Did you know that you were a dinosaur?

craig223 · « **on:** 23 Apr 2007, 06:41 pm »

According to CNN, all anybody cares about anymore is portability of their music. Everyone they interviewed for this article has dumped their systems for an iPod.

Quote

Are these the final days of hi-fi sound? Judging by the 2 billion songs downloaded from Apple Inc.'s iTunes service, the ubiquity of white iPod "ear buds," and the hundreds of thousands of folks file-sharing for free, the answer is yes.

Here is the link to the story

http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Music/04/23/lofi.america.ap/index.html

Time to go look for the incoming space object that is going to blow us away!

Craig

WEEZ · « **Reply #1 on:** 23 Apr 2007, 07:20 pm »

Yup. I've been a dinosaur for quite a while, now. ( or maybe a caveman

) And that article just re-enforced that fact.

Whenever I read stuff like that...I'm always reminded of Ralph Karsten's slogan: "Dragging high-end audio (kicking and screaming) into the future for over 29 years..."

And as most of you all know, Ralph doesn't make 'gadjets'.

WEEZ

WEEZ · « **Reply #2 on:** 23 Apr 2007, 07:33 pm »

er, 'gadgets'.

WEEZ

2wo · « **Reply #3 on:** 23 Apr 2007, 07:38 pm »

Yea, I can feel myself turning into a petroleum product as I type...John

nathanm · « **Reply #4 on:** 23 Apr 2007, 08:17 pm »

Another mainstream fluff article which misses the point and focuses on all the wrong issues, just like the Maximum PC bitrate comparison thing. I don't care what gear you use, "bulky" or otherwise; there's a vast difference between a pair of halfway decent speakers spaced 8-10ft. apart playing at a good volume in a quiet, reasonably damped room and earbud headphones. Whatever change occured has more to do with cultural change, not technology. If anything the iPod represents people's desires for a completely internal, introverted experience rather than a somewhat external one of speaker listening.

The popularity of the squeezebox and other devices tells me that audiophiles are not at all a bunch of luddites who are opposed to technological convenience or data compression. There's simply two different types of people, active listeners and multi-taskers. The techy bits are a side issue. If you really love music I cannot fathom how all the convenience of modern gadgets jammed in your ear canal can possibly compete with the palpable, visceral experience of loud speakers. I just don't get it. If pure sonics are the main focus, which they should be, the iPod loses...unless you use the line out jack instead of the earbuds.

WEEZ · « **Reply #5 on:** 23 Apr 2007, 08:32 pm »

Agree re: speakers vs. earbuds. Not so sure about i-Pods line out either. But hey, what response would one expect from a dinosaur like me anyway.

WEEZ

Rob Babcock · « **Reply #6 on:** 24 Apr 2007, 02:37 am »

I've got some audiobooks on MP3 I purchased as 96kbps downloads that are marginal just for talk. It's hard to fathom anyone calling 128 "pretty darned good." Maybe those Ph.D's were 90 years old.

jon_010101 · « **Reply #7 on:** 24 Apr 2007, 04:01 am »

Quote from: nathanm on 23 Apr 2007, 08:17 pm

... I don't care what gear you use, "bulky" or otherwise; there's a vast difference between a pair of halfway decent speakers spaced 8-10ft. apart playing at a good volume in a quiet, reasonably damped room and earbud headphones...

There's simply two different types of people, active listeners and multi-taskers. The techy bits are a side issue. If you really love music I cannot fathom how all the convenience of modern gadgets jammed in your ear canal can possibly compete with the palpable, visceral experience of loud speakers. I just don't get it...

Well, I hate to be contrary, but I think my Shure E3's sound mighty nice connected to my MacBook or to my iPod. I spend more time listening to this than I do my hifi. Yeah, the sound quality is a bit behind (classic understatement), but it cost an order of magnitude less, doesn't eat tubes, and doesn't break down on a semiannual basis. I view it as a way to enjoy music everywhere -- to provide a soundtrack for part of the day -- and I cannot fathom how a music lover could dismiss portable sound today. It's wayyy better than it was 10 years ago, and far more convenient. My iPod+earphones will never replace my hifi, but I certainly can't lug 300 lbs of gear on an airplane, or to a diner, or to my office, etc.

I almost wonder: with younger (mid-20's-to-mid-30's) people listening to increasingly high quality portable gear, $$$ earphones with fancy amplification, serious decoders, etc., will they move towards conventional home hi fi after they buy homes and bigger apartments? Are iPods and "better" earphones a gateway drug to real hifi? Look how big head-fi.org has become.

Finally, a guilty secret: I'd rather listen to music on my Shures on an airplane than I would on my stereo. No other place can I focus and enjoy a favorite album better than on a plane, where I have nothing better to do but stare out a window and listen. My second choice for no-obligations music listening: my long-retired '88 Mazda. Full range paper drivers, iPod through the cassette deck (hopefully someone else to operate it), no distractions. Rather than thinking about whether the bass sounds sloppy or wondering if the upper-midrange is too glassy, I can pay attention to what matters. I guess I'm a lousy audiophile

.

ctviggen · « **Reply #8 on:** 24 Apr 2007, 12:06 pm »

Are those noise canceling phones? If not, I'm not sure how you could even hear the music on a plane. For my purposes, while I love my iPod and Grado headphones, they don't come close to the clarity, detail, imaging, spaciousness, impact -- I could go on and on -- of my main system.

jon_010101 · « **Reply #9 on:** 24 Apr 2007, 04:39 pm »

Quote from: ctviggen on 24 Apr 2007, 12:06 pm

Are those noise canceling phones? If not, I'm not sure how you could even hear the music on a plane. For my purposes, while I love my iPod and Grado headphones, they don't come close to the clarity, detail, imaging, spaciousness, impact -- I could go on and on -- of my main system.

They are foam-tipped in ear monitors -- basically look like earplugs, and have >30dB attenuation. No need to crank up the volume. Grados would definitely not work on a plane, but they do sound nice

BobM · « **Reply #10 on:** 24 Apr 2007, 05:09 pm »

I resent being called a dinosaur. I am a Curmudgeon, dammit!

Enjoy,
Bob

Rob Babcock · « **Reply #11 on:** 24 Apr 2007, 09:39 pm »

I've tried several in-ear earbud style models but I've never found anything I could comfortably wear for any great length of time.

Wayner · « **Reply #12 on:** 24 Apr 2007, 10:47 pm »

The next thing you'll know they'll want us to give up paper money and go "totally plastic"! Or, I.D. implant anyone?.....anyone? Perhaps it's not the dinosaur, but the Beast.

JLM · « **Reply #13 on:** 25 Apr 2007, 12:48 am »

Well don't forget RWA audio offers iMods that sound pretty damn good and there are lots of good headphones out there. I did phones for 3 months in college, but I prefer my floorstanders in my listening room.

Audiophiles are dinosaurs for "better" reasons: vinyl, tubes, and most basic: single media presentation when the world is into multi everything and all at once.

WEEZ · « **Reply #14 on:** 25 Apr 2007, 01:02 am »

JLM,

I think you're onto something...''the world is into multi everything and all at once''.

How true is THAT.

WEEZ

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #15 on:** 25 Apr 2007, 06:33 am »

Quote

I almost wonder: with younger (mid-20's-to-mid-30's) people listening to increasingly high quality portable gear, $$$ earphones with fancy amplification, serious decoders, etc., will they move towards conventional home hi fi after they buy homes and bigger apartments?

Probably not....I see this in their future....

I hope I'm wrong.....

JLM · « **Reply #16 on:** 25 Apr 2007, 08:45 am »

LW,

Most of the those iPod speaker stations sound horrible. My daughter's Nano via earbuds sound a 1,000 times better.

WEEZ,

The trend in this western culture is definitely towards more stimulation and multi-tasking. For instance, I'm listening to "classics for relaxation" while drinking coffee, while doing this. I'll get in the car and listen to the car as I drive to work and maybe check my v-mails. How many of us continue to work on the computer, watch TV, or (my favorite) eat in a Restaurant while taking a phone call? Research has shown hospitals to be getting 5 dB louder (background noise) every 10 years. Alzheimer patients are fed music and TV simultaneously to slow the disease progression. And the younger you are, the better the odds that you participate in all this.

Wayner,

I tried to convince my 49 year old brother to try e-banking after years of fustrations with his USPS mail carrier's screw-ups, to no avail. He's a farmer and runs a small trucking business, so he handles almost $1,000,000 per year.

My 82 year old dad gave up on credit cards for fear of privacy invasion. And you know what? It works. We couldn't find half their friends a year ago (to send out 50th anniversary invites) via phone book or internet because they're all the same way.