I used to frequent this forum before it got closed for a while. Due to lockdown I’ve got more time time to lurk on here, but it’s not the same. There is very little activity. Is it because hifi is a dying hobby due to one box solutions sounding so good? I’ve noticed good questions going unanswered.
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CES Hands On - Samsung HW-Q990F review
Question Is it because there is no bad sound anymore?
- Thread starter Slothy
- Start date
Al ears
Well-known member
I think it's sort of matured. Many of the old brigade went elsewhere and didn't have any reason to come back.
Many now don't throw their opinions in regardless anymore and I for one will only respond to questions where I have some prior knowledge and not just suggested alternatives for the hell of it.
From what I can see most new questions are responded to to some degree.
What questions do you see going unanswered?
Good to see you back by the way.
MeanandGreen
Well-known member
Facebook is the killer of Internet forums. Not a good thing IMO.
There is plenty of activity on Facebook audio groups, in comparison to forums like this.
I do also think hi fi is very specialist now, far from the mainstream it was over 20 years ago. That in itself will reduce activity. I also think that What Hi Fi in particular has probably lost a lot of credibility in recent years - as it’s now easier than ever to educate yourself on what is out there and what actually makes a worthwhile difference/improvement in the world of audiophilea.
There is plenty of activity on Facebook audio groups, in comparison to forums like this.
I do also think hi fi is very specialist now, far from the mainstream it was over 20 years ago. That in itself will reduce activity. I also think that What Hi Fi in particular has probably lost a lot of credibility in recent years - as it’s now easier than ever to educate yourself on what is out there and what actually makes a worthwhile difference/improvement in the world of audiophilea.
insider9
Well-known member
I can only share my experience. I've gotten older and don't have as much to say. Also I spend more time by the day entertaining other hobbies like... drinking 😂
Hifi at present is just a means to an end. It's there to allow me to enjoy music. I understand where I could improve but for all intents and purposes I don't care. I don't listen as much as I used to either as I play more.
This is not to say I would give up my hobby. If anything lockdown showed me that the more hobbies the better and lots of people that I've not heard from in a while are getting in touch.
Hifi at present is just a means to an end. It's there to allow me to enjoy music. I understand where I could improve but for all intents and purposes I don't care. I don't listen as much as I used to either as I play more.
This is not to say I would give up my hobby. If anything lockdown showed me that the more hobbies the better and lots of people that I've not heard from in a while are getting in touch.
michael hoy
Well-known member
This question was posed in another thread on this forum, it will take time for the forum to gain momentum.
Hi Fi has been on a downward slide IMO due to the younger generation and their use of MP3.
A lot of them don't care about sound quality and just want it now.
Hi Fi has been on a downward slide IMO due to the younger generation and their use of MP3.
A lot of them don't care about sound quality and just want it now.
SteveH72
Well-known member
Jimboo
Well-known member
You know it may actually be a good thing. For many years we have chased the desire for hi fi. In our hearts we cannot tell the difference between upgraded products or the SE and UK tuned badges. We read the flowery reviews and the chalk and cheese difference in an adjustment on a circuit board. The upgrading of phones and their sales are slowing because (I guess) it is more obvious that the upgrades and blurb promised isn't really worth the cost. My hi fi system is so different now compared to what I thought you needed for enjoyment back in the day . I wanted a more simplified , less is more system. I lost interest in synergy , cables and boxes. This is the 21st century.
The younger generation like lifestyle systems. Too many products claim they are all you need for all your needs , soundbars and computer and speakers or phone and speaker and tablet/cloud / speakers etc. So many products sold as a one size fits all. The average hifi looks like a blast from the past.The future will be a pair of speakers and they have and will evolve into a part of your room. The sound quality will be Hi-Res , actual Hi-Res of a single quality. The future is not hi fi as we know it. C.D quality will be streamed and will only need an active style speaker. It will be on demand because people want it now. Sound quality will not be an issue in the future . Hell, we are already there. Our generation the forty plus years gang will be the last to want and prefer the physical product.
stereoman
Well-known member
It is absolute true that many all-one-systems sound simply great these days. Sony , Denon , Panasonic or Pioneer etc, they produce amazing sound for the price and convienience. Sony especially is the King of the great sound per Pound - I am a huge fan of Sony products - but what is even more astonishing in many ways it sounds as good as the Hi Fi separates from other known companies. You can buy all in one from Sony for 300 quid and it gives you a really good sound. I have always wondered who the Sony sound engineers are - they really do a good job.
What I find not so good about modern Hi Fi separates is that too often they sound so harsh lacking good punchy midrange response,
What I find not so good about modern Hi Fi separates is that too often they sound so harsh lacking good punchy midrange response,
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GSV Ethics Gradient
Moderator
I think it's ironic that as people generally become more bothered about higher-res video they seem less bothered by sound quality.
Jimboo
Well-known member
It might be that Hi-Res audio if it becomes standard will mean that they don't have to be so bothered about sound quality. It will almost be guaranteed all wrapped up in a more convenient package.
Hi Res video by the way slightly amuses me in the way 3D did. If a movie or program is a damn good story in the first place how many times do you walk away thinking if only I had watched it on a bigger TV or in 4k/3D . The story is my main concern and the music comes before the hi fi. A lot of people watch/ listen to and for what the hardware is supposed to be doing.
GSV Ethics Gradient
Moderator
But surely hi res audio requires proper hifi?
I gather the jury is out on hi res audio anyway - I couldn't tell the difference between CD & SACD, and I was really hoping to as the ones I bought were by my then favourite band.
I gather the jury is out on hi res audio anyway - I couldn't tell the difference between CD & SACD, and I was really hoping to as the ones I bought were by my then favourite band.
Jimboo
Well-known member
There you go monkey mate , you couldn't tell the difference even with proper hifi. Hi fi has always just required a good recording . You just need to amplify that and the detail will be there for you.
Dom
Well-known member
Jimboo
Well-known member
What is ?
It creeps slowly to its inevitable end Dom.
Guy asks question: affordable amp
Answer , onkyo or marantz , always
Cd player matching marantz or lol who uses c.d ?
Affordable record player please - Rega or project
It is already shrinking , cheaper cd players a thing of the past despite the obvious sound quality, cheap tacky casings ,souless coloured slabs with an arm bringing that warm sound that only vinyl can while claiming to play a modern c.d presented via the medium of wax as a throwback to the analogue sound of old at twenty plus pound a pop. This all helps fuel an industry of stupidly priced original records who's second hand price is more often than not dictated by age and matrix numbers alone. They are auctioned , coveted and desired. This despite the fact that most of them spent their lives stacked on a Ferguson auto table with a plastic arm and a needle from your mother's sewing box. Pops and clicks are part of the experience. Really?
And we care about the sound quality ?
Look at it from a young person today. Convenience , simplicity , style and affordability.
We are just the last of the old guard , our way doesn't make any sense and we know it.
chris661
Well-known member
Hi-Res in and of itself isn't a great thing. Larger file sizes, and no increase in quality. Reminder: a digitally sampled signal can recreate any analogue waveform up to half of the sampling frequency with 100% accuracy. 44.1kHz/16-bit was chosen because it's good enough to cover 0Hz - 22kHz, with 96dB (actually a bit more if you get clever with dithering - you can effectively get about 120dB) dynamic range.
That's enough for playback on any system ever.
More in-depth reading here if anyone fancies it: https://people.xiph.org/~xiphmont/demo/neil-young.html
The positive impact of Hi-Res audio, IMO, is that it's getting people to listen to and appreciate music again. There are some one-box solutions that sound pretty good, and the headphone market seems to be doing well.
FWIW, I'm in my mid-20s and use a combination of Spotify and vinyl.
Chris
simonali
Well-known member
It's not just Alice in Chains' Nutshell we have in common then!
stereoman
Well-known member
Not at all -it has got almost nothing to do with quality as just 128Kbps gives you already acceptable sound. The problem lies with speaker design that can easily avoid acoustics problems - and Sony for one does superb job with it.
Jimboo
Well-known member
Yeah , but mate **** in **** out is as pure a fact as you can get . You're reading like an advert
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Dom
Well-known member
GSV Ethics Gradient
Moderator
Being in my fifties, I recall when the set of priorities for someone growing up were car>house>stereo.
No more, and people want it all from the off - which means greater debt.
No more, and people want it all from the off - which means greater debt.
chris661
Well-known member
Jimboo
Well-known member
insider9
Well-known member
Friesiansam
Well-known member
simonali
Well-known member
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