What It Means To Be An Audiophile

As a life-long music lover who often looks for ways to combine my avocation as a  drummer/percussionist with my vocation as an electrical engineer, I'm often asked “What does it mean to be an audiophile?”.

The fact is, music is so ingrained in my life that it means EVERYTHING; I think about it morning, noon, and night!

My Audio Epiphany (two actually)

My fascination with audio electronics started at a young age. A friend of my Dad's invited me over to play games on his new Apple IIe computer; while interesting (I obviously didn't appreciate the historical importance of the world's first personal computer), what really got my attention was the humongous pair of speakers—much taller than me—standing in his family room (they were Magnepan Magneplanar speakers). After spinning Bob James and Earl Klugh's “One On One”, I had found audio bliss. My father carried Panasonic/Technics in his department store at the time (lucky me), so in the course of upgrading my own audio setup, I acquired a Technics integrated amplifier and SL1200 turntable. However, when he surprised me with a Grado G1+ cartridge as a gift, audio bliss evolved into audio nirvana: listening to Bob James' “Heads” through my pair of Koss Pro4AA headphones, I never thought anything could sound so good!

My Audio Evolution

Over the ensuing decades, I continued down the audiophile path with various upgrades, including the transition to digital (CD/DVD). Recognizing the importance of portability, my quest for the perfect cassette deck began with Hitachi (1970's), continued with Harmon Kardon (1980's), and ended with Nakamichi (1990's). Sadly, all of these decks have long since gone kaput, but I picked up a modern day Onkyo to continue listening to all those cassette tapes I recorded years ago. My turntable upgrade cycle was much simpler: I moved from the Technics direct-drive to a Bang and Olufsen belt-drive that I still own to this day. While I don't listen to much vinyl anymore, I take pride in the fact that my (replacement) phono cartridge may outlive me since it has very few hours on it.

For the record, I've owned multiple VHS, Laser Disc (LD), Digital Video Disc (DVD), and Blu-Ray Disc (BD) players, but those are primarily video instruments and not the focus of this article. However, I mention them because my LD player (a Pioneer Elite CLD-99) doubles as my CD transport of choice in critical listening situations (like the CD reviews I write for Audioholics). It's worth mentioning that my original DVD player—a Sony DVP-S7000—was also an excellent audio performer (it shared common circuitry with the old Sony ES series), but it's replacement—a Samsung BD-P2550—while a strong video performer (it was one of the first BD players with an HQV video chip), doesn't do so well on the audio side of things.

My Audio Rack

My journey through the amplifier/receiver jungle has been considerably more complicated and continues to this day. Early on, I owned progressively more powerful and I/O rich stereo amplifiers from Technics, Denon and Yamaha; Yamaha also doubled as my introduction to multi-channel audio with Dolby Pro-Logic. My amplifier journey had an epiphany of it's own the day I went to a Yamaha sponsored demo of their first commercially available Dolby Digital decoder/amplifier, the DSP-A3090. With it's digital (optical and coaxial) audio inputs and custom surround-sound audio fields, I was so blown away by the technology that I promptly ordered one the next day (spending more on a single audio component than I ever had in my life)! When DTS began delivering high bit-rate movie soundtracks (first on LD and later on DVD), I upgraded my DSP-A3090 to the DSP-A1, which I still own to this day. I know there's at least one or two more amplifier/receiver upgrades in my future, but it seems as though feature content is being driven by rapidly evolving video standards and resolutions more than anything else. Eventually I augmented my audio (and video) setup with a respectable set of speakers I could both enjoy and afford, but that's another story (see my Polk Crossover Upgrade).

My Media Library

As you can imagine, my media choices have evolved over the years, from analog (LP/cassette) to digital (CD/MP3); video formats have generated even more media (VHS/LD/DVD/BD). I still own hundreds of albums in addition to hundreds of CDs. The majority of vinyl in my library is still pristine due to a life-long hobby of compiling (home made) cassette tapes of “favorites” by artist. While I launched a digitizing project back in the late 1990's (utilizing an early audiophile A/D converter and a laptop computer) that converted some of those favorite tracks to MP3, I still listen to some of those cassette tapes I made over 30 years ago (Maxell UDXL II/IIs)! Similarly, I have converted much of my (home movie) VHS content to Video CD and DVD, but still have most of my LDs and DVDs. In general, I do NOT do format upgrades (e.g. LP to CD or DVD to BD) unless there are:

• additional tracks (music) or footage (movies)
• substantial bonus material

The few instances where I own multiple-format copies of the same release are usually due to the desire to watch something on a front projection screen or for portability (both audio and video).

My Listening Routine

My music listening routine may vary based on when, where, and how I'm listening to music. For example, I tend to only listen to vocal based music (Steely Dan, Michael Franks, etc.) in the car, which also means I'm probably using an iPhone/iPod (compressed) as a source. While I listen to jazz just about anywhere, I always ensure the initial listen is via CD on my home stereo setup. Depending on how much I do (or don't) like the release, I may continue to listen during exercise sessions or load it on my iPhone/iPod for portable listening. Favorite tracks/CDs may find their way on to my audiophile play list, which essentially means they get played at ear-splitting levels on my home stereo setup (swapping out CDs along the way) when no one is around. I also tend to have a weekend listening routine that differs substantially from weekdays; since I basically have a Monday-Friday 9-5 type job, that means the majority of my free time is on the weekends. Early on, my family figured out that breakfast and dinner on the weekends also doubled as music time (how else are we going to indoctrinate our children with a love of OUR music?)! I also tend to get “hooked” on certain CDs/artists for weeks at a time, listening to the same CD/CD(s) at breakfast every weekend as an example. Or, I may decide to have an artist marathon and listen to (for example) EVERY Yellowjackets CD over the course of a weekend (which also includes time sleeping; I listen to a lot of music in the middle of the night when I can't sleep). These marathon listening sessions may move from media type to room type (and even background to foreground listening), but never-the-less result in listening to an artist's full catalog from Friday night to Monday morning.

The Joy Of Being An Audiophile

Famous dancer and choreographer Agnes de Mille once said: “The truest expression of a people is in its dances and music; bodies never lie”. Being so closely tied to the creation and performance of music for so long has led to a deep appreciation for that art form. The technology enabling that enjoyment remains a fascination of mine. One thing's for sure: an audiophile's work is never done!