Do Audiophiles really like music?

I'm with Marco. I never really thought about music until I went into my local shop and saw all the equipment I could buy. Whatever the music was, I thought all the cool gear would impress my friends and neighbors.

So to be honest, I not really obsessed with music, and I have a hard time remembering the names of bands and things. But I guess I would say I know what I like when I hear it?

When I realized the number of formats, however, and the amount of hardware and equipment I could have, I started to pay a little bit more attention to music, but mainly with a view to which artists could be purchased on vinyl, reel to reel, CD SACD and also downloaded from iTunes.

That way, I can listen to the same track, over and over, but also switching between formats to hear the exact differences.

As the same time, I like to switch cables, while keeping a journal of how I patch them in and out of the system, and also cleaning the contacts with different solvents which makes it hard to focus on the music.

In the end, what moves me the most, is the widest possible freqency response, really really low bass, volume, and dynamic range that that can push both my family and my each of my components to the limit.

My favorite music is the stereophile test CDs. I am not so sensitive to singers, orchestras or conductors, but I am picky about the clarity of the cannon reproduction on the 1812 overture.

I enjoy moving freight train recordings, and I also enjoy straight percussion, provided it is very well recorded or from one of the audiophile labels.

So I suppose to a degree - to some degree - you could say I was an "audiophile" but my music collection is starting to grow.

For example, I am really learning about jazz, starting with all the Mannheim Steamroller recordings. Also the really timeless, classic jazz including John Klemmer and Earl Klugh. I dont really get it yet, but my taste is becoming more sophisticated and I think the clarity of SACD is helping me to get there.

Anyway, I think there is nothing wrong with being interested in both the audio and the music.

Its funny that you posed this question now because its something I've been pondering for about a year.
I started out 30 years ago as a music lover and thru the years became an audiophile. I have found that now I no longer listen to the music as much as I listen to the equipment. Somewhere along the line, I don't know quite when, this happened. So much so that I now probably enjoy listening to my FM tuner and car radio more than my current system. I've often wondered how many others in this hobby have had this happen to them.
I'm almost at the point of going back to a midfi system, where I started an enjoyed "the music" a lot more.
Unfortunately, this hobby can becaome an obsession if you're not careful. There's always going to be newer and better equipment out there!! Where does it end?
At some point you have ask yourself Am I a music lover or an equipment lover? or both.

I like my music,but i love the tubes glowing on my audio gear more..

What a great thread! It's good to examine our motivations occasionally. I just have one thought to add. I love live music but I don't relate this to listening at home. The crowd noise, bad acoustics, and social interaction put live shows in a differnent category for me. What motivates my audio hobby is totally different. I have been lucky to occasionally hear gifted people play beautiful instruments in small clubs and living rooms. The sounds a grand piano, guitar, or vioin can make in these atmospheres is completely unlike any public live performance I have heard. The closest I have found is high end audio preferably with no one else around. I also love the gear, but constantly need to remind myself not to focus on it. I'm here for the music.

I first found out about Audiophile Nervosa a little over 12 years ago when my girlfriend secretly purchased a solid state Mac preamp and amp I had pointed out to her at an estate sale for $25.00 each. They were way cool and retro looking but at that price I was certain those old things did not work. Besides, the glass on the preamp was broken.
Little did I know that they would completely blow away my new Pionneer AV receiver.
They looked Cool, Retro and sounded better than my modern stuff! Perfect to play my 5,000 LPs. My collection was suddenly unexplored territory.
I may not be much of an audiophile buy it's nice to have something that looks the business and sounds decent at the same time to play my LPs.
Say, who were the first audiophiles? Were they acousticians? I remember in high school that some guys would hang out in the boys' room singing Doo Wop and getting this cool echo sound. Were they audiophiles? I have recordings of polyphony that were recorded in courtyards that give the music a neat acoustic. I've also sat on concrete benches in parks where you could sit 100 feet from your companion and merely whisper a conversation. I've experienced the same phenomenon in domed buildings. Was all of that by design and does that make those architects audiophiles?
I'm sorry...it's a quiet day here being President's Day. I better go do some work. My girlfriend is off today and I know the last thing she would do is turn on the sound system. Oh well!