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davidflas · Mar 22, 2001, 01:41 PM

I was just wondering if anybody else here shared my highend audio hobby. I graduated from mid-fi to high-end in 1988 when I brought my Onkyo reciever into Woodbridge Stereo in New Jersey. It was then that I discovered the world of highend. Krell, Thiel, Adcom, California Audio Labs make products that total waste the big name companies when I comes to sound and build quality. Has anybody else here had thier eyes opened to this wonderful, but mostly hidden world?

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"life is pain, Highness, anyone who tells you different is selling something."--The Man in Black from The Princess Bride

Arty50 · Mar 22, 2001, 03:06 PM

Yes. Unfortunately, I can't afford any of this stuff right now. I just got out of college. Anyway, I'm very picky when it comes to sound quality. I don't like MP3s for this very reason. For me there is a very significant difference between MP3s and Audio CDs.

With that said, the finest system I've ever listened to was a McIntosh system driving B&W speakers. It was musical heaven. Unfortunately, it's just a little bit

out of my price range right now.

davidflas · Mar 22, 2001, 03:18 PM

That stuff is out of my price range too. Fortunately B&W makes reasonably priced speakers too. I have a pair of their LM-1 Leasure Monitors and they sound great, just don't expect bass. That's why I have my NHT SubOne to round out the package. Now I just need a decent cd player. Believe me listening to cds through a $200 DVD player leave a lot to be desired. I've been to few high end shows in Chicago and NYC. I've heard the most exotic of exotic and boy those systems are sweet. I just don't think I'll every be able to drop $100,000USD on a pair of speakers no matter how good they are. luckily its possible to assemble a high end system for just a little more than a midfi system if you don't mind sacrificing sound and feature quantity for quality.

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"life is pain, Highness, anyone who tells you different is selling something."--The Man in Black from The Princess Bride

ctt1wbw · Mar 22, 2001, 09:34 PM

I thought I would have a heart attack when I actually found the Nakamichi DR-1 tape deck that I spent years looking for. I snatched that thing up so fast a saw the shock wave ripple through the salesman's hair. I have a pair of Klipsch Kg 3.1 speakers that, while not coming near B&W or Thiel, can put out some serious sound. I have a Yamaha RX-V670 receiver that I bought about 8 years ago, before the age of Dolby Digital and DTS. It still rocks. I would like to buy a high end Thorens turntable. I still like the sound of vinyl better than digital.

Arty50 · Mar 23, 2001, 04:01 AM

Originally posted by ctt1wbw:
I still like the sound of vinyl better than digital.

Agreed.

mjpaci · Mar 23, 2001, 08:38 AM

If you guys don't know about it yet, try the Avsforums for all of your high-end wonderings.

If you ever want to pick up good gear at decent prices, look at estate sales in good to very good neighborhoods. A lot of times people are selling off good, old gear for almost nothing. A 15 year-old McIntosh amp is still a McIntosh amp. Even if it's broken, you can sell it for good money on ebay.

jwardell · Mar 23, 2001, 01:21 PM

I recently stepped up to HiFi as well, albeit on a more reasonable budget. I couldn't afford it with out Paradigm speakers. This discount on my Marantz SR-18 receiver helped as well. But I'm so glad I never bought one of those crappy shelf systems that most did in college.

flatcatch · Mar 23, 2001, 02:02 PM

Another good site for home theatre aficionados:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/

davidflas · Mar 23, 2001, 05:01 PM

Originally posted by jwardell:
I recently stepped up to HiFi as well, albeit on a more reasonable budget. I couldn't afford it with out Paradigm speakers. This discount on my Marantz SR-18 receiver helped as well. But I'm so glad I never bought one of those crappy shelf systems that most did in college.

I hate to rain on your parade, but receivers are not high-end, nor is hometheater. Home theater can be high end, but it is not that way automatically. Most people equate high volume,bass, and flashing lights with quality that just isn't so. High end products are built from quality parts with sound quality as the highest priority. A receiver is actually three components combined into one. 1. Tuner, 2. Pre-Amplifier, 3. Amplifier. The only reason for these three to be in the same box is to save cost. True high end systems have these split into at least two parts connected with high quality cables. I'll post some links to real high-end sites later if anybody is interested.

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"life is pain, Highness, anyone who tells you different is selling something."--The Man in Black from The Princess Bride

finboy · Mar 23, 2001, 07:30 PM

Used to be, and will be again after the new paycheck kicks in.

I have always been obsessed with sound quality. Even subscribed to Stereophile (mainly to get the test CD) for a few years.

I can hear the difference in MP3s as well -- I think any classical music afficianado (especially a musician) should be able to do the same.

What I really liked about high-end is that it is extremely accessible to the amateur electronics hobbyist. Or it was several years ago. Since the main thrust of high-end is simplicity, usually, combined with ultra-high tolerance components, putting these together isn't too much of a stretch for those of us who grew up working on vacuum tube systems (I'm 34). When I get back into it, that's probably how I'll do it -- by building my own, from components on up.

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Shop smart, shop S-Mart! You got that!!?!!

Kestral · Mar 23, 2001, 07:30 PM

As an ex-professional musician, I always found it strange that people would want to listen to music on expensive speaker systems that are even more pricey than the equipment the music was recorded on in the first play. Is there a difference? So far I haven't heard it. But I do admit, I love that nice tube sound. For me, I've heard all types of speakers, my favorite are just a pair of Genelecs. While they usually come self-powered, heard them being driven by a Macintosh and it was pure heaven. But as far as those $100,000 systems go, IMO it makes no sense to get them. If anything, all you're hearing is the limitations of the media that recorded the sound in the first place.

Kestral

PS: Yes, IMO vinyl sounds better than CDs as well. Put a Doors or Beatles record on and compare with the CD, doesn't come close.

jwardell · Mar 23, 2001, 07:30 PM

receivers are not high-end, nor is hometheater.
High end products are built from quality parts with sound quality as the highest priority. A receiver is actually three components combined into one. 1. Tuner, 2. Pre-Amplifier, 3. Amplifier. The only reason for these three to be in the same box is to save cost. True high end systems have these split into at least two parts connected with high quality cables.

I didn't say I have the highest of Hi Fi. I can't afford that. But if you see how some receivers are made (especially mine) you'll see that it's no different than three separates in teh same box. And a box certainly does not make a difference. Agreed many receivers, especially these days, are junk. This is Marantz's top-of-line, and even their low end is considered Hi Fi.

davidflas · Mar 23, 2001, 11:29 PM

I'm not saying that all receivers suck or don't sound good. But they are not built the same way as a good set of separates. Separates have fewer and higher quality parts, larger power supplies, and because they are in separate boxes less signal leakage between the tuner section and the other parts. Of course all this costs more than a receiver, but you do get what you pay for. I have owned and listen to a wide variety of gear and I know that receivers, even the more expensive ones can't measure up in terms of low-level detail, sound staging, and purity of tonality. Listening to highend gear is like drinking fine wine, once you learn how to appreciate the nuances you don't want to go back to the cheap stuff even if you budget won't allow you to play in the big leagues. Another cool thing about much of the high end gear is that its made in the US and Europe. Not that I have anything against Asia, but its nice to be able to buy the homegrown stuff. I had Thiel speakers made in Lexington Kentucky, My father has Martin-Logan speakers made in Lawrence, Kansas. I even met Jim Thiel the founder of the company, he's really nice. That's what I like about highend audio, Like Mac Users its a community. Think of Macs as Highend personal computers, not a great analogy, but there are some similarities.

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"life is pain, Highness, anyone who tells you different is selling something."--The Man in Black from The Princess Bride