Audiophilia and the iPod Generation

Point up front: Before I write this, I want to make it clear this post is about the bridge between 'audiophiles' and the modern youth with their iPods - or, whatever - encased in a story because it is interesting. Otherwise skip to the last two paragraphs.

My Uncle recently passed away. Two years before, he had been permanently put in a rest home. He was an audiophile; before he got sick he had a nice surround system with SACD capability, 5.1 with B&W 600 series and Marantz components. He spent most of his time listening to music or watching movies/TV, as he was relatively infirm even before that.

I consider myself an audiophile, much to the fault of my Uncle and Father. I still have my Uncle's Dual turntable with Shure cartridge. Even still, I have no use for other technology, such as fancy cell phones, Kindles, or iPods/iPads. When I went to Iraq in 2008 however I wanted to listen to music, so I went out and bought an 80GB iPod and a better pair of Shure headphones. I put my favorite recordings on it, and it served me well.

After I returned, and my Uncle was hospitalized, I took many of his favorite CDs and put them on the iPod for him, since he could no longer enjoy his system. He appreciated the 'Shure' brand on the headphones. Recently, the iPod returned to me through the family, since they knew I had given it to him. I charged it up - it still worked - and began listening to the selections I had put on it. A diverse collection from many including Julie London, George Wright, Mancini, Classical Organ, Cher, Enya, Al Green, Dave Gruisin, etc; my Uncle liked just about everything.

In the mean time I had bought a cheap pair of 'earbuds' at my local Blockbuster to watch movies on my computer during a move, when my TV was gone. I changed out the Shure headphones for the cheaper ones just for kicks, and they sounded like absolute 'crap.' Granted, the Shures cost about $120 more than the others. But this amount of difference in sound for the price is hard to come by in 'HiFi' equipment in general.

So, on to the point. These Shure earbuds really sound good. How many of these youngsters today start out with a cheap pair of earbuds? Surely they must have friends, some of which may have a better product. If they take one listen to the better product, they'll have to hear the difference. If that happens, then musn't some of them wonder about what they can get and what kind of better quality is out there? Some won't care about sound, just like in previous generations, but many will.

Perhaps this has been written about before, but it seems to me that with all the 'worry' about the audiophile hobby going bust to the iPod generation, there may not be too much to worry about. I think it would help if there was some bridge between headphones and speakers though - once they get a tast for good headphones, perhaps they'll appreciate the sound of a better docking system. As they get older, why wouldn't they branch out into a full system? The iPod and earbuds may actually be a cheap entry into the hobby for the masses that ultimately hooks them.