Julf wrote: > Glad to hear. Just like Archimago, I too started out as a "real > audiophile" years ago, believing all the voodoo and folklore basically > based on "if everybody keeps saying it, it must be true". Fortunately an > engineering education helped me to "go out and find for yourself". What > also helped was coming across, and helping to debunk some of the > non-audiophile-related cults, superstitions and outright frauds. A very > educating experience aboout the gullibility of the human mind - and the > ways that gets exploited.
I think that the "I too was once a true kool-aid drinking audiophile" is pretty much the norm for must of the regular posters on this forum and that is why many of us express such strong feelings when we encounter suspect audiophile claims. Remember there are no greater zealots than converts. My move away from swallowing audiophile voodoo hook, line and sinker started when I moved into computer based digital audio. What I was experiencing on a daily basis when playing digital music and what was being claimed in the audiophile press were less and less in alignment. Many things being claimed, from on the fly flac to wav conversions degrading the sound (note: never any mention of alac to wav conversions - I wonder why ;)), to high end digital cables "sounding" better, ran counter to my own first hand experiences and from very well established scientific theories and laws. So as the effects of kool-aid wore off I became more and more of a selective nonbeliever. I say "selective" since many audiophile principles, especially those based on good scientific theories, are still completely valid and their application often results in better sounding equipment. However the high end audio press' outright refusal to submit any of their unscientific claims to any kind of scientifically valid testing has only served to strengthen my anti-audiophile feelings. As it was things were not looking good for the audiophile side of things and then I started to "follow the money" and the audiophile cause was completely lost. While the lofty and stated goal of of high end audio is to provide "good sound", there is another more important goal at work, which is to sell product and which I am in no way against. However in the pursuit of selling product there is a need to make any given product appear more desirable than other similar products and we barraged with silly marketing claims. At one time the audio press was willing to debunk many of these claims but those days are now long gone. It is now up to the consumer to try and gather some truthful information and make educated buying decisions. Thanks to people like Archimago we are now able to directly refute many of the more outrageous audiophile claims and put our buying power on the side of proven and truthful claims. Living Rm: Transporter-SimAudio pre/power amps-Vandersteen 3A Sign. & sub Home Theater: Touch-Marantz HTR-Energy Veritas 2.1 & Linn sub Computer Rm: Touch-Headroom Desktop w/DAC-Aragon amp-Energy Veritas 2.1 & Energy sub Bedroom: Touch-HR Desktop w/DAC-Audio Refinement amp-Energy Veritas 2.0 Guest Rm: Duet-Sony soundbar Garage: SB3-JVC compact system Controls: iPeng; SB Controller; Moose & Muso Server: SBS on dedicated windows 7 computer w/2 Drobos 'Last.fm' (http://www.last.fm/user/jazzfann/) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ralphpnj's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=10827 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=101342 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/audiophiles
