russ69 Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 A few years back I bought a pair of Grado headphones to use with my portable CD player. It wasn't hi-fi but I really enjoyed listening to the music it played. All my CDs really sounded great on it. It wasn't better than my main system (not even close) but I could play any CD and it was very good sounding. I got to thinking that even though my main system was very very good, there were fewer and fewer CDs that sounded good enough to play on it. I decided to make a big change. I was going to forget about making my system sound as accurate as possible and deliberately make my system sound sweeter and more musical. Some people refer to this as hi-fi sound but that's exactly what I was trying to do, make my system sound like a good hi-fi not make it sound like the world's most accurate music reproduction system. Some of you will know what I'm talking about. It took a lot of changes but the results were outstanding. I now have two systems that will play any CD and produce an enjoyable musical experience. My main reference system is still very critical and a trash CD is still a trash CD but it is 95% better than where I was before I revamped my direction. Anybody else change their direction like I did? Thanx, Russ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesboy Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 What changes did you make? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ69 Posted April 24, 2009 Author Share Posted April 24, 2009 All of it! Than, Russ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWL Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 I might know what you're saying.....or maybe I'm way off. I've heard some real high end systems that just bored the heck out of me. Very accurate....yes......but lacking the pizazz that I like. Like maybe just a little heavy on the treble but not distorting. Or some emphasis on the bass but accurate and effortless......filling the room with goodness but not knocking you on your butt. .....And most of all, being able to throw on just about anything and it all sounds excellent. Not as finicky as the high end system that exposes every flaw in the recording..........but able to really impress you with the whole presentation excluding any audible distortion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J M O N Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 I believe I know what you're saying. I think I've gone through the same thing -- at least without making a complete overhaul to my system. I was fortunate to have never changed out my speakers, but I did replace my solid-state stuff with tubes. The difference was I went from listening to my system to listening to the music -- and isn't that what it's really all about. I have never enjoyed my system as much as I do now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbsl Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 I noticed the same thing when I went from La Scalas to Fortes. I find I enjoy more music now with the Fortes than I did with the LS. About 20% of my cds sounded better on the La Scalas cause they were very good recordings but 60% sounded okay and 20% sounded bad. The LS are so revealing of bad recordings that it was frustrating and the okay cds were just that okay. With the very good cds I could sit back and just enjoy the music. The okay cds I was never able to just enjoy the music cause I wanted them to sound like the very good cds so they were more low level background music. A lot more cds sound much better on the Fortes than on the La Scalas. Now the very good cds sounded better on the LS. Now many of my okay cds sound much closer to the very good recordings so now I can just enjoy the music more. I think Cornwalls and Chorus also do this. KHorns and La Scalas with the right equipment and very good recordings sounds outstanding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWL Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 CD player influence: I play my good recordings on my Jolida tube cd player. This higher end cd player removes a veil and really opens up the soundstage.....leaving lesser recordings vulnerable to exposing flaws in the recording. I play the ok-crappier sounding cd's on my dvd player......Doesn't have the detail and soundstage of the Jolida but it works in the sense that it seems to hide the cd's flaws to a certain extent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pauln Posted April 26, 2009 Share Posted April 26, 2009 How can so many agree with something you have not said? You have not identified the changes you made... Did you change the frequency response? In the old days, the slur for HiFi sound was "Boom & Twinkle"; the mid bass was elevated in level to add punch, and the high end (this is back in the turntable days) was afflicted with the sparkley sound of inexpensive styii hitting their resonant frequencies around 17-19KHz. The overall effect was a lively, vibrant, lush, rich sound... but not accurate and after a while it could be a bit tiring on the ears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbsl Posted April 26, 2009 Share Posted April 26, 2009 How can so many agree with something you have not said? You have not identified the changes you made... I was agreeing with his "I got to thinking that even though my main system was very very good, there were fewer and fewer CDs that sounded good enough to play on it. I decided to make a big change." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Favog Posted April 26, 2009 Share Posted April 26, 2009 O.k., maybe I'm gonna be a stick in the mud: but isn't the expression "hifi" a contraction of the words "high" and "fidelity"? Or, in other words, a high level of truth? ...don't mind me...crawling back under my rock now...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ69 Posted April 26, 2009 Author Share Posted April 26, 2009 For me the word hi-fi means high fidelity accurate playback, however for some (younger dudes) it means a phony kind of sound, maybe like a cheap HT demo. In my original post I used both definitions. Thanx, Russ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dkalsi Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 I own and Eico HF-87 amp + Eico HF-85 pre + Cornwalls, that system is definitely less accurate than my other two systems (Scott 296 system, and Django+Plinius SA-100 system + modified Khorns). However, there is no doubt in my mind that it is the most "musical" system I own. The other two systems are very revealing + very detailed + they are absolutely amazing with good recordings. Other the other had, anything I put on my Eico system sounds good - REALLLY GOOD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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