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Topic ClosedHow do you listen to music in the home?

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Dean View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 10:52
The best judge of speakers is your ears. You can read all the recomendations and suggestions but at the end of the day if you don't like what you hear then nothing will fix that.
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Hawkwise View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 12:09
Originally posted by Dean Dean wrote:

The best judge of speakers is your ears. You can read all the recomendations and suggestions but at the end of the day if you don't like what you hear then nothing will fix that.


Clap  YERP.


Yep only real way is to try and  find a good Hi Fi dealer   and thenchoose various different set ups in your Budget rage and  take time  to listen to some of  your Fav Music  and let your Ears decide .


Speaker Size will depend on  your  room Size  so you could take your measurements of your room   with you  and show them to your Hi Fi dealer to help you out.


Finding a good HI FI dealer really is worth the effort and maybe the little extra cost  but worth it in the long run if end up with right system for you. 



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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 12:16
I listen to most of my music on my PC, which has some very nice, little speakers. Sometimes I'll use a little boom box.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 13:07
Thank you Dean and Hawkwise.

....so does that mean then that I go into a shop with my cd and ask them to play
it so I can listen to it?

Me thinking... that would really be quite fun with  music I like  filling the store!!!!
I think I would prob like to listen to The Watchmaker ( S WIlson )

I did once have the experience of a sub woofer.  I really hated the sound of it, so  I do understand that it is to
some extent personal in the choices that you make.

Smartpatrol, I saw some boom boxes for the very first time today and there was a good deal on them because
 the shop was closing...


Edited by dibble - March 13 2013 at 13:10
Loving newly discovered music here. :)
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Dean View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 13:21
Originally posted by dibble dibble wrote:

Thank you Dean and Hawkwise.

....so does that mean then that I go into a shop with my cd and ask them to play
it so I can listen to it?
Indubitably - always listen to new Hi-Fi gear with something you are very familiar with then you can be sure it's the equipment you are listening too and not the CD's production. Also, the weirdy-beardies that work in HiFi shops have terrible taste in music.
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Hawkwise View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 13:23
Originally posted by dibble dibble wrote:

Thank you Dean and Hawkwise.

....so does that mean then that I go into a shop with my cd and ask them to play
it so I can listen to it?

Me thinking... that would really be quite fun with  music I like  filling the store!!!!
I think I would prob like to listen to The Watchmaker ( S WIlson )

I did once have the experience of a sub woofer.  I really hated the sound of it, so  I do understand that it is to
some extent personal in the choices that you make.

Smartpatrol, I saw some boom boxes for the very first time today and there was a good deal on them because
 the shop was closing...


Any real good Hi Fi dealer will have a dedicated listening Room  were you can go and check out and listen to various different bits of Hi Fi in your budget.  ive done this in past and spent a whole day just sitting in there listening room  
checking out lots different set ups. really is the best way to do it.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 14:29
Originally posted by dibble dibble wrote:

 All totally mind boggling.. but what
I would like to ask is,,
is it
just
packaging.... all the different shapes and sizes,... just to look good and is that really
for no real purpose other than the visual?
Yes I'm no expert but I'm afraid that nowadays there's a lot of fancy external design to fool people into thinking that some speakers or any other equipment must be coming from NASA but their actual quality is rather low.
In the old times you could tell much more from the looks of Hi-Fi components if they would be good or not, but now designers have taken over over engineers and have learnt how to fool customers.

My advice would be:
1. stick to respected brands, they can not afford lowering too much the real quality of their products
2. before purchasing, do some searching on the internet for reviews etc. They are not always reliable so be sure to check as many as possible before forming a reliable opinion.
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Gerinski View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 15:14
A related question: when you use speakers, where and how are they located?

a. on the floor
b. mid height (for example placed on some mid-height shelf or furniture piece)
c. hung high on the wall

In my youth it was very popular to hang loudspeakers high in the corners of the room (I mean high from a standard apartment standard, something like 2 meters) in a flexible way, for example using flexible nets, ropes or supports, facing slightly downwards so if you sat in the center of the room you had both speakers directly facing to your head, and the flexible holding was supposed to allow the speaker to freely vibrate and avoid rigidness which might hamper the actual performance of the sound.

Recently I believe that this practice has disappeared, some speakers have floor supports and stay themselves above floor level, others just rest on the floor...

I have vintage but good quality 3-way speakers, I have moved recently so for simplicity I have placed them right now just on the floor, but honestly I feel like the sound is not so good as when before I had those same speakers hung from the walls rather high (around 2 meters), facing slightly downwards and facing the center of the room.

The question has no meaning for PC speakers, iPod docking stations etc, but when using medium-big Hi-Fi speakers, what's your take on speakers placement?
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dibble View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 16:15
Thank you again everyone for your replies..

I've never heard of the flexible supports for speakers Gerinski, sounds interesting, to let
them be flexible with the vibration. 

This hi fi system I will be getting will be the very first one I've bought for myself... when there
was one in the house before, the speakers were on the floor... but I think it might be quite nice
to have them on the wall.... 

Up high will keep them out of trouble...
Loving newly discovered music here. :)
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 20:29
But don't put all your trust in a hifi dealer.....they want to sell you their stuff, and they naturally recommend stuff they have.And they may say it's only a question of how much money you want to spend.  You can listen to  speakers of different character to find your own preference.

I don't have much experience or knowledge but I have preferences. My dad bought somewhat expensive Dali speakers 8 years ago, after being recommended by someone in a hifi store. They sound good, but they have a softness to my ears, or "warmth" or something, not a punchy mid range sound. So my own preference is probably a more powerful sound with a good midrange character and a frequency range that goes deep down. My "Jamo Power 365" have such characteristics but they are really old now and have problems.They have a specific "bass reflex system", which I've heard improves the bass at the lowest frequencies.

 If the speakers reaches down to 60hz you would need a sub woofer I guess. And that's a solution I know nothing about. I have experienced sub woofers in computer speaker setups, and it is just a mess to my ears, even if decreasing it to lowest bass level, it's just a lot of bass. It's probably  a different thing with real hifi systems, but I'm wondering about the evenness of  the frequency response if you divide it into speakers+sub woofer.

It's interesting anyway, and the choice of speakers is probably the most important choice.

I found this "List of loudspeaker manufacturers", might be interesting
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_loudspeaker_manufacturers


Edited by wilmon91 - March 13 2013 at 20:42
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Horizons View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 20:33
Typically my Bluetooth speakers or computer speakers. 
Crushed like a rose in the riverflow.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 13 2013 at 20:52
I usually listen to music through my headphones, whether it be on my iPod or my Laptop.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 14 2013 at 07:18
I listen music, playing on my keyboard simultaneuysly, comping chords and add some improvisation
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 14 2013 at 10:43
Design of speaker cabinets has improved dramatically in the last 20 years. You do not need anymore the big large boxs of say a Cerwin Vega or even the classic and much desired Klipsch LaScala or Heresy...those with the huge 15" woofers. Cabinet designs have eliminated the need for such large drivers. For a traditional room size bookshelf speakers with a 5" to 7" mid/bass driver is more than sufficient to get you the low end you need.
 
Ideally you want the tweeter at ear level in your normal listening position...so a standmount speaker will sit on 20" to 24" stands roughly. And at least be 4" from the rear wall and sides, that will help your low end come forward....But all I do is play with speaker placement and find that sweet spot my ears like and then I leave it alone.
 
As far as finishes of speaker cabinets, its just like furniture. Most speaker mfgs know that they will be in a living room or family room so they are now using some real high end wood veneers and furniture grade finishes, piano like finishes which do add quite a lot to the cost if you go this route. It adds nothing to the sound quality, its merely an eye candy factor you are paying for.
Tower speakers if you have a rather large room, bookshelf speakers for mid sixe room....Even if you have a large room bookshelf speakers may be best if you mainly do nearfield listening or not at high volume levels.
 
But above all go and listen to speakers with music you are familiar with...If you are going from computer speakers to a higer end system, you will be amazed at what you have been missing, and becareful of the wallet monster!! It lurks in your ears and tells you to "buy, buy, buy!!"
 
Have fun!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 14 2013 at 10:49
usually i just listen to stuff on some old seperates ive got.......basically cd player, graphic equalizer which is built into amp... connected to speakers about 3/4 of the way up a wall......dont like having speakers on the floor.....if not that way got some fairly decent chunky headphones i put on on occasion if i want complete cut off from the world....which happens often.  
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Dean View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 14 2013 at 11:25
Originally posted by Catcher10 Catcher10 wrote:

Design of speaker cabinets has improved dramatically in the last 20 years.
not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved, not getting involved...
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 14 2013 at 13:05
^wise words, Dean. Big smile

I glued a poster pin to a speaker taken from a talking doll and use that to play my LPs, which I spin by hand. Tongue

Edited by Slartibartfast - March 14 2013 at 13:06
Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened...

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 14 2013 at 15:47
Originally posted by Ady Cardiac Ady Cardiac wrote:

usually i just listen to stuff on some old seperates ive got.......basically cd player, graphic equalizer which is built into amp... connected to speakers about 3/4 of the way up a wall......dont like having speakers on the floor.....if not that way got some fairly decent chunky headphones i put on on occasion if i want complete cut off from the world....which happens often.  
 
Love it......chunky headphones to cut off the world.......I like it!! Clap
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 15 2013 at 04:12
I am an enjoyer of music with quite an ear for music, but for me, there is no "proper" way to listen to music. $50 speakers, $2000 speakers, I can enjoy music with a great variation of quality. 

That being said, I love vinyls. 
I am currently digging:

Hawkwind, Rare Bird, Gong, Tangerine Dream, Khan, Iron Butterfly, and all things canterbury and hard-psych. I also love jazz!

Please drop me a message with album suggestions.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 15 2013 at 08:51
Originally posted by The Mystical The Mystical wrote:

I am an enjoyer of music with quite an ear for music, but for me, there is no "proper" way to listen to music. $50 speakers, $2000 speakers, I can enjoy music with a great variation of quality. 

That being said, I love vinyls. 
 
ClapClap
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