[Grahame]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uraflit /img/forum/go_quote.gif o the evils of knowledge

The price one pays for pursuing any profession or calling is an intimate knowledge of its ugly side.
James Baldwin
US author (1924 - 1987)

 

[Hirsch]

Sensory discrimination is a learned response. The physical ability to detect a stimulus may be innately present, but unless you teach the brain how to deal with it, you're not going to know what to do with it, and may not even "hear" it. That's not always a bad thing.

Many musicians don't have high-end audio gear. They're used to the sound of live instruments. Recorded music is all the same to them, unless the differences are truly radical, because they simply don't care, and those aren't the type of differences that they've learned. They might be able to tell you about differences in tone between two high-end piano's, because they've learned that discrimination and it matters to them.

Come to think of it, how many audiophiles can listen to a piano recording and tell a Steinway from a Yamaha? Not many, I'll bet. But we'll happily talk about impact, depth, etc etc ad infinitum.

 

[kukrisna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hirsch /img/forum/go_quote.gif Come to think of it, how many audiophiles can listen to a piano recording and tell a Steinway from a Yamaha? Not many, I'll bet. But we'll happily talk about impact, depth, etc etc ad infinitum.

yeah but so much goes into the recording itself that leaves it colored - microphones, cables, preamps - and then the whole mixing process - mixed to what monitors? EQ? compression? and then in mastering too

so in the end would that steinway still sound like a steinway? would that yamaha still sound like a yamaha?

and don't think little things like that don't affect sound - people can hear small differences because if they couldnt we might as well just use our neumann mics in ADR instead of that sennheiser boom mic and countryman lav

 

[ajsaxin]

it definetly is an acquired taste if you take a english football hooligan to a wine tasting event all he might say is why is fermented juice that does not get me drunk so expensive.could you expect a person who wears a suit to work only because he has to appreciate a 5k brioni would he be able to appreciate the fine effort and expertise gone into it so how can we expect some one to appreciate an k701 or the kind of research gone into it, for them an head phone is just to hear some music not to hear the exact music that was made by the artist. Being an audiophile is about being a perfectionist or a person wanting to attain that perfect reproduction of the musical work .

 

[carlineng]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uraflit /img/forum/go_quote.gif o the evils of knowledge

"For in much wisdom is much grief, and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow." Ecclesiastes 1:18

I'm not religious at all, but my friend in religious studies would always quote this particular passage in the Scripture.

 

[MCC]

I only have 1 friend that can tell the difference between 96k 22kHz MP3 and lossless.

 

[Chris_Himself]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MCC /img/forum/go_quote.gif I only have 1 friend that can tell the difference between 96k 22kHz MP3 and lossless.

oh my god that sucks. i better do some testing...

 

[DavidMahler]

About that steinway / Yamaha thing......

I couldnt swear I could tell the difference between a Yamaha and a Steinway in a recording. But when I see pianists play live, I usually know when its a steinway or yamaha. I don't even know if its the timbre......I actually think if you know a pianist's style well....for instance I'm very familiar with Martha Argerich or Alfred Brendel......I actually know how their style changes when they touch a Bosendorfer or a Yamaha or a Steinway......If I was hearing a pianist I was less familiar with, for instance Horowitz.......I would never know for sure what brand it was.

 

[MaloS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidMahler /img/forum/go_quote.gif About that steinway / Yamaha thing...... I couldnt swear I could tell the difference between a Yamaha and a Steinway in a recording. But when I see pianists play live, I usually know when its a steinway or yamaha. I don't even know if its the timbre......I actually think if you know a pianist's style well....for instance I'm very familiar with Martha Argerich or Alfred Brendel......I actually know how their style changes when they touch a Bosendorfer or a Yamaha or a Steinway......If I was hearing a pianist I was less familiar with, for instance Horowitz.......I would never know for sure what brand it was.

When I go to a live performance, I usually can see well enough what piano is being used

 

[IEMaddict]

I wouldnt say so much that audiophile listening is an acquired taste but more of an acquired skill. Most people when they listen to a headphone or speaker(people who dont listen for much of a "sound quality" purpose, but JUST for the music) only look for clarity and a ALOT of BASS. They don't look for natural sound, neutrality, refinement, airyness, smoothness, bass tightness, etc. And even if most of them tried to look for those things in the sound, I still don't think they would even be able to identify stuff like that. Listening at the superior audio level that most of us here on head-fi do and actually looking and also being able to identify things like these qualities in the audio, I believe is an aqcuired skill.

 

[DavidMahler]

Quote:

Originally Posted by IEMaddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif I wouldnt say so much that audiophile listening is an acquired taste but more of an acquired skill. Most people when they listen to a headphone or speaker(people who dont listen for much of a "sound quality" purpose, but JUST for the music) only look for clarity and a ALOT of BASS. They don't look for natural sound, neutrality, refinement, airyness, smoothness, bass tightness, etc. And even if most of them tried to look for those things in the sound, I still don't think they would even be able to identify stuff like that. Listening at the superior audio performance that most of us here on head-fi do and actually looking and also being able to identify for things like these in the audio, is an aqcuired skill.

Very true, it is more of an acquired skill

 

[MaloS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by IEMaddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif I wouldnt say so much that audiophile listening is an acquired taste but more of an acquired skill. Most people when they listen to a headphone or speaker(people who dont listen for much of a "sound quality" purpose, but JUST for the music) only look for clarity and a ALOT of BASS. They don't look for natural sound, neutrality, refinement, airyness, smoothness, bass tightness, etc. And even if most of them tried to look for those things in the sound, I still don't think they would even be able to identify stuff like that. Listening at the superior audio level performance that most of us here on head-fi do and actually looking and also being able to identify for things like these in the audio, is an aqcuired skill.

Not necessarily. Some of us ended up here primarily on the basis that when we heard all the typical speakers/headphones we just had problems with the sound. No critical listening involved - my first set of 2.1 speakers had so much bass it drowned everything out (which I hated) and my headphones sounded nothing like the real thing. Thump thump thump thump. Did I deliberately listen for the issues - no, they just popped right out at me. Some of just have a hard time not caring =]

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chu /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've learned the hard way that many people have zero desire to actually listen to music. It's there to be fed and consumed, and not really appreciated. As someone who has played and enjoyed music all their life the realization of this made me profoundly depressed. I don't even know where to begin with this. How do you communicate to someone whose musical tastes have been fed by Billboard their entire life, that there is such a thing as a personal muse?

Because it takes effort to actually listen to the music.. Which IMO can only be done with a good set up & mid to Hi Fi phones.. My headphones made me appreciate every little thing cause it sounds incredible.. 300.00 for a great sounding headphone is worth it.. Coming from 50.00 headphones to the 595's I was blown away, & totally thought it was worth the 150.00.. It seems like your friends just like noise..

 

[patalp]

You just gotta take a while to listen and then eventually you'll be like

because you hear all the details you've never heard before!

 

[justhavingfun]

This thread was very enjoyable to read for me. I don't offer any help on typical stereo equipments anymore whether its headphones, receivers, HT, amps etc... unless asked specifically for my opinion. I figure if they are asking, they are some what interested in good sounding equipments otherwise I stay away from expecting others who are not interested in our headphone/stereo hobby to appreciate like rest of us. If their iBud is good enough for them, more power to them and let them enjoy their music any way they like. BTW, I love the road cycling as well. Even though I am just a recreational rider, I do love good bikes. I still have old Italian cro-moly steel Moser road bike that is about 25 years old as well as Cervelo's P3 and Lightspeed Classic titanium road bikes.