[toaster]

really nice post. it is nice to see someone taking charge of their own thoughts. i have been thinking a lot about what makes me satisfied with this audio stuff. and truth be told, my e5's are just doin' it for me. i am listening to them right now. they just put me in the music where i belong. it's all about your own happy place...nobody can tell you where it is, you have to find it for yourself.

 

[ch1nkster]

What I put first is my music enjoyment. Even before I knew a head-fi.org existed, I bought better sony cans (probably just re-packaged stock cans) for better listening. When I listen to music, enjoyment is first on my list and I can't really enjoy music with a some crappy $2 headphones. I like to relate this topic to say, playing badminton. I cannot bear to play with the crappy school rackets, but as long as I have my second Wilson racket (crappy, but still good), I can still play without thinking about "oo the racket is too heavy and doesn't have as much power as my yonex Ti-8 racket." This is very similar to my audio experiences. I can stand listening to music with my MX400's fine. I wouldn't call listening to distorted music much enjoyment. You do not have to go too far up the hi-fi ladder as long as you have found your limits and defined what is acceptable by your ears.

 

[toaster]

man that's SO true. i used to be the badminton champ back in fifth grade. badminton is one sweet sport by the way. i lugged my racquet to school every day, sticking outta my backpack, just so i could whip my fellow classmates on the court. man, those were the days...when all i had to worry about was what to tell my mom to pack me for lunch in my tmnt lunch box......

 

[ch1nkster]

Yep badminton is pretty awesome. You should still play once in a while because it's a great workout

 

[cosmopragma]

Am I the only guy who is enjoying the music more and more, every day?

What we call decent gear nowadays is so fantastic, I wonder every day how lucky I am.
I don't seem to just getting used to it and bored, my ears are improving over time, and there is a ocean of music out there in my reach.Even if 99 % of it is crap or simply not your flavour, there is more good music than you can hear in a lifetime.

 

[JulianL]

Of course my experience is rather limited, but I totally feel the same way.

When I first got my D66s, I had this HUGE smile on my face. Compared to my Ex70s, they were simply orgasmic. I couldnt get over how great they were. Then I decided to get some headphones for portable use because the Eggos were simply too inconvinient for school use. I took my E2c's home, and after they burnt in, the D66s mutated from the best things in the world, to just another pair of crappy headphones (Overall the E2c's are better because of their bass, and better detail. The D66s feel muddy now, though the mids are more fun to listen to). Of course the contrast isnt that much, and it's true that the E2c's dont blow my Eggos away, but I just dont have that great feeling anymore when listening to them.

I still think it's worth it tho. The iPod guy may be having tons of fun, but if he had some A900s on, that fun would increase exponentially. I explain to my friends that I spend so much (relative to them anyway) money on headphones because with cheap headphones, you listen to the song; with good headphones, you listen to the music. I've found so much more fun listening to better cans because I get really taken into the music. With more detail I can analyse and listen to that violin. With a better soundstage, I get transported into the actual lounge where Miles Davis is playing. With my relatively cheaper headphones, as well as my parents' sexy speaker set up, it's a whole new world.

 

[acs236]

How we talk about sound reproduction -- at least for me personally -- can be a bit misleading. If were to say that I didn't like X headphone because X headphone has exaggerated bass, I mean that the bass reproduction is makes listening less enjoyable and keeps me from being as immersed in the music as I could be. The reason I criticize is not simply because "that's not the way it should be," is that I'm looking for added pleasure from music -- a type of pleasure that someone listening to an Ipod with stock buds is not experiencing. I want the most enjoyable listening experience -- that's what motivates me.

Do I enjoy music more today than I did 5 years ago because of this? Absolutely, without a doubt -- no question.


P.S.

Good post!

 

[Earwax]

Quote:

Originally posted by Sczervok I've gotten used to things. And that alone has just taken away the peak enjoyment level that I could ever attain for my music. Never again, will I enjoy it so much. I had stock earbuds, and a halfworking player, and I was on top of the world. Now? I'm nothing. Music is just there. Quality is just there... there's nothing special to me anymore. Never again.

It sounds like you're getting burned out. Take a break, do other things for a while. Or go listen to some live music somewhere. Or try types of music you've never listened to before. Or make your own music.

Relax and stop worrying about "gear" for a while, I bet the excitement will come back when you stop trying too hard to find it.
(does that make sense to anyone besides me? )

 

[MN Ham Phones]

Quote:

Originally posted by Textual Intercou , as audio doesn't serve a utilitarian function, etc.

I disagree.

Music can relieve stress and soothe the savage beast within. Music can restore my calm nature and give me the willingness to rejoin the human race after a trying day.

And it can do it better than any drug.

 

[MuZI]

Quote:

Originally posted by cosmopragma Am I the only guy who is enjoying the music more and more, every day? What we call decent gear nowadays is so fantastic, I wonder every day how lucky I am. I don't seem to just getting used to it and bored, my ears are improving over time, and there is a ocean of music out there in my reach.Even if 99 % of it is crap or simply not your flavour, there is more good music than you can hear in a lifetime.

I agree with this guy.

 

[MuZI]

MN Ham Phones, some types of music can do the opposite of soothing and make you hyper, but that is also a good thing.

 

[MN Ham Phones]

Quote:

Originally posted by MuZI MN Ham Phones, some types of music can do the opposite of soothing and make you hyper, but that is also a good thing.

It can also produce anger and hostility and other types of emotional instability in me. So I pick and choose.

 

[Edwood]

Well there is hearing music.


And then there is enjoying music.......

-Ed

 

[Norbert]

I did much research and stepped up to the W1000's. They cost far more than I ever dreamed I would spend on a pair of headphones. They cost more than my freaking stereo and speakers! But I said to myself: In five years will I possibly care that I dropped 400 or so bucks on headphones? Nope. Now, I just sit back and enjoy the music.

 

[oneeyedhobbit]

Quote:

Originally posted by MN Ham Phones I disagree. Music can relieve stress and soothe the savage beast within. Music can restore my calm nature and give me the willingness to rejoin the human race after a trying day. And it can do it better than any drug.

Here here, I agree 100%