Is the "audiophile" a dying breed?

joeparaski

I had a chat with my 23 year old daughter about audio and music. In her opinion, today’s young generation has no interest in sound quality. As long as they have their pc’s and internet connection, along with their IPods, then they are happy. With a few exceptions, music has become “fast food” and more of a fashion statement.



Some of her quotes from our conversation:



” its less about the quality and more about the style”



“they use music to personify themselves rather than appreciate it as an art form”



“definitely dont care about sound equipment.. i have not found one kid that boasts or takes pride in a good system”



“it pretty much died with my generation since we were the ones who were introduced to MP3s 8 or 10 years ago. ever since mp3s came out, that pretty much destroyed any appreciation for quality since mp3s are insanely compressed music files.”



“i guess i find even the music that's been coming out lately is hardly talent... its just 3 or 4 instruments combined to make noise. even the bands in the last couple of years dont know anything about quality of music and just pump out 1 or 2 hits an album”





“you never get bands that make ENTIRE albums good anymore.... fast food music. get your quick fix and then on to the next”









So there you have it, my daughters’ views in a nutshell. She has a greater appreciation for music being an artist and taking courses in film, cinema, and photography.



Although she has lots of mp3’s on her computer, she prefers original store bought cd’s and has quite a collection (as well as her dad) of music. Like me, she prefers to have her hands on the cd case and study the artwork and notes within.





Joe

Early B.

Joe --

Do you always take notes of your conversations with your daughter. Seems weird, dude. Just sayin'.

Early B.

Seriously, the younger generation will be fine. Let's face it, there's only like 328 audiophiles in America, so it's a very small crowd.

I think once these kids get older and a few of them get exposed to what good music is supposed to sound like, they'll be hooked. That's how it happened with many of us. My friend was into audio. One day I went over his house and heard his system and that was it. Before then, my system consisted of a $250 JVC boombox and a handful of cassettes (I didn't own any CDs), and this was less than 10 years ago.

joeparaski

Not taking notes....I wanted to start a "potentially" interesting thread. I asked my daughter what her thoughts were on the subject and asked her if it was ok to quote her in the Polk forum. I find it weird that you found it weird...weird isnt' it?

Joe

StephenEC

Joe ,

It seems it's more about " IMAGE " today , rather than " SUBSTANCE " .

That even applies to Mastering Engineers of Music , There are those that

agree that " The Loudness War " is wrong , but , " THEY " cave in do

what is expected . . . not what is right ( from an audiophiles stance ) .


Stephen

dee1949

...thanks for sharing. My godchildren (college age) are the same way. Ipods and Itunes and cheap stereo components of their choosing. Offered to upgrade them to better equipment but they prefer the coolness of theirs. Weird they have no appreciation of the quality of SOUND and music.

sucks2beme

Each to their own. I think 90% of "audiophiles" are just into it for the cool looks too.
So why would the younger crowd be any different.
My college age boy has my Snell bookshelves ,Pioneer elite
amp and Grado headphones. Son #1 traded me for my Studio 60's.
So there's some hope for them. But in the end as long as I enjoy it,
who cares what anyone esle thinks.

McLoki

Not sure if your age - but look at Trey. I would rate him as an audiophile in the making....

To put audio in economic terms - the rich are staying about the same. (number of audiophiles is fairly constant if not increasing slightly as their items become more accessable (as well as them sharing ideas with each other)

The poor are exploding. Cheap sound is everywhere now adays. Those that probably would not have had a stereo 20 years ago, now have home theaters (thanks to it being almost required with plasma's and LCD's. Most look at it as a basic accessory, but not something to invest heavly in.

What is really suffering is the middle class.
There is no place for audio enthusiasts to hang out and talk other than internet forums. There are very few local places left to sample speakers and electronics. Best Buy and Circuit City are as high end as 80% of the people have local access to. (The local hi-fi store is almost a thing of the past) There are a few places you can pick up generic speaker cable, but almost no where to try the higher end brands out and see if you hear a difference. Many of the cable non-believers are out there just because it costs them over $100 just to test and see if cables can change the sound of their equipment - so they purchase 2 cables, one costing $25 and one costing $35 and don't hear a difference.

With internet direct companies and the growth of boards like this one, AVS, hometheaterforum and others though is a big help to the struggling middle classer.

Push comes to shove - I think we will be fine, as will our kids. If nothing else, we will leave them with some rockin' equipment.

Michael

EFanning

I recall liking Michael Jackson as kid in the 1980s for pure image reasons. Today, I spin much of Jackson's work on a good two-channel system.

I note that Justin Timberlake's albums are essentially Jackson remakes, and they are very good. I'd bet that many young Timberlake fans end up just like me in their 30s. And like me, they will have moved far from J.T. They'll buy CDs and some may even buy vinyl albums. (Actually, I think vinyl has seen a bump in sales lately.)

As one ages, the stuff one appreciates, like a good wine, changes. In music appreciation, listeners will gravitate back to good home audio basics as they age.

Just to establish, if I were in college or post-college city life among a bunch of dopes who were flashing iPod systems, I'd bust out a two-channel 1970s system for pure image reasons. And to get laid.

vonnie123

Lounge chair listening is a dying breed - MP3 and compressed music seems to be the trend with the younger folks. It's really too bad the SACD didn't catch on better.

Fongolio

I just had a conversation with my 13 year old son about this topic and yes he loves his ipod and the convenience of large quantities of portable music. He did state however that he cannot stand low quality mp3's and if it were possible would store much higher quality sound. He routinely listens to music on my 2 channel setup with me and has full appreciation of vinyl as one of the best listening mediums along with sacd and dvd-audio. I believe he will inherit the audiophile gene/psychotic tendancies. Perhaps his generation will develop the blu-ray music potential. We can only hope.

F1nut

They said the audiophile a was dying breed 20+ years ago.......we're still here.

mantis

No body with few exceptions are out to save the world of bad audio. I have tried for many years and it seems like a waste of time. As long as people get the music and can hear it, lower quality is fine. Ipod , mp3 type music rules the world. The Audiophile groups are not growing, we are still here I agree but not with many new members.

Sad but very true.

Dan

Ricardo

F1nut wrote: »

They said the audiophile was a dying breed 20+ years ago.......we're still here.

Right; we are just 20 years older

ND13

Wave Radio anyone?

Early B.

Remember when we were young? Our low fidelity "Ipod" was a Walkman. Go back a bit farther and it was a cassette deck with equalizer and cheap **** speakers. Go back even farther and it was an 8-track player. All of these sounded dreadful, but here we are -- 30 years later posting on an audio forum about a musically challenged generation who will not wave the audiophile flag when we're gone. They will just as we did, in spite of the horrific sound systems idolized by the masses.

Mike Kozak

I have been an Audiophile for at least 35 years or so (being 46 now). I have always appreciated well composed and delivered music. I shun everything new and have been told I live in the 70s...........Oh well, I like it there

davidk0512

My 23 year old son has had ipods and cheap earbuds for years. Growing up, he would ask his mother, why does dad always have to crank that music up so loud? Well, he graduated from college in May 2007, bought his first house in March 2008, and in August, he started asking me for recommendations on a good sounding stereo system. I told him to let me find some good used equipment for him. He'll get it next week when he comes home for Thanksgiving, but his starter set is a pair of RTA 8TL's and a 9 year old H/K 5 channel AVR that he will be using as a 2 channel set-up. I was surprised that he has now shown an interest in audio among other things that he never had an interest in before. I went through the same thing when my dad was trying to teach me a few things at that age.

rdb2001

Me being 25 and from the younger generation, I think that we will be fine. I take myself, my uncle introduced me 2 channel when I was very young. He had vintage polks, technics, equalizers,amps, vintage bostons, and I never realized why he needed all of that for quality sound. Well my freshman year in college he bought me a technics stereo receiver and gave me a pair technics floorstanders with an old equalizer. All i can say was WOW. It created this passion that I have today. Being in the band in highschool and playing for a band director that preached quality sound over loudness, I always had an ear for what didnt sound right. So as the years went on, I begin to buy more and more equipment. I always redo my stock system in every car that I have owned. I just recently upgraded my gear and will post pics on system showcase. I enjoy quality music in its true uncompressed form. I have friends who have great gear. I just finished my home theater and now I am building my 2 channel and will ask my uncle for a pair of his vintage bostons. I dont think the audiophile is a dying breed. I think it will passed on from generation to generation. How many 25 year olds listen to an 80's legend called foreigner. I only know of myself lol

reeltrouble1

what wire should I use in my system???

RT1

SolidSqual

I'm a prime example of a kid who was born on mp3 and is now crazy audiophile. It's not that I didn't care about quality, it's that I didn't have the money to afford the high-end equipment I now own. And when all the products you can afford pretty much glorify a compressed format . . . then that's what you use.

When I used a computer and mp3s as my main source, I still strived for quality in the ripping and size of the Mp3 . . . to me that's a sign of an audiophile waiting to happen. I bet there's a lot of kids like this. Once they get the cash flow, assuming tunes are more than just background noise to them, then they will make the right decisions.

zombie boy 2000

What's with these horseless carriages and hippity-hip-hop shenanigans?!? Get off my lawn.

treitz3

reeltrouble1 wrote: »

what wire should I use in my system???

RT1

Silly RT1, wire hangers of course.

GEBBY44

Joe's sentiments are exactly correct. The "style" factor of music has killed the possibility of introducing many people to better sound. I'm 21 and have definitely spent more money that a college kid should, but I've yet to have anyone listen to something (well-recorded) at my place and walk away without saying "Hey, can you make my system sound like that?" When they learn that they can't get that type of sound out of their HTIB's and computer speakers, they seem bewildered that Best Buy doesn't carry "great" audio products. Queue beginning of explanations of file compression, speaker differences, cables, etc.

I'd also blame the huge marketing budgets of mainstream companies. When we're growing up, all we see is what we're told is good stuff. Unless somebody shows us "the way," it's really easy to live life without knowing how good music can sound and how it can make you feel.

Last month I helped a friend put together a setup with RTi6's, a decent Marantz receiver, and some Signal Ultra cables for $320 - and he said he has spent way more before to get way less. There is hope. I just try to let as many people as I can know that there is better sound out there. You just have to figure out if it's worth it to you. To most college kids worried about semi-alcoholic habits and other easily-eliminated expenses, it simply isn't at the time. My crusade will continue.

concealer404

SolidSqual wrote: »

I'm a prime example of a kid who was born on mp3 and is now crazy audiophile. It's not that I didn't care about quality, it's that I didn't have the money to afford the high-end equipment I now own. And when all the products you can afford pretty much glorify a compressed format . . . then that's what you use.

When I used a computer and mp3s as my main source, I still strived for quality in the ripping and size of the Mp3 . . . to me that's a sign of an audiophile waiting to happen. I bet there's a lot of kids like this. Once they get the cash flow, assuming tunes are more than just background noise to them, then they will make the right decisions.

Bingo.... except i don't have near the impressive setup you do now...

I went from a cheesy Logitech setup on my computer, to running a y-splitter 1/8th jack to RCA cable into a Dynaco SCA-80Q Quad4 to a pair of Paradigm Titan V.3s, to replacing the Dynaco with an Onkyo that i ran SPDIF Optical out to, to making the jump to what i'm running now.

My father is an audiophile, but i think i learned on my own. Part of that was going to school for music, and knowing what EVERY instrument SHOULD sound like, and getting frustrated when it didn't sound like that on the recording, so i made every effort to make it sound real.

I've still got a long ways to go, but i am 90% happy with my setup at the moment.

sucks2beme

zombie boy 2000 wrote: »

What's with these horseless carriages and hippity-hip-hop shenanigans?!? Get off my lawn.

Some of us had to work at good sound

davidk0512

reeltrouble1 wrote: »

what wire should I use in my system???

RT1

I read somewhere on here that wire makes no difference as long as your speakers and source are high quality

reeltrouble1

treitz3 wrote: »

Silly RT1, wire hangers of course.

cool, I can scratch myself with them as well.:rolleyes:

FWIW Jim Herd President of Polk said its necessary for young folks to have lousy equipment at low volume to listen to compressed recordings. Shame on Wadia for putting paint and pretty on an I-pod, very Bose like.

A few nut cases like us only take care of the niche market, which is where I will happily live out my days.

RT1

Joe08867

I know that my nephews would have very little clue as to how things should sound without me showing them what can be. They are so brainwashed by the ipod sound that they couldn't believe what my SDA's sounded like. Or how there is more to music than that processed sound. My favorite part was playing a record for them of music they had on there ipods. Blown away would be the phrase I would use.

And my 2ch setup is nothing compared to some of the ones I have seen on here.

It is like the guitar hero, rockband generation. Kids would rather play fake guitar then learn how to play a real one. Sad.

rayslifecycle

EFanning wrote: »

I recall liking Michael Jackson as kid in the 1980s for pure image reasons. Today, I spin much of Jackson's work on a good two-channel system.

I note that Justin Timberlake's albums are essentially Jackson remakes, and they are very good. I'd bet that many young Timberlake fans end up just like me in their 30s. And like me, they will have moved far from J.T. They'll buy CDs and some may even buy vinyl albums. (Actually, I think vinyl has seen a bump in sales lately.)

As one ages, the stuff one appreciates, like a good wine, changes. In music appreciation, listeners will gravitate back to good home audio basics as they age.

Just to establish, if I were in college or post-college city life among a bunch of dopes who were flashing iPod systems, I'd bust out a two-channel 1970s system for pure image reasons. And to get laid.

+1

I agree - when you are a kid - there is nothing to worry about except what people think about you - when you get older you start to find things you enjoy. I too have replayed Michael Jackson's thriller on vinyl - given to me by my fiance's mom - and was quite impressed with the recording's production quality - when I was a teen - I saw the thriller video on TV with a little 3" speaker and I loved it.....Kids don't know - so if we want to pass down our love for SOUND - then we can illustrate to our younger friends how good their music could sound

- my fiancee loves to play her Justin Timberlake CD on the HT as well as the 2 channel rig - and I apreciate listening to that when it is of higher quality then the MP3s she ripped for her I-pod

pablo_rodz

Early B. wrote: »

Joe --

Do you always take notes of your conversations with your daughter. Seems weird, dude. Just sayin'.

:D:D:D:D:D ROLF!!!! I thought the same.....

I don't consider my self an aoudiophile, I'm far from that, but I appreciate good sounding music/ systems..

I'd like to learm more about it, that's why I roam the forums..