Just a short rant on the current state of things in the world of high end audio. Thank you very much if you took the 90 seconds-ish to watch. I'll try and keep this thing to a minimum.
"Value decisions." That's exactly what those decisions are and they are very different for everybody. Everybody. I've spent a lot of money on interconnects, power, and speaker cables. If somebody wants to argue how stupid I am, I just roll my eyes and keep truck'n. Good video. I subscribed and I think I'll enjoy myself here.
I enjoy feedback when it's constructive. The problem is it rarely is constructive and by definition to be constructive it really needs some understanding and ideally empathy and experience. The only way to manage this for me is to ignore most as most comes from those who have little or no experience, repeat a google search and apply weak science to 'prove' a point which is rarely relevant. You're following and sharing your passion, others rarely are or they would have learnt something constructive by now !
Hey Travis! Thanks. We're going to be starting our own podcast, and I'll be ramping this channel up QUITE A BIT in the weeks/months to come. I've got a long way to go to catch up!
As a 25+ year veteran of the audio business both as an employee and now owner of a HiFi store one of the most telling signs I and a potential customer will never do business is the pathway of "Please defend the brands you carry vs. MY favorites". There is NO One True Path to the enjoyment of reproduced music. Full Stop. The single most important component of any stereo system is ............The Listener.
One reason client are sometimes unhappy about their audio system is that the components were purchased on the web, some new, some used and when combined at home, the results are often less than stellar. Obviously dealers cannot carry all brands in the market, but at least visit your local dealers to see what kinds of audio presentation you like. This will save making many mistakes.
My coworkers spend their money on sports, buying yet another AR15 and tricking out their vehicles. They think there's something wrong with me for traveling great distances to see obscure music, upgrading my vinyl rig and collecting snare drums. Whatever.. I'm ok being wrong. Great video sir.
Dude, no complaints about my system at all. But my JOB is to help YOU find the gear you want! Who knows you might come over here and not like how it sounds! That's not important. TONE has never been a "side hustle." It's a business. And I've never reviewed a single piece of gear in 21 years that I wouldn't write a check for. (and I've done too much of that - hahaha)
I hear this. I know someone who uses that word "audiophile" as if it means "idiot." But I also think there are plenty of people who think only very very high-ticket items can be any good or only certain types of items. I've been told my system cannot possibly be any good because I have a NOS DAC. Sheese.
100%. I tell everyone who asks, if it meets your needs and makes you happy, that's perfect. Had someone ask why vinyl is better the other day, my answer was it's different, some records are great, some are awful. I tried to tell him to just enjoy whatever you have.
Thanks for your reply about all your turntables. It's been a while since I've used the turntable and I'm absolutely amazed how you can distinguish differences. To sit around with you listening to music hearing all those differences or at least having them pointed out. Maybe someday I'll enlarge my collection, my small collection includes the famous three album Woodstock set where you open it up and see the wide angle Picture of everyone sitting in in front of stage. And a Mary Poppins album which my parents must've gotten Long time ago. A whole bunch of others.
Valid rant!! Whenever I see someone ask for advice in any audio forum, I always tell them their ears are going to be the best judge. I do see that more and more, and it is refreshing. I usually chuckle at the wannabe engineers who make claims that are wrong at best and outlandish at times. These toys and the music are worth what we pay when we decide it's worth it to us. At the end of the day, the value is in our enjoyment of the music, or geeking out on the tech.
Oh yeah! I wish they weren't so much money now, I'd get another one - and a 2nd one for you when you come out to visit. I'd love to have one more afternoon of us riding around on a pair of triples!
Right on, one just get tired of all the bs. As a designer and manufacture Ive heard it all and seen it all, thank god Im done with that! Im back in my cage just designing
If you can still pay for your essentials in the regular life, spend what you want on hifi gear. Other people spend thousands on guns, cars, golfing, hunting, fishing, cycling, etc, etc .....we audio heads spend on recorded music, concerts, audio shows, hifi gear....
Yes, About a year ago, I made a post asking if anyone had used a good small sub with a Sibelius speaker, oh my God people lost their effing minds😅 you can’t do that it’s a single driver speaker and on and on it went.
IF you're having fun with your music system, who cares what you spent or how it sounds! It's about having fun, this is entertainment ! PS: I'm having fun!
Could not agree more. As a music lover who has been involved in Hi-Fi both on the retail and wholesale sides for over 50 years, I take all these so called experts with a grain of salt. They are entitled to an opinion, but that is all it is - their opinion, often formed in a silo of minimal exposure to a wide variety of systems in differing rooms. What is best for each listener is unique to them. How do I know what is going on inside their head? For me, if it gets my foot tapping and lets me get closer emotional involvement with the musicians, then I am happy. I have heard many hundreds of systems that were modestly priced and sounded great, I have conversely heard many mega buck systems that sounded poor to my ears. Like all subjective decisions, no two people are exactly the same.
I feel your pain my brother. I use 2 preamps and an equalizer in my system which is practical heresy to audiophiles. Also, I am sorry you live in Portland. I am in southern Oregan and get hives whenever I go north.
Dude, I use a big, vintage Sansui 717 in my garage system with a pair of equally old ESS AMT-1bs and a bluesound NODE. With Roon playback, I've taken advantage of the DSP and the parametric EQ out there. Really makes things sound a lot better. No shame in the EQ!
How can you say this with such an incredible array of equipment behind you?! All I can say is putting together an excellent system on a shoestring budget is HARD.
Because if you read TONE, you'll see we are always seeking out great components that aren't super expensive too. Tell me your budget, room size, and musical taste and Ill help you pick out something that you'll love. What you see behind you is a result of 40+ years of being an enthusiast and writing about this stuff for a living for 22+ years. I actually have the main reference system, a medium system, a small system, and my garage/vintage system, so that when we review a $1200 amplifier we can put it in context, not just say "well this 1200 dollar amp sucks compared to my 50k reference amp." Even if you only have a couple thousand bucks to spend and do some careful shopping, you can really enjoy music. And seriously, consider some gently used, pre owned gear. That's why we've partnered up with TMRAudio.com. (the Music Room) They have a lot of great choices that can help you get more for the $. Seriously, send me an email - I'll throw some suggestions out for you.... No need to have a $100/month Patreon subscription! :)
No one tells me I made the wrong audio choices. On the cheap I have configured a better-sounding whole house system than anyone I know (except one guy who is going nuts with his). The sound is clear, well defined, you get a stereo image almost anywhere you are. Most audiophiles are less concerned with the actual sound than with the “bragging rights” among their peers over which of them has spent the most money.
Went to Commonwave in LA...that guy was like John Cusack's character from Hi Fidelity, and he kept saying "well this is the BEST amp" and "well this is just BETTER than what you have". I was like, dude how can you even call something "the best" in this hobby? like what does that even mean?? Adults who speak in superlatives are a huge red flag of immaturity.
Audio is like any other hobby ..yes it’s a passion for a few. if you’re having music in your life that’s more than background music then it’s obviously got an appeal for you. Good playback is something that just about everyone can appreciate..Thomas will not value ..and theres the rub’. Nice set up in the background 👍👍
Thats the world of the Internet, love it of hate it its unavoidable. Only option is to not participate in forum discussions and switch comments off on RU-vid videos 😒 (or have a thick skin 😂)
I would be happy and proud to just to own one of your systems, as only needing to spend $1000 for me that would be a simple matter of financial circumstance..
Nice job, Jeff! Personally, I try to just talk about equipment, whether it be hardware or software, that simply does it for me, across all price ranges, without necessarily putting down anyone. There's way too much negativity in the high end these days, with much of it being spewed by people who have zero experience with whatever you're talking about.
Thanks! I had one back when they were new. It was the only component I had bought up until then because I liked the way it looked! Reminded me of a BORG cube. hahaha. Found this one from a friend and using it as a transport with the dCS it still turns in an impressive performance. This is a PDP, so it has the on-board DAC, which today sounds a little dark. My original was a PDT driving a PS Audio DAC. It's still great to have around, with some of the other components from my past to always be able to go back in time and revisit what I used to love and have perspective.
it seems to be quite the point of contention lately. And a lot of the newcomers to the reviewing game are trying to make a name for themselves by saying everything is junk and overpriced.
Yup - ... only VERY few people online really know what their talking about. I agree ... I did a nice long live session last week about ' how to enjoy your system more ' 100% .... Just go listen .. Thank you.
@@CarlVanDoren61 Jeff also has a pair of $299 Vera-Fi speakers, a 40 year old pair of Acoustats that were purchased at an estate sale for $700, and a number of other things. We always try to put it in context. The Clarisys are a selfish purchase after all these years of loving panel speakers. PS: Also just about to pull the trigger on a pair of the new Magnepan 2.7x speakers as a reference as well.
You have some nice equipment right behind you. Paul McGowan of PS audio just plain annoys the hell out of me, his stuff is so above it all and everything else SUCKS, especially what I like 1976-1979 and it seems every video this jerk makes bashes EVERYTHING except is own above it all PS JUNK audio.
I have one turntable as a reference that doesn't get touched (the SME), one that can swap cartridges easily (the Luxman) and the Technics is a vintage SL-1100 that I got for almost nothing, that uses an SME 3009 (rebuilt) arm for MM and High compliance cartridges. I usually use that one with the cassette deck to make mix tapes. Out of photo is a Technics 1200 GAE that I use in my second reference system. PS: At one time I had 16 turntables. Now THAT was crazy.
OK, I'll take the clickbait. The problem with HiFi/High End (or even Johnny, if you prefer) is that you are being offered a false or fake set of choices. When 99% of hiFi equipment is crap (and it is) it's hardly a choice. It's a rabbit hole full of bullshit. Engineers DO know how to make accurate DACs & amps and even speakers (studio monitors). If you don't go with accuracy, what are you left with ? Ans. A rabbit hole full of false choices and bullshit - you'll just keep spiralling down the rabbit hole forever.
To an extent, yes. However I think because nearly everyone hears differently, has different software, and has personal sonic preferences, just having a 100% accurate speaker isn't always what everyone wants. I don't see it as a "fake sense of choices," I see it as an expression of art. Some people like Andy Warhol, some like the French Impressionists, and others like something else. One person wants merely function and any sense of aesthetic doesn't matter at all, and vice versa. As you well know, plenty of people are still arguing about analog vs. digital - feverishly. So for me the job is to help you find more of what you want. It's not my judgement call to tell you what YOU like is wrong or invalid. This isn't click bait. Sorry you feel that way.
I can prove you can't back up a single word of what you just said. In order to make "accurate" equipment, like you suggest, you have to built it using sound scientific principles. In order to evaluate or review audio equipment, to judge how "accurate" it is compared to other similar products, you also have to apply the scientific method, as well. If you don't use science, you can't say that one product is more accurate than another. So, here's my question. Can you reference a single review, test, evaluation, etc..., that uses real science, (not junk science) to evaluate the components in question, on any piece of audio equipment ever made? If you can't answer that simple question, every word you just said is fabricated. And I'm going easy on you. I could also ask you to define accurate. To everyone else. "When 99% of hifi equipment is crap (and it is) it's hardly a choice. It's a rabbit hole full of bullshit." Shame on you for trying to debate someone that makes such a ridiculous claim. We all know he can't produce the 1% needed to make his point valid. Stop right there. You should realize by now that when it comes to the the skeptics, for lack of a better term, this has nothing to do with audio equipment. Its all about winning an argument and being right, just like a lawyer would argue a case. It has nothing to do with getting to the truth. There's no explaining it, but the concept of high end audio offends certain people to the core of their being. If you want proof of what I'm telling you, just keep following his posts. He'll refuse to answer my question, because he can't answer it. That means he knows he's wrong. But he'll still keep posting the same exact information in other threads, knowing he's wrong. There's nothing to win. If you call these guys out the second they post, it ends the conversation right there. If you engage them, they just keep coming back, and that's why you're getting worn out.
@@052RC My experience has almost always been that the guys that can't afford hifi or have partners that won't let them buy hifi make it a mission to say it all sucks. Then don't buy it I guess.
Huh ? All that equipment you buy is silly waste of money. You can get everything played by spotify via smart speaker! Those records are old, tbose speakers are too big,. tube amps make the room to warm, blah blah 😂
Maybe the problem is that you are not helping anybody to get a better sound, but you are doing a heck of a job helping everybody to lose a lot of money. Sound depends a lot on a room, flat speakers don't sound well in average room, in the past, when speakers were done by ear, they sounded better. Then we got you, people who are saying that we shouldn't use loudness, we shouldn't use equalizers, we shouldn't use tone controls, then we got you, the people who understand only the simplest possible logic, and then we started to lose a lot of our money, listening to you, and getting a crapping sound. Yes, I am being tired of *you*. Right now I have cheap 42" tv set, I even don't know which speaker is inside, all I know that I don't hear the deepest sounds, because everything is completely cheap, but the tv set has embedded electronic equalizer, and I have the best sound of my life. So, you and people like you, get off. Internet is full of hi-fi adviser of all sorts. Why? Because there is a lot of people with a lot of hi-fi problems, which you created, with your crappy advice.
And you know what, my 6 years old kid just gave me a hi-fi advice. He said, put speaker in equilateral triangle, dad. That's about the only solid hi-fi knowledge that you can read in "expert" hi-fi books, and the only solid knowledge that you, guys, have.
