I am having a hard time visualising what you are saying
Washing away the bad bits?
When you invite someone over to listen...
- Thread starter treitz3
- Start date
I very much enjoy having guests listen to my system since I built my dedicated room. Thus far, it has only been non-audio enthusiasts and I enjoy seeing their reaction to familiar music when seated in the listening chair. I have not encountered any unpleasant events until this past weekend when an 11-year old child knelt down in front of my rack, identified the knob labelled 'volume', and proceeded to rotate to the right without my consent. Thankfully we were nowhere near dangerous levels, but he did inquire into turning it 'up to 100' (60 would probably cause catastrophic damage - I have never been above 50).
Coincidentally, I am having three guests attend tomorrow night from a local audio club and this will be my first experience with true audiophiles in this room.
Coincidentally, I am having three guests attend tomorrow night from a local audio club and this will be my first experience with true audiophiles in this room.
Basically it removes static electricity. I haven’t washed any of my Cds but I tried removing static. It makes a very noticeable difference in sound. Perhaps @jeromelang is experiencing the same effect but I think washing with non-ionized water will be better. Still there is a risk of causing corrosion on aluminum reflective layer if lacquer has a crack.
Last edited:
In the UK we’ve got something called bake-off when someone in the forum decided to host a bunch of audiophiles, both local and nationwide at their house. In some occasions, the bake-off can last 2 days, usually during the weekend when guests sleep over and many bring their own sleeping bag. In most cases, people do a lot of things like swapping boxes
People bring so many things over from audio gears, CDs, Vinyls, to drinks and foods. Actually a bake-off is usually a fun event for members of the forum to stick together in person, sharing new music, listening to a new system and especially having great time with others.
I did host 2 official bake-offs at my house while attended quite a number at others’ places over 10 years ago. After that, due to my work and family commitments, I can’t do such a big event when 8-12 people come over anymore.
But audiophile friends, dealers and distributors still sometimes come over for a listen and as always, I try to make them feel like home and as cosy as possible.
I don’t mind if they want to listen to their music or mine or both, whatever they prefer. And I don’t mind very much if they want to try their speakers or cables or something here, of course I will handle the connection for/with them ^^.
Foods and drinks will be provided depending on my missus and her mood haha. Some had pizzas, some even had incredible Vietnamese grills with pork, chicken and ribs. Some only had drinks when she was not at home or unwell, sorry friends if I couldn’t provide anything fancy and you know why.
I’d love learning new things from others by either meeting them here or at their place. This’s a great hobby and the more people get interested the better and more funs. Just enjoy the music!
People bring so many things over from audio gears, CDs, Vinyls, to drinks and foods. Actually a bake-off is usually a fun event for members of the forum to stick together in person, sharing new music, listening to a new system and especially having great time with others.
I did host 2 official bake-offs at my house while attended quite a number at others’ places over 10 years ago. After that, due to my work and family commitments, I can’t do such a big event when 8-12 people come over anymore.
But audiophile friends, dealers and distributors still sometimes come over for a listen and as always, I try to make them feel like home and as cosy as possible.
I don’t mind if they want to listen to their music or mine or both, whatever they prefer. And I don’t mind very much if they want to try their speakers or cables or something here, of course I will handle the connection for/with them ^^.
Foods and drinks will be provided depending on my missus and her mood haha. Some had pizzas, some even had incredible Vietnamese grills with pork, chicken and ribs. Some only had drinks when she was not at home or unwell, sorry friends if I couldn’t provide anything fancy and you know why.
I’d love learning new things from others by either meeting them here or at their place. This’s a great hobby and the more people get interested the better and more funs. Just enjoy the music!
It may sound better but the imaging isn't going to magically move from left to center or anywhere else which is what he stated
I can appreciate all that..except for "6 tuners". Not sure I understand the rationale for that. SS vs tube? Do you access different frequency spectrums from different countries? (Different planets? Extraterrestrials? Other?) Kindly explain.
I agree with facten in that your remark is comical...
Each of my tuners have a unique different sound, all of which are excellent sonically to me.
Additionally, there's also differences sonically between solid state vs tubes. If you can't hear those differences in solid state vs tubes then it's not something that you should be concerned with in the first place.
1) I do not invite people over but rather people ask to come listen.
2) I play the music I personally listen to and most of time it's whatever is in heavy rotation or I play my collection of '80s Mandarin pop (golden age for this genre) mostly on original press / first press vinyl.
3) Take videos or photos ? All ok.
Sometimes, my guests help me tidy up my room as I have CDs & LPs all over the floor (sometimes).
2) I play the music I personally listen to and most of time it's whatever is in heavy rotation or I play my collection of '80s Mandarin pop (golden age for this genre) mostly on original press / first press vinyl.
3) Take videos or photos ? All ok.
Sometimes, my guests help me tidy up my room as I have CDs & LPs all over the floor (sometimes).
Republicoftexas69
Well-Known Member
All of my friends are Jazz and Blues fans like myself. So no issues on musical content.
Non AP friends do not get invited and when they come over for a cookout we listen out by the pool and they can stream whatever they like.
Non AP friends do not get invited and when they come over for a cookout we listen out by the pool and they can stream whatever they like.
You're all way more secure than me.
I have a Roon playlist that's currently around four hours and is a mix of jazz, lounge, blues, rock, and classical. It's all well-recorded stuff that's compelling in some way. When I have a guest who's interested in my system, I start it running and out of the two or three dozen times I've done so, I've gotten at least an hour in before they've asked for something else the vast majority of the time. When they do make a request, it's often to hear something of mine on vinyl rather than to stream some favorite of theirs.
Yes, it may be insecure, but I want them to know that my system can deliver magic before I play a piece they suggest that may come across differently than they are be used to, possibly generating some cognitive dissonance that results in prejudice going forward.
I have a Roon playlist that's currently around four hours and is a mix of jazz, lounge, blues, rock, and classical. It's all well-recorded stuff that's compelling in some way. When I have a guest who's interested in my system, I start it running and out of the two or three dozen times I've done so, I've gotten at least an hour in before they've asked for something else the vast majority of the time. When they do make a request, it's often to hear something of mine on vinyl rather than to stream some favorite of theirs.
Yes, it may be insecure, but I want them to know that my system can deliver magic before I play a piece they suggest that may come across differently than they are be used to, possibly generating some cognitive dissonance that results in prejudice going forward.
Depends on what type of gathering I am hosting. For small gathering (under 15 people) I usually have 2 systems running for large gathering (35+ attendees) it's usually 3 systems on 3 different floors.
For small gathering attendees pick their music from Qobuz streaming service in both rooms. We also, swap equipment around if folks want to bring their equipment over to have a listen in different environment.
For large gathering at least one room is dedicated for a manufacture to showcase their equipment. I leave it up to the mfg to see how they want to control music. The other two systems follow the streaming setup.
I have not had any issues in letting people control the remote or music.
Personally, I like hosting because it introduces me to new music that I would never discover on my own. I also, ask folks to put their favorites in Qobuz playlist similar to - https://open.qobuz.com/playlist/15853320 if they can, so they can avoid searching for the correct song.
For small gathering attendees pick their music from Qobuz streaming service in both rooms. We also, swap equipment around if folks want to bring their equipment over to have a listen in different environment.
For large gathering at least one room is dedicated for a manufacture to showcase their equipment. I leave it up to the mfg to see how they want to control music. The other two systems follow the streaming setup.
I have not had any issues in letting people control the remote or music.
Personally, I like hosting because it introduces me to new music that I would never discover on my own. I also, ask folks to put their favorites in Qobuz playlist similar to - https://open.qobuz.com/playlist/15853320 if they can, so they can avoid searching for the correct song.
I bet you have quite a collection of arms and components that would glow under a UV light.
Newcomer here, first post. (Hi all! Happy to be here.)
My best system is in the loft of my barn, in a 1k sq ft rustic pent-roofed open-raftered party space with excellent native acoustics. Guests (infrequent, would like that to increase) vary from my wife's social circles to family parties and occasional friends and their friends, all music lovers, often musicians, few audiophiles. If someone is coming for the first time expressly to hear the system and listen to music, I will often advise them to bring along a few favorite titles to "hear again for the first time". This sets up expectations that invariably are met and exceeded. Not always positive; in a few instances the reaction was, "Wow, I never realized how poor this recording is!" But usually it is pleased surprise at the newfound complexity and musicality and immediacy of the performance.
With guests that I know or assume to be technically oriented, I may first describe the signal path, components, and design intent. And even with those not so techie, I often get initial tech questions as my system is unusual visually, having folded bass horns with no visible drivers (LaScala commercial bass bins; even my wife long assumed they were just handy props) supporting visually imposing 38" wide midrange horns (vintage EV "white whales").
I almost always play first a reliably excellent demo track tailored to my assumptions of the guest's preferences, then ask them for a suggestion. Most recently---with some of my wife's young adult to middle-age lady friends and some of their kids---the first guest request was for a Journey song, Who's Crying Now. I had never before played Journey on the system and didn't know what to expect for sonics, but it proved excellent. The ladies were instantly visibly thrilled and began pointing to apparent sound sources. I retook control and took them through some acoustic, vocal, and electronica (Yello: Dialectical Kid) initalizing a long set of danceable stuff that had everyone up and moving for the rest of the evening.
One thing I especially enjoy about guest auditions is hearing their unprompted reactions and descriptions of the listening experience. One friend said there was a unique articulation and separation of sources such as he had never encountered before except via headphones. Another (a rare audiophile guest) was surprised at the overall sound quality (he placed it at audio expo $50k demo system performance level) that I was teasing out of bargain basement scrounged components and rule-breaking methods (e.g. ADADA signal path, modest sampling rates and hunter-gatherer cabling). One made a half-serious offer to buy the system on the spot after one song. Cheers, all!
My best system is in the loft of my barn, in a 1k sq ft rustic pent-roofed open-raftered party space with excellent native acoustics. Guests (infrequent, would like that to increase) vary from my wife's social circles to family parties and occasional friends and their friends, all music lovers, often musicians, few audiophiles. If someone is coming for the first time expressly to hear the system and listen to music, I will often advise them to bring along a few favorite titles to "hear again for the first time". This sets up expectations that invariably are met and exceeded. Not always positive; in a few instances the reaction was, "Wow, I never realized how poor this recording is!" But usually it is pleased surprise at the newfound complexity and musicality and immediacy of the performance.
With guests that I know or assume to be technically oriented, I may first describe the signal path, components, and design intent. And even with those not so techie, I often get initial tech questions as my system is unusual visually, having folded bass horns with no visible drivers (LaScala commercial bass bins; even my wife long assumed they were just handy props) supporting visually imposing 38" wide midrange horns (vintage EV "white whales").
I almost always play first a reliably excellent demo track tailored to my assumptions of the guest's preferences, then ask them for a suggestion. Most recently---with some of my wife's young adult to middle-age lady friends and some of their kids---the first guest request was for a Journey song, Who's Crying Now. I had never before played Journey on the system and didn't know what to expect for sonics, but it proved excellent. The ladies were instantly visibly thrilled and began pointing to apparent sound sources. I retook control and took them through some acoustic, vocal, and electronica (Yello: Dialectical Kid) initalizing a long set of danceable stuff that had everyone up and moving for the rest of the evening.
One thing I especially enjoy about guest auditions is hearing their unprompted reactions and descriptions of the listening experience. One friend said there was a unique articulation and separation of sources such as he had never encountered before except via headphones. Another (a rare audiophile guest) was surprised at the overall sound quality (he placed it at audio expo $50k demo system performance level) that I was teasing out of bargain basement scrounged components and rule-breaking methods (e.g. ADADA signal path, modest sampling rates and hunter-gatherer cabling). One made a half-serious offer to buy the system on the spot after one song. Cheers, all!
when someone comes over your place to listen to your system, and they bring along their own optical disc media for digital music, some stupid, funny thing can happen...
Your guest plays his one of his CD, which is a recording that is familiar to you, and which you also own.
During playback, you mostly stand/sit on one side, (so that your guest gets to sit at the sweet spot) so you don't immediately notice the problem of central imaging skewing towards the left . But you do notice that somehow the overall sound is slightly sluggish and veiled, and there is some funny "pressure" in one of your ears. The more system-proud and inquisitive host may walk around to the back of the guest and try to "visually" listen for anomalies by checking the soundstaging and imaging aspects of the sound, and that's when you notice that the main vocal image is sitting not true-center, but rather skewed towards the left, so that the image is now situated between the the left-channel loudspeaker and the center point of the left-right soundstage. You scratch your head and ask if your guest is ok if you stop this play and then play the CD (of the same recording) that you have owned for months and have often played it.
Your own CD turns out ok, and the main vocal imaging is now sitting true-center. And not only that, you find that the overall sound not sluggish and veiled like the CD of your guest's, but is clean, dynamic and robust. Soundstage is opened and imaging is clearly delineated and clearly located within their own space in the soundscape. You check your friend's CD and both yours and his are perfectly identical, and you know for sure that there is only 1 pressing that exist (an upcoming, not so well-known artiste from an obscure audiophile label), so there should be no reason why the 2 discs should sound so different.
Your nonchalant guest have no idea what the fuss you are talking about, and he remarks that he takes good care of all his CD discs, and just before coming to your place, he had made sure that his CD discs are all cleaned and he uses a brand new microfibre cloth to wipe them clean of all smudges and fingerprints that might have accumulated despite his upmost care in handling them.
Your guest plays his one of his CD, which is a recording that is familiar to you, and which you also own.
During playback, you mostly stand/sit on one side, (so that your guest gets to sit at the sweet spot) so you don't immediately notice the problem of central imaging skewing towards the left . But you do notice that somehow the overall sound is slightly sluggish and veiled, and there is some funny "pressure" in one of your ears. The more system-proud and inquisitive host may walk around to the back of the guest and try to "visually" listen for anomalies by checking the soundstaging and imaging aspects of the sound, and that's when you notice that the main vocal image is sitting not true-center, but rather skewed towards the left, so that the image is now situated between the the left-channel loudspeaker and the center point of the left-right soundstage. You scratch your head and ask if your guest is ok if you stop this play and then play the CD (of the same recording) that you have owned for months and have often played it.
Your own CD turns out ok, and the main vocal imaging is now sitting true-center. And not only that, you find that the overall sound not sluggish and veiled like the CD of your guest's, but is clean, dynamic and robust. Soundstage is opened and imaging is clearly delineated and clearly located within their own space in the soundscape. You check your friend's CD and both yours and his are perfectly identical, and you know for sure that there is only 1 pressing that exist (an upcoming, not so well-known artiste from an obscure audiophile label), so there should be no reason why the 2 discs should sound so different.
Your nonchalant guest have no idea what the fuss you are talking about, and he remarks that he takes good care of all his CD discs, and just before coming to your place, he had made sure that his CD discs are all cleaned and he uses a brand new microfibre cloth to wipe them clean of all smudges and fingerprints that might have accumulated despite his upmost care in handling them.
Last edited:
Serial killer then, most audiophiles
Last edited:
I have two friends exactly like you. They constantly adjust hundred shun mooks in their listening rooms, wait at least a day for a cable to perform right after disconnecting or carrying it to another place, keep amps plugged to an outlet in order to keep transformers full while amps kept, off etc. One of them has a Nespa Cd enhancer and he claims that device has ruined his Cds permanently. I don’t think they’re out of their mind. Actually I believe they’re right cause I witnessed the effects of those things I mentioned above. I cannot do the same things cause my OCD has a limit.
No matter how well your audio setup performs during a listening session, once your guests leave, the conversation often takes a turn in the elevator or driveway. They’ll start gossiping right away.
The comments generally fall into two camps:
1. Those with a less expensive setup will insist that yours doesn’t justify the price tag and that their more budget-friendly system actually sounds better.
2. Those with a more expensive setup will acknowledge that yours sounds decent not great, but they’ll argue that their higher-end system is noticeably superior and well worth the extra cost.
By the time they’ve reached their cars, they’ll have come to a consensus that your setup doesn’t perform well, their choices are far smarter than yours, and that your system would be better if only you had followed their advice.
The comments generally fall into two camps:
1. Those with a less expensive setup will insist that yours doesn’t justify the price tag and that their more budget-friendly system actually sounds better.
2. Those with a more expensive setup will acknowledge that yours sounds decent not great, but they’ll argue that their higher-end system is noticeably superior and well worth the extra cost.
By the time they’ve reached their cars, they’ll have come to a consensus that your setup doesn’t perform well, their choices are far smarter than yours, and that your system would be better if only you had followed their advice.
Similar threads
