Hifi- The dream or just obsession?

Hi-Fi Corner
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Interesting questions as somebody else said.

First of all… dream or obsession? That might be down to the single person and his character. Personally I consider it a dream mixed with a bit of obsession for (relative) perfection. That obsession, if healthy, leads you to optimize your setup to your best possibilities. On the other hand it can make you loose lots of money if you can’t tame it.
So far I’ve been keen on trying as many systems as I could, that helped massively to understand what I wanted and looked for. And it’s not necessarily related to how much you spend. Surely sound is potentially better on more expensive systems, but there’s a limit to this concept as many of us know. I’ve changed and upgraded gear on my system but I’ve done it slowly, properly thinking about it and only if it made sense in order to reach a certain type of sound I wanted.

Will I ever get to perfection? I’m not sure because perfection does not exist. Can I improve my actual system? Of course I can, but by which margin in relation to the money I might spend? All in all I think I’m very happy with my whole setup, I will improve it (hopefully wisely) but I’m not rushing into that right now because the basis is very well covered according to my preferences.

And about the other questions…

  • Did you have a sound in your head that would be the goal and did you reach it? Yes I had the sound in my mind and I think I reached most of it.
  • Did you hear the perfect system then try to recreate the sound in your own home or was it just what you had hoped it would sound like in your head? Wait… does a perfect system exist?!? I’ve heard some very good ones for sure and those were my reference points along my journey.
  • Do you play the same test tracks over and over or do you just play music? I change music according to my mood and the Hi-Fi system surely shaped my taste. Test tracks have always changed over time but I always pick music that I hope I know very well and have already tried on other systems too.
  • Are you a perfectionist? I might be, but perfection is a relative concept and it’s just for you to set that limit.
  • Is this insane hobby a trap? It’s a great hobby, it taught me a lot too. It’s only a trap if you let yourself fall into the rabbit hole, otherwise there’s absolutely nothing wrong about it. And many other hobbies can be traps too, let’s not forget it. The problem isn’t the hobby but your attitude.
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Excellent answers. I think you have the balance about right and have achieved your dream sensibly. Getting to the answers is a form of wisdom too. But I have also witnessed the dark side and seen the obsession in people who are unable to separate the never ending upgrade need and can’t enjoy what they have and music becomes secondary! Could be worse you could play golf! :winking_face_with_tongue:

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That’s right! Unluckily I’ve seen people like that in this forum (and not only of course). The Hi-Fi system is an importan tool to experience music, but music should always be the end goal and can’t be forgotten. Some seem to ignore it istead, that’s crazy! Golf? That’s pretty expensive… But also cars, boats, etc. The list is long!

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Before i got my first system I wanted something that would play music and sound good. I had an idea of what sounding good might be from visits to hifi shops, and from reading, odd as tgat may seem. Through lots of research, mail order and DIY my first system was musch better than its budget cost, and an incidental experiment partway through introduced me to bass, Then soon after getting it I started to experience live music.

That all sets the background: I then wanted to improve, focussing first on the most evident limitations, while my aim as a long term goal became to have music sounding as good as it could be. Early on I realised that money would always be a limitation, and my process became one of making infrequent bigger changes rather than frequent smaller upgrades, and buying secondhand when practicable, maximising buying power. Unlike some people I knew, I had no target in terms of named gear, simply one of sound, which of course was a rather nebulous concept.

25 years into my hifi journey I ceased to have any particular upgrade thoughts, having excellent speakers (IMF’s top of the range speakers from the time I started out, excellent CD player and pretty good vinyl player, and amplification that did justice, and a sound with which I was content. Changes beyond that were prompted by CDP demise - twice, each a little after 10 years in use. The last led me to switch to streaming, and a few years perfecting that and in so doing discovering even better sound than I had before, while along the way a small inheritance led to speaker change in memory of the person who first introduced me to music. Final changes and came through chance spotting alternative speakers then amp at compelling secondhand prices, and I’m done : i have the music my head envisaged at the start of my hifi journey, and other than final finesse I have had for more than the last half of my hifi listening.

Did I have a sound in my head that would be the goal and did I reach it? Yes, or one developed in the first very few years.

Did I hear the perfect system then try to recreate the sound in my own home or was it just what I had hoped it would sound like in my head? No, and perhaps sort of, yes and no!

Do I play the same test tracks over and over or do I just play music? If I am auditioning something I tend to play a number of tracks that I have found from experience can show up limitations in a system, and do tgat repeatedly, but otherwise I play those tracks only as a part of playing and listening to music which for me almost invariably is whole albums at a time.

Am I a perfectionist? Generally with things I do pretty much I suppose, but that does not translate to hifi setup and listening. I am not a serial tweaker, and if it sounds good I have no drive to fiddle.

Is this insane hobby a trap? As a hobby it is not insane at all, but one of life’s great pleasures, but it seems that susceptible people can appear to almost lose their sanity pursuing some goal that may be real, or may be imaginary. For them perhaps it can be a trap.

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Obsession:

an idea or thought that continually preoccupies or intrudes on a person’s mind.

Hmm. That’s not quite it for me but perhaps not too far off!

Though not exactly budget, my first Linn/Naim system (LP12/42.5/110/Kans) had exactly that effect on me. And yes I’ve spent many years (decades) attempting to recreate the effect of that system on me. Whether I’m remembering the sound of that system accurately or not is questionable. Memory is a strange and deceptive thing. Probably if I heard that system now it wouldn’t live up to the memories and I would be disappointed.

I’m really happy with our current system. I can truthfully say that I’ve never heard anything anywhere that sounded more like real musicians playing in the room. That’s down, I’m sure, to our horn-loaded speakers. Horns are known to have that quality.

It’s a long way from being a perfect system but I’m old enough to realise that perfection is something that can never be achieved in life and it’s madness to pursue it as a goal.

I’ve been into audio since I was around 10 yrs old (now 65!). I’ve always dreamt of owning a system that would convince me that I was listening to real musicians. I’ve finally got there with my current system, which we’ve had for around 5 years now, though we’ve tweaked it a lot with various devices/cables during that time.

What were the key factors in achieving this? For me (1) large speakers, (2) horn loading and (3) close attention to set up, ie. racks cables etc. etc.

Overall sometimes it’s certainly bordered on obsession but not in a destructive way. The dream has always been there and still is. If we had the money then there’s plenty I would do to move things forward and iron out the faults. But we don’t - so this is the best it’ll ever get for me. Can’t complain though. It’s all been a gas!

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I have given more thought to this. For me, a system has to be tonally accurate and portray all the instruments honestly. Are the string instruments “woody”? Do the brass have “bite”? Sound stage is crucial. I can’t tolerate systems that overly compress center images or have side images climb up the walls. I guess I am saying that musicians need to be playing in my listening space. Naim and Rega have introduced me to the importance of PRAT. For us, we have to be able to operate the equipment easy as we age with our disabilities. It does not matter how good a system is, if you cannot operate it easily. Naim and Luxman are good at this. Lastly with recordings of live music—Can the system recreate or better yet, approximate the venue?

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If I listed everything hifi wise I’ve owned over 35+ years it’d take up far too much room :laughing:

What I’ve learnt over the years is that’s there’s so many ways to put a system together that makes my/our music sound good

I’ve put together budget systems that sounded musical and pretty expensive systems that sounded great too

Tonight we’ve pretty much non stopped listened to our music… with a little bit of Olympics and playing cards thrown in….like you do!

My take from tonight is that the system I’ve put together this time sounds great…the XS3 is, I believe, the heart of the system but the icing is the ATC’s ..they still have me saying “gosh” .. they are incredible speakers

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For me, the journey has been a constant evolution of both taste and understanding.

It started back in my late teens after saving for what seemed forever to acquire my first “real” speakers. A pair of B&W 600 series bookshelf speakers paired with an entry level Sony integrated. That system fundamentally changed my perception of what was possible in audio playback. When I moved on to university, budget constraints and dorm life pushed me into a heavy headphone phase. I spent those years constantly climbing the IEM ladder, squeezing out whatever marginal gains my student budget would allow.

Eventually, I wanted room filling sound again and went down the active route, pairing Focal powered monitors with an Arcam home cinema processor. That was a fun detour, but it was followed by a more traditional setup consisting of Diamond speakers and an Anthem amplifier. I lived happily with that combination for a few years, convinced it was a great pairing.

Then came the turning point. I bought my first piece of Naim gear, the SN3. And it completely obliterated everything else I had heard in my space up to that point. It also completely inverted my entire philosophy on system building. Until that SN3, I had always prioritized speakers, treating the electronics as secondary.

I hopped on the Naim upgrade train and never looked back. Today my system has evolved into a mix of 300 and 500 series components. The SN3 is long gone, but the philosophy remains. I have paired the Naim electronics with Dynaudio Contour Legacy speakers, which I absolutely love. To get the most out of the room, I invested heavily in acoustic treatment, including active bass traps, to tame the environment.

Currently, I find myself deep in the weeds of “creatively” priced interconnect comparisons. It is meticulous work, tuning the system with both analog and digital cables, but the music always remains the ultimate goal. At the end of the day, I just want a system I enjoy waiting for me when I get home. If I have the time and the budget, I will try new things to see what sticks, but the foundation is solid I think.

What is next is always the big question. Sometimes I read about the latest super integrated amplifiers and think about simplifying everything into one box. But I might not be ready to give up the endless configurability and component matching that separates have to offer.

Did you have a sound in your head that would be the goal and did you reach it? No, I cannot say I started with a specific sonic target. My ideal sound has developed organically over the years as I have discovered new music and experienced different components.

Did you hear the perfect system then try to recreate the sound in your own home or was it just what you had hoped it would sound like in your head? I went in without any grand expectations. I simply experimented and built upon the characteristics I liked in my own room. Frankly, I have yet to hear a system at an audio show or in a dealer showroom that instantly makes me think it smokes what I have pieced together at home.

Do you play the same test tracks over and over or do you just play music? When I am auditioning a new component, I do stick to the same albums, though not necessarily the same single tracks on repeat. I need repeatability and an even playing field to make accurate comparisons. I also prefer to take my time with evaluations, which is why listening to full albums makes more sense to me than skipping through tracks.

Are you a perfectionist? I would describe myself more as a pragmatist.

Is this insane hobby a trap? If it is, it is certainly a very good sounding trap. Yes, the rabbit holes are deep and occasionally lined with aggressively priced whatever, but the entire journey brings an immense amount of joy to me. As long as I navigate the second hand market wisely and keep my favorite dealers on speed dial, I think I will be perfectly fine. And if I am wrong, well, at least I will enjoy the descent in glorious high fidelity.

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@gk_audio Your post brings back fond memories. I too started out with the B&W 600 speakers. NAD integrated and a basic TT. Zip chord for speaker cable. Also I started this round with a SN3. I’m way past that now and no desire to upgrade.

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How about SBLs?

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I borrowed a Nait 50 from my dealer for a couple of weeks.

Lovely little integrated, but not a patch on the 52/135s I had.

Maybe having 6 systems and some boxes in storage is a tad bit inefficient. :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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I currently have a Scala already which I will stay with it for some years first.

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Lot of great answers. To me it’s yet another hobby and each to their own.
Even for healthy hobby like climbing some may look at mount Everest and some just look at the hill behind his home. All depends on how passionate and committed.

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OCD , perfectionism, human nature all play a part in hobbies, in life…..

Hifi though is a trap, well engineered by manufacturers to snare the unsuspecting.

Case in point; £3500 for a network switch being demonstrated at the Bristol Show on the show thread. Probably not even the most expensive option available…..

That is utterly ridiculous…….

I will not deny certain items are better engineered, sound better or have more “headroom”, but to what benefit…….

The recordings well made or poorly made are apparent on decent gear and sensib,e pricing.

A fool and his money and all that…

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Yes, I’m living the dream.
If I win the lottery I would just buy some more music.
Amen.

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One other thing that occurs to me is that looking back over the five and a half decades that I’ve been into audio there is actually very little correlation between my enjoyment of music at home and the cost of the equipment I’ve been using. I started off with a little Steepletone stereo record player back in 1970. This had a BSR turntable on it with a plastic pick-up arm and BSR crystal cartridge. I was thrilled with it and thoroughly enjoyed listening to music. Even back then I was aware of what was possible at the time. I often heard up-market equipment playing in shops which obviously sounded far better. Yet it didn’t spoil my enjoyment of music at home. It did however give me an objective to work towards. I knew that one far off day I would own one of those posh sounding systems. The journey had begun!

I sometimes have a completely irrational desire to return to something like one of those systems that really cought my eye in the 70’s. Quad amplification and Wharfedale speakers. The new Quad amps (3 and 33/303) look absolutely stunning IMO and have got excellent reviews. Likewise the new range of Wharfedale heritage speakers (Denton, Linton). It would be a crazy thing to do in view of what I have now, but still the appeal is there.

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It’s just an addiction, like many others. Try to quit it…

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Over the years our ears have also degraded and played a part in what we like now as to when I was 20 years old. I played the focal tools CD and played the frequency tones with my wife and daughter both could hear much further up the scale than myself. For me bright sounding systems are no longer the goal. I remember hearing a pair of huge Kefs in the 70’s and hearing bass that I have never heard since. Was that bass accurate …no but it made you smile. I also feel each house you move to is the luck of the draw when it comes to sound. I loved my original Linn Sara’s then I thought I would buy the newest version, sold my speakers to buy them without listening to them (2nd hand) got them home and they sounded terrible over bright etc. so I put them up for sale and brought them round to dem in someone’s home system! I was so upset as in their room they sounded the opposite. Then I realised never ever to buy again without a dealer and to be able to try before you buy. But even then over the years so much equipment has come and gone and some I think now I could have made work but you just keeping going. I now have a musical system I love. Most of the pitfalls of my system and in the past have always been the room sadly. And when I see pictures of peoples systems I can’t believe they could sound good set up like that! What do I know! To me tweaking and snake oil are usually just that, get the room right and everything will follow. That’s what I have learnt over the years, sadly it took me too long to realise that. :thinking:

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That’s cool, I started with the B&W 600 series as well but paired with a NAD amp. Good memories even though they certainly don’t match my present taste. As you said there’s a constant evolution of both taste and understanding, I do feel exactly the same.

Naim seems to have this effect not only on you!

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Holding on to or reliving the past, not letting go, fine tuning and gaining control, hoarding? There’s a whole thesis to be examined there. :grinning_face:

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