversity and humor is par exce-lant. Quick wit, slyly coy, in your face, sincere and damned intellegent (ignoring spelling and grammer accuracy) (maybe you guys have made too big of an impression on me). The characters here are a riot. I would say the educational and professional level is higher than most forums. It is the nature of the hobby. It can get vicious, opinionated, predictable, boring, funny, informative, innovative, genius.....

Take what you want from it. Once here long enough to know some of these analyticals and you come away with friendships and a much better understanding of the Hi-Fi world. I'm a old/hobbyist-noob to all the technological advancements. Amps, DACs, cables, headphone types, digital sources, etc. I want to know the technical evals. For someone who wants to know which is cooler, the black or the white, you'll get that too.

The folks here come from all walks of life with one common interest. The pursuit of musical satisfaction.

 

[redrich2000]

The problem is it takes a couple of months to work out how to interpret and adapt the info here to your own needs and by that time the wallet damage is done. None of what's great about Head-Fi would be lost by having two forum categories, but it would make it easier and clearer for new users.