Hours sitting around just listening to music?

Hi Quicke,

I guess if your thinking goes along the lines of "audiophile" is a pretentious term ... then I would also guess that not sitting in the sweet spot concentrating solely on the music would somehow be a "pride" thing. Curious choice of words.

Speaking for myself, I have never purchased stereo equipment with the idea that I would be glued to a sweet spot while I was listening to it. I have lived in apartments most of my 46 years ... so, I have not now and have never had a dedicated Iistening room. The audiophile considerations (sweet spots, optimal room placement, proper speaker height, etc) are brokered with my real world considerations (the furniture I own, my wife's feelings, my cats' athleticism, the partial hearing loss in my left ear, etc).

I buy very good equipment, because it will sound very good even outside the sweet spot ... maybe not perfect, but still very good. Very good equipment will sound better than mediocre equipment both inside and outside the sweet spot. An old trick for testing speakers (circa 1973), was to put on some piano music and walk back and forth alongside the front of the speakers to see if the pitch changed. If the pitch changed ... you didn't buy the speakers. You also knew that they would sound good outside the sweet spot. Now, there are those moments when I kick back, sit in the sweet spot, put on a "must listen to" CD, and then, fall promptly asleep for the next 45 minutes!

Putting all my rationalizations aside ... the issue you raise is not an audio ONLY issue anyway. It is a consumerism topic. Do you really need a Viking professional stove to cook macaroni and cheese or a Sub-Zero refrigerator to keep the OJ cold or figured-shaped Fritos, for that matter? Audiophiles may stand out because of the "male, small number of participants" nature of our hobby. If you are not going to live in that sweet spot ... you may not need those $20K mono blocks ... but, the Brand X $179 surround system isn't the answer either.

Curious to see your comments.

Regards, Rich

For me it's a weird thing. Because of my work schedule, sometimes I go days or weeks without being able to park my ass in my listening chair. And then there are times I listen to music and read while sitting there from 8am until evening with a few breaks. I almost never listen my system unless I'm sitting in the "sweet spot".

I work long hours in the warm months and am lucky to hear my system on the weekend. In the winter I am home much of January-April. During these cold months I am warmed by music almost nonstop during awake hours. As I type this Dire Straits Love Over Gold is playing in the background. I usually sit in the sweet spot when one of my favorites cues up or in the evening enjoying a beer or 2. As far as money wasted when not concentrating, who cares. It's a hobby so waste some money and enjoy however you want!

I read reviews and posts for the same reason I read anything, Interest.

I post to share some experiences and advice that often cost me significant dollars to gain.

But I am never on a computer on Friday and Saturday evenings. I have a dedicated listening room and I go down into it, let the tubes warm up, wait I am not finished, get the turntable ready, clean the records, wait, pick out some SACDs, open the wine, hit the sweet spot, and let the Logans sing.

Then on Monday morning at work, awww, time to hit the Gon

Happy Listening.

Rich:

I have plenty of toys, so I'm not being critical of people for spending money. As Holzhauer said, "It's a hobby... enjoy...!"

It was just an observation. Over the holidays I did a lot of internet reading with regard to audio equipment. Granted the topics are generally equipment related, I just thought there was a scarcity of discussion regarding listening habits.

As I said, it's just a perception, but I think there is a whole lot of energy exerted on the non-listening aspects of this hobby. It's similar in photography as well. More buying/selling the latest and greatest lenses than wondering on the trail shooting and creating.

Back to audio, although I do believe there are differences between the sounds that come through amps and processors and even IC's (although I also think there is a lot of snake-oil and pride-of-ownership issues there too), I think they can be subtle and definitely less discernable depending on room make up, listening position, etc. When you really have to concentrate to hear minute differences that cost significant dollars to achieve, it seems... like overkill. Hey, I don't begrudge someone for liking expensive things.

BTW, I try and steal 30-45 minutes 2 to 3 times a week in my "media" room. (A single malt may not be too far away, either.) My dogs aren't allowed in the room and my wife doesn't like jazz all that much, or the high volume, for that matter, so I feel a bit guilty not spending time with the family.