Thoughts on the future of HiFi

[audio amateur]

The associated paper was published in Hi Fi News (May 1986) and reprinted by Audio Amateur (USA).

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[RGA]

That's me!!

LOL - nice.

PS ALL - I got this way the hell off track. Frankly I don't care what people buy. I was nto attacking iPods or CD or for that matter SS - I recently bought a SS Rotel RC 1082 preamp and was contemplating buying an Odyssey SS power amp. I just reviewed 300 watt hybrid monoblock power amps. I am not against these technologies as much as my online verbiage is suggesting. And plenty of tube amps I don't much care for. ARC and McIntosh - I would take Heed Sugden, or Technical Brain most recently over the likes of those. I never liked Carver and the one CJ I heard was roundly dissapointing. I also didn't care for several Jadis and Copland and BAT amps (all tube designs).

I think I got trapped here more in a devil's argument situation arguing the position more than the practical element. Indeed, my own OTO uses feedback. I was simply referring to personal experience relating to the absolute top of the range price not a factor gear. I highly doubt anyone on this forum has auditioned the specific gear in the specific room on the specific day - so there is really nothing here to discuss further.

[Ajani]

LOL - nice.

PS ALL - I got this way the hell off track. Frankly I don't care what people buy. I was nto attacking iPods or CD or for that matter SS - I recently bought a SS Rotel RC 1082 preamp and was contemplating buying an Odyssey SS power amp. I just reviewed 300 watt hybrid monoblock power amps. I am not against these technologies as much as my online verbiage is suggesting. And plenty of tube amps I don't much care for. ARC and McIntosh - I would take Heed Sugden, or Technical Brain most recently over the likes of those. I never liked Carver and the one CJ I heard was roundly dissapointing. I also didn't care for several Jadis and Copland and BAT amps (all tube designs).

I think I got trapped here more in a devil's argument situation arguing the position more than the practical element. Indeed, my own OTO uses feedback. I was simply referring to personal experience relating to the absolute top of the range price not a factor gear. I highly doubt anyone on this forum has auditioned the specific gear in the specific room on the specific day - so there is really nothing here to discuss further.

Agreed... This has gone far off track as this thread is about the future of HiFi and not which technology is best...

I just want to remind you that if you use strong (combative) language then you should expect to be challenged:

All the tech stuff is great - CD was invented and WAS popular because it was convenient. Real Audiophiles stayed with Vinyl because it sounds better. SS came about because it was more user friendly and promised much - Real Audiophiles stayed with tubes. And it appears even audiophiles like me that grew up on CD and SS have moved to tubes and vinyl because despite their pain in the ass nature they sound so vastly superior it's not even remotely close.

But user friendliness was why those others became popular because so few people are audiophiles. MP3 sounds much worse than CD but it is killing CD because it is far far far more convenient. So presumably anything that is more convenient and user friendly will come about and crush MP3. There is nothing really new here. At least MP3 doesn't claim perfect sound forever and lie to everyone. I am not against any of this - I have an iPod connected it up to my car cd player with XPOD and it's great - can listen to 80gigs of music in my car. That's a lot of songs - and it sounds good enough (it is a car after all) and I'm all for making convenient access to music.

It won't replace the niche market - the niche market and Real audiophiles with the good ears kept vinyl and tubes around. But with many philes with thousands of CDs - it ain't going anywhere for at least a decade.

Whether it was your intention or not, you slapped a load of audiophiles/music lovers in the face with such proclamations... Proclamations which are merely your opinion and not fact...

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

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Snicker snicker, snicker.....he called your name!!!!