#high end audio

[audio-luddite]

I was talking with a guy.

Hey if I am mentioning it here it was about audio.

The question was how to get started in serious audio (lets not call it audiophile yet). It is a remarkably simple and yet complex question. Spend lots of money?

So to start, the front end is the tricky bit. That is source and control. Source is what you are listening too. Control is selection of source, if you have more than one, and basic volume control. In most systems control is the preamplifier.

The back end is the speakers and power amplifier. Actually really simple. What fits in your home and how much can you afford. Easy to change if you want.

The first big issue is source. By that I mean hard copied media or virtual. The first is category is CDs and their ilk such as SACD etc, and of course Vinyl LPs. The second is streaming online.

The second one first. (interesting sentence that but perfectly correct)

Streaming is far from simple. It has the least initial cost for the media as it is just a subscription fee (forever). It has an enormous even overwhelming variety and quantity of content. It also is only permission to use the content, but you do not own it. You can have a huge "collection" but it is virtual. Also there is a controversy about payments to artists.

Often not said is that almost all the streaming services are at or below CD quality. CD quality is not considered truly great by the tribes. That is all I am going to say about that right now.

The hardware is not simple for high end streaming. In very general terms you need a DAC (Digital to Analog Converter), a box to buffer or hold the downloaded files, and a computer to do the downloads and host the streaming service software. That is three boxes. In high end they are all expensive of course.

There are devices that do all three things, but they are not cheap. They also do not have the quality of the "best" systems.

Audiophiles like dedicated computers and streaming servers and DACs of eye watering expense.

In summary the streaming front end is very expensive. In my looking about for adding that to my system it is thousands of dollars. Conservatively about $5000 for my quality goal. Emphasis on that is only the front end.

Now to my thesis.

I say the least cost path to high end sound is with vinyl. WTF?! A high end capable Turntable starts at hundreds of dollars. Much more can be spent, but in today's local classified ads there are dozens under $500 and a few very good ones up to $1000. An older model refurbished unit is perfectly fine for the job. And I mean high end sound extraction. Brands such as Technics, Rega, Thorens, Micro Seki, Kenwood, Pioneer are good candidates.

A high end phonograph pickup or cartridge can be had for under $500 bucks. I have three all around $400 ish or less. I like Grado, and Audio Technica. There are more, but I don't have any of those. Moving coils need not apply. Those are euphonic, which is they add seductive sounds that are not in the source material.

That is the whole vinyl source hardware list. Under $1400 bucks or less and you are up and running. The only caveat is your control preamp needs to have a phono input which most old ones do.

In my case have a high end hybrid tube FET preamp that can be had for $2000 or less depending on the phase of the moon. You need that anyway. My opinion is the preamp is the major contributor to the overall performance of your system.

So that brings the full front end to less than $3400 for a high end system. If you take into account all my extra phono cartridges I still spent less than that. Just.

There is an intriguing option in a high end integrated amplifier from Technics (SU-G700) that is a preamp and DAC and very good class D amplifier with a phono input for about $2400 USD. Just add speakers and turntable and you are over the threshold to high end. It is rather spooky. If I had to start from scratch I would be tempted. Far less than an ARC suite. I could no longer claim I was a Luddite though.

Yes with vinyl you still have to buy LPs, unless you are an old fart like me and have hundreds, but it is actually rather fun. Compared to the initial cost of a high end streaming system the cost of an extensive LP library looks reasonable. I search for high quality boutique stuff usually, but I also find stuff in the racks. Garage sales anyone?

I have high end sound in my home. I dare say it is the best sounding system I have every heard. Vinyl is not a compromise. There is a lot to be said for getting up to flip a record every 20 minutes. Hell I have a watch that nags me to get up and move if I stay seated for more than an hour. (yes I am a geek) It's good for you Mr couch potato.

Obviously to play at this game money will be spent. You can start off modestly and build over time (decades in my case) or jump in. In the end you will have a sonic place to spend time appreciating art at the highest level.

Interesting that I really cannot afford to add high end streaming to my system. I don't need to.

#audiophile #high end audio #vinyl #turntables #audio technica #grado cartridges #least expensive high end system

[morelhifi]

Morel proudly unveils its latest innovations at the HIGH-END SHOW!

🎶 The wait is over! Morel is proud to unveil its latest innovations - the new Sopran series, the Avyra series and the Biggie - a high-resolution wireless speaker all at the #HighEndShow. Come and experience audio excellence like never before. Visit us 18-21 May, MOC Munich, HALL 2, STAND J07 See you there!💫

#morelhifi #morel speakers #sound quality #highend #high end audio #hifisound #hifi #wireless speaker #high end speaker #stereo #hi fi stereo #hifisystem #home theater system #home theatre #home cinema

[subwoofermania]

Are you ready to jump into an epic sound battle? Today, we're comparing the popular JBL Flip 5 and its successor, the Flip 6. JBL is known for delivering top-notch audio quality, and these portable speakers are no exception. But which one will reign supreme?

#audiophiles #JBL #jbl speakers #speaker comparison #high end audio #wireless speakers

[headfonics]

One of the best IEMs I have heard for soundstage and imaging but did PMG Audio tune the new flagship Apx treble a bit too hot? Find out in today's feature.

#our complete list of reviews #audiophile #pmg audio #apx #iem #earphones #flagship #canjam #high end audio

[takmiblog]

オーディオを愛することと財力に関連は無い

元来、オーディオを知ること・愛することと財力に関連はない。財力は普通でも、本当にオーディオを愛して散財する人間に機材が行き渡り、時間と愛情をかけて愉しまれ、評価される。そして、その経験がメーカーにフィードバックされて、より良い製品の開発につながる。これが本来の姿である。そういう愉快で実のある消費行動がもっと多くの普通のオーディオファイルによりなされるようにメーカーも代理店も仕向けるべきだろう。

シェア、サスティナブルは現代の重要なキーワードである。

分裂や乖離による空白という世界の悲劇的な傾向に対抗するのが、多くの人がシェアできる持続可能な世界（サスティナブルな世界）の実現であるという文脈で使われるのである。

多くの人が音楽をいい音で聴く感動をシェアできる、サスティナブルなオーディオ業界。いい音を少数のマニアや金持ちが独占するという、ハイエンドオーディオの従来のやり方とは異なるが、オーディオ界全体としてはそういう方向で生き残っていくしかなかろう。

(https://pansaku.exblog.jp/25826186/#goog_rewarded)

ハイエンドオーディオの乖離と空白について

by　pansakuuさん

#audio #high end audio #share #sustainable #reasonable audio

[mikeshouts]

FiiO R9 Flagship All-In-One Digital Media Streamer: The Digital Media Streamer You Never Knew You Need. Maybe?

Dream streamer.

Follow us for more Tech Culture and Lifestyle Stuff.

#CES 2024 #Fiio #High End Audio #Media Player #Network Media Player #Streaming Media Player

[oniii-fans]

#Me #Audio #Before you upload these it asks if it’s your orig. work or if you have permission 😂 #Sadly yes… it’s an orig. work made by me 😂😂😂😂 #I CUT SO MUCH OF THIS ‘CAUSE MY VOICE CANT GO SUPER HIGH SO WHEN IT DOES I SOUND LIKE A DY!NG ANIMAL 💀💀💀💀💀 #But this was the ending to the one I recorded last week 🫠 #Be kind or I’ll cry

[amazinglyegg]

A big ol' compilation of funny Deacon lines (bonus under cut)

#aka deacon being a Comfort Character for six whole minutes #I love his voice cracks whenever he speaks high pitched he's so cute #collected these while having a panic attack and ended up staying up until 3am combing through all of his dialogue #so worth it #fallout 4 #deacon #fallout 4 companions #audio #character dialogue

[stillavoidingbaddays]

(Skip to 0:40 for the backing vocals to kick in it's so worth it)

OH MY GOD

SO I STRIPPED THE VOCALS FROM WHEN I WATCH THE WORLD BURN ALL I THINK ABOUT IS YOU AND I THINK EVERYONE NEEDS TO HEAR IT

#hoooollly mollllyyyy #dans high note at the end #wowowowow #i rlly think you should listen for the experience #bastille #when i watch the world burn all i think about is you #wiwtwbaitaiy #doom days #this got out of hand #acapella #vocals #audio #I used moises software to do this #its so good

[sleepboysummer]

genuinely is someone singing an octave DOWN in the summoning??? i think i can hear some INSANE bass notes but that could just be the music or vocal effects

#if it is i bet its corey #he does those low notes so well #you can hear him in the end of high school is killing me with bryce #he does the “i can survive it... for only so looong... i'll still despise it... when im goneee” echo low part #i love my headphones cause his voice is always in my left ear #but im gonna listen back when i have my airpods again cause the audio is clearer #starkid #npmd #nerdy prudes must die #npmd spoilers #nerdy prudes must die spoilers

[audio-luddite]

New Old vinyl.

Getz / Gilberto is spinning. How do you say wow for something so subtle and laid back?

The recording is ancient. 60 years old. I was a kid.

This is the Impex One Step release. It was FN expensive, the most expensive album I ever bought. I have no regrets and I am not rich by any means. We ate left overs for dinner. My copy is # 4404 of 7500. Get yours before you have to pay "collectors" rates.

45 RPM and super vinyl quiet as a mouse.

I am smitten by the sound. It aint spectacular, just very real and almost intimate yet immediate. I have to work on the words. Yes the tape had flaws and drop outs and wow and stuff, but it is easy to forgive all that. What is there is really good.

And consistent with that reviewer guy's experience, my wife really liked it. She remembered her grandmother singing the "Girl" song to her when she was a kid. She really liked Astrud's simple tone of voice and naturalness. It is a wonderful contrast to the amazing technical prowess (and overworking) of today's pop stars.

I cannot help but think of what people who bought the original album in 1964 heard. Most stereos in that era were those all in one consoles that were frankly not that good.

Aficionados might have a pair of original AR-3 speakers and maybe a Dynaco Stereo 70 with a AR turntable. What phono pickup I wonder, Pickering, Empire, Shure, and yes GRADO? Very well off may have had McIntosh which was pretty good.

Whatever the system it was not anywhere as good as stuff today. No really I mean it high end ramped up in the 1970s to 1990s.

The Girl from Ipanema is the cut that made it a hit. There is far more there, and the story behind it is worth a movie. I imagine there are many stories behind all the 35 minutes of music we consume. And the producers went to a great effort to produce a document and real book to explain and relate the story. Very charming.

Oh did I mention the sound is crazy good. and yes it is pure analog.

#audiophile #high end audio #vinyl #turntables

[nanoa1foryou]

I'm still so amazed at the fact that in the Vuosi Vaihtuu stream Cha Cha Cha is only the backing track. Like you can't actually hear anything more than that and Jukka's guitar. Jere is singing and you can hear it as barely a whisper over the backing track vocals that are so overwhelmingly loud.

They just had to have the noise gate up that high on every microphone. They just had to mix it that way for the stream. Because there are like a hundred fireworks going off and +75k people screaming simultaneously and fucking Oodi undoubt fucking up everything.

Idk, it's just insane to me how fucking huge that show was. And there in the middle is Jere Vantaalta.

#käärijä #I'm still so emotional about that show. Jere had a fucking year huh? #sorry I was rewatching and I forgot that you can actually hear jaakko and allu better than Jere during huhhahhei #and that you can't hear Jere's singing like at all most of the time beyond the stuff that's happening between the actual songs #compare the audio from that to any other vod. the ice hall one. the stadium. kesärauha. #and the guitar at the end of cha cha cha? where it sounds like someone punched it? because someone probably did and it's so high in the mix

[morelhifi]

"...it took virtually zero effort to lose myself in the music...

Just connect the Octave 6 LE to your amp and AC and invite some friends over. Let them enjoy the true excitement of the soundtrack and turn it up some more😊 "...it took virtually zero effort to lose myself in the music... the Octave 6es drew me into my music and held me there. Very much like headphones, the Morels showed me the feelings in and behind these songs . . . but in ways I cannot now explain." J.A -Stereophile review. Explore more

#home theater system #homeaudio #stereo #high end audio #bookshelfspeakers #unleashthemusic #homecinema #morelhifi #morelhomeaudio #high fidelity #music #soundquality

[subwoofermania]

ELAC's core subwoofer technology is actually not new, and the current implementation is the third generation of it. But since it is being developed by one company, it has not yet gained popularity among the masses. We are talking about an absolutely revolutionary approach to subwoofer tuning.

#high end audio #audiophiles #music #subwoofer test #active subwoofer #powered subwoofer

[thewhizzyhead]

holy shit we're getting a proshot

#i dont know if i saw this coming or if i didn't think it would come but YAY PROSHOT #very very cool of six to do #really tho i love that we basically had a high quality official audio bootleg of the broadway queens #and even offici recordings of the alternates #and now we're getting a proshot #and who knows maybe they'll release a broadway proshot too fjsjf #this is cool i like it a lot #six the musical #six west end

[takmiblog]

深い掘り下げのないオーディオ界

例えば20年くらい前のSS誌はもっとオーディオ機器のサウンドに関するディープな談義で賑やかだった。華やかだった。紹介しきれないほど多様な製品の音に関する率直で格調高い評論・斬新かつ科学的な視点も盛り込んだ企画に溢れていた。

一方、最近のSSのオーディオ評論はネットで調べれば直ぐわかるような、メーカーの経歴の紹介や機材のスペックの説明が長く、肝腎の音質のインプレッションを深く掘り下げて書かかない、腰の引けた薄暗い文章が多いように思う。

加えて、現在のSS誌の文章の行間から、聴いている評論家本人が表面的でなく本心から感動している素振りがあまり感じ取れない。この点も私には気になる。そうなってしまうのは、最近の機材の音質が本当はそれほど良くないと心の底では感じているからではないか。

(https://pansaku.exblog.jp/25826186/#goog_rewarded)

ハイエンドオーディオの乖離と空白について

by　pansakuuさん

#audio #high end audio