The very first time as a teenager I laid eyes on my brother's new DynaKit amp, I knew inside that I'd found one of my life's true callings. I've always loved everything about audio gear; the look, the feel, the smell—but ultimately, the sound it's capable of producing. And I can honestly say, for the first five or so years of my involvement with audio, I was nothing more than a gearhead. Plain and simple. I didn't really think that much about the quality of the sound I was getting; it was more about how great I thought the gear I had was—and looked. Learning to listen as an audiophile took many years for me to wrap my head around. And even when I eventually ended up getting some gear that had audiophile pretensions, it still took some time for me to learn to listen to it, rather than focusing or obsessing on how cool I thought it was. Back in the late seventies / early eighties, I had a pretty great Denon transcription turntable and cartridge combo that would actually, perfectly play the infamous Telarc "1812 Overture" LP—but my pride in the setup came more from it as a great talking point to my friends than as an audiophile experience.
There wasn't really any "audiophile moment" per se; it was more of a progression of time, where I eventually abandoned any preconceptions I had developed about the appearance of gear, and actually started approaching being an audiophile with my ears rather than my eyes. I remember the first amp I ever bought that simply had an unadorned aluminum faceplate; no meters, no lights, no nothing—and it was quite the endeavor, laboring over the purchase decision, even though it was obviously superior to what I currently had at home. Anyway, that was probably the actual moment where my focus became the music more than anything else. And even though nowadays I'm much more focused on the sounds I'm hearing than anything else, the quality of my gear is much more paramount these days to getting that sound. These days, it's more about what's on the inside of the equipment case than the appearance of the outside.
When we moved into the new house three years ago, it marked the first time I'd ever had anything approaching a dedicated, purpose-built listening room. And at the time, the overall value of my system was somewhere approaching around $20K. And while I've always prided myself and my ability to cobble together systems with true audiophile pretensions for not a whole lotta money—$20K is absolute peanuts in the audiophile world. There are plenty of components, or maybe even cables that sell for $20K. The first real step into the future for me was when Bill Leebens (then with PS Audio) offered me the Stellar Gain Cell Preamplifier for review almost three years ago. I ended up buying my review unit, and it elegantly solved so many connectivity problems I was previously having—as well as providing totally, spectacularly uncolored audiophile-quality sound. Its presence in my system opened the door for so many good review opportunities to come in the next few years.
The last year—and especially, the last few months—has been a period of amazing change for me both personally and professionally, especially in the audiophile realm. I've made a lot of amazingly good connections to folks in the world of high-end audio equipment, and I've had a lot of great review opportunities that involved some amazing equipment. I took another inventory of the equipment that currently occupies my listening room recently, and it now tops out around $50K—that's quite a step up from a few years ago! And in an open-hearted apology to the "audiophile on a shoestring budget" myself of a few years ago—you really can hear more deeply into the music with better equipment, and there's no going back now. I'm currently getting much closer to the gestalt at the heart of the music. I'm not like an "audiophile capitalist" by any means—even a $50K system is literally laughable to so many of the high-end personalities I've recently come in contact with. I've moved into a different plane entirely, but essentially—in the world of high-end audio, I'm still a bottom-feeder.
But for a bit of a reality check, try explaining some of that logic to an idiot responder to a recent Facebook post I was engaged in. There's a Magneplanar users group I belong to there; the original post in question was asking for sub $5K amplifier recommendations for use with affordable Maggies, like the new LRS for example. I responded that I had two amps that I currently was using with the LRS; an excellent Bel Canto $6K Class D solid state amp, and an equally excellent $4K PrimaLuna tube integrated amp. And while the Bel Canto unit was a bit above the $5K price point—it interfaced magnificently with the LRS; much more so than the PrimaLuna, which was a bit underpowered to really make the LRS sing. And my recommendations were both based on extensive actual use of the audiophile products in question.
I was immediately attacked by another respondent, who flat-out accused me of being a "Tool of the audiophile marketing industry," and that I was nothing but a shill at best. Just another a-hole reviewer, working in tandem with the audiophile marketing industry, trying to sell high-dollar equipment to unknowing, inexperienced users. Especially when any garden variety receiver or integrated amp would give so much more than satisfactory results. My response was simple: "Whatever, dude!" To which he responded, "Exactly what I would have expected from some a-hole reviewer who can't even back up his incredulous claims of superiority with any real facts. All the time with no other intent than trying to separate some poor idiot from his life savings. And who, in their right mind, would even think about pairing a $6K amp with a loudspeaker that sells for $650?" Again, I responded, "Whatever!"
At that point, I took a more measured approach, and also posted an additional response: 1) I actually own a pair of Magneplanar LRS loudspeakers, and yes, while they sell for $650, they were designed to offer so much more than just a taste of the higher-end Magneplanar experience. Had he lived with a pair for any length of time at all, he'd possibly have some basis for an intelligent exchange concerning the merits of the LRS as an audiophile loudspeaker, regardless of its entry level price. 2) I had simply offered the original poster my impressions of the two audiophile-quality amplifiers I happened to have on hand to let him know what I thought worked or worked less well at a price point approaching his stated comfort zone. And that I'd had extensive experience with the two amps with the loudspeaker in question for an extended period. 3) I then asked the combatant responder, did he actually have any real world experience with any of the above, that would legitimately allow him to offer an opinion on anything currently under discussion?
His response? Radio silence—absolutely nothing. I didn't really want to get into any kind of real battle with this guy over any of this, so I was basically okay with the outcome—but, once again, I'm simply amazed by how some freaking troll on the internet can get your blood pressure jacked up to a totally abnormal level over some relatively meaningless online exchange! And having had a crazy, heart-related, near-death experience over New Year's this past January, that's the last thing I need. And I never said that the LRS isn't capable of performing well with less expensive equipment, only that they sound simply remarkable with relatively more expensive equipment. YMMV.
So, it's been an eventful 2020 so far for me. As well as being a time of great concern for many in the audiophile world—and the world in general—especially with all of the recent global economic and industry downturn as a result of the Covid19. Here's hoping for some kind of return to something approaching normality really soon! But on a personal note, not only have I greatly improved my involvement and enjoyment of and with audiophile equipment and music in general, but I now have greatly enhanced my overall perspective of where I stand in the audiophile industry. And I have a new job title: "Tool of the Audiophile Marketing Industry."
I'll get some business cards printed forthwith!
