I love my Hifi


Anyone ponder over how it’s a great shame that our kids will probably never enjoy the quality of music we’re loving?
When I go away travelling for business or on holiday, I can’t wait to get home to listen to my music again.
It’s such a meaningful thing in my life. I feel sorry for people who don’t have that.
I’m listening to Transformer (Lou Reed) right now. On the original vinyl pressing. It’s 47 years old - a tad younger than me. It’s making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end - giving me such a buzz.
I couldn’t imagine life without my Hifi, but most of the younger generation will never know this! 
How sad is that?
128x128vinyloid
Hmm. Maybe. I guess it’s all relative to the best you know. Interesting response... 
At the end of the day all of us need a way to nurture our souls. This is human and not a generational phenomena.  Whether it's realized through hifi, a creative outlet, or immersing oneself in nature/built surroundings, humans always end up finding a way.  There are ways beyond hifi to scratch the same itch, even musically.  JMHO
This makes me wonder how many younger people have ever been into hifi. I have seen seen a number of discussions on here in regards to the idea that HEA is dying and kids are missing out. But again how many people on here had a high-end system when they were kids? Most of my friends all had stereo’s but nothing speacial. Mostly Onkyo receivers or something similar paired with Boston Acoustics or Polks or whatever we found in our parents garages.

Sure they weren’t considered hifi by audiophile standards but they brought hours of joy to many a kid who scraped by mowing lawns and washing dishes at the local cafe.

I’ve talked to a lot of baby boomers who are nuts about vintage Pioneer, Sansui and Marantz recievers. They just gobble them up like popcorn because they could never afford them when they were kids. I know guys in their late sixties that have 20 or 30 of them.

Those guys all tell me that almost nobody they knew had the funds to get a real high end system back then and that it was always sort of a niche hobby for the privilege few.

By most audiophile standards those old recievers would probably be considered a “lifestyle” product and not a bonafide hifi amp. But they are still more popular now than ever. All in one streaming amps are being designed by very highend manufacturer out there and similar “lifestyle” products like Sonos wireless speaker systems are everywhere. I would venture to say there are far more speaker, amp and dac manufacturers now than there has ever been. The market is huge. But in order to get younger people involved in this hobby and take the leep from “lifestyle” to hi-fi we as an audio community need to embrace the technology instead of scoff at and shun the idea that a kid with very little money could be content to listen the Chance the Rapper on an iphone with cheap earbuds.. They have to start somewhere.

The common thread here is the love of music. Most on here would probably also scoff at the music this generation listens to. I say who cares they would do the same to yours. The snobbery in this hobby needs to die. Go to an audio show sometime....white haired guys in socks and sandals. Every system playing the same tired Audiophile tracks....yawn. Sean Casey @ Zu Audio understands this very well. Say what you want about his speakers but the guy knows how to bring energy to his demos and his rooms are always packed.

Personally for me when I see companies like Peachtree, Bluesound, Devialet etc bridging the gap between lifestyle and hifi I see hope for this hobby. When I go to brick and mortar stores that do not carry any of these products and a sales staff completley ignorant of what a streamer is I see a dinosaur waiting to become extinct. To be fair most of the shops in my area do carry streamers now or are starting to. But five years ago....no way.

In the end who would you rather be, a kid completley lost in their own world with their earbuds on listening to their favorite band or some neurotic crotchety audiophile on the forums arguing about the efficacy of fuse direction and the benefits of placing wood blocks under speaker wires? You don’t get them and they sure as heck don’t get us. Not yet anyway.



It’s about the music - of course. But it’s also about how that music sounds. I can listen to electronic music and rap and e.g. Sleaford Mods through an audiophile system at home and it sounds so much better than through my iPhone on my morning commute.  It’s a world of difference and I just wish my kids could appreciate that...
but everything is relative to the best you know, I suppose...