Home | Audio Reviews | Audio Show Reports | Partner Magazines | News     

 

Enjoy the Music.com

November 2022

 

The Golden Age Of Hi-Fi
Yes, you can have it today.
Editorial By Alan Sircom

 

Hi-Fi+ November 2022

 

  It's almost a cliché for editors and writers in today's audio world to proclaim it a 'Golden Age', but it's said for a reason. While that first Golden Age of Hi-Fi saw the birth and proliferation of stereophonic sound in the home and that second Golden Age was the start of that 1970s underground movement that became high-end audio, today's audio world is one of huge scope; you can carry your entire your hi-fi system (and your music collection) in your pocket, or you can devote whole rooms to playing and storing your music. And people happily do both!

Similarly, when it comes to buying that hi-fi system, you can spend less on your sounds than the cost of a takeaway pizza, or more than the cost of fitting out and staffing a Michelin-starred restaurant. And, for the most part, it's all good!

Sure, there are super-cheap no-brand earphones that drag the standard down – and a few style-led record players that not only sound bad but can ruin records played on them – but in the main the quality of even extremely affordable audio equipment today is very, very good.

This can spark the 'why spend more?' argument, but this argument frequently folds under cross-examination. Spending more on your audio equipment gets you over the hurdle of mass-market tuning with overpowering bass (and sometimes a thin, forward treble), and usually results in a system that has greater volume and dynamic headroom, a wider, more accurate frequency response, lower distortion, and reduced noise. These sweeping statements are a coat that buttons up over many other aspects of performance, but in broad terms, this is what you pay more for!

 

Hi-Fi+ November 2022

 

Of course, there is another issue that is frequently dismissed by the more puritanical parts of the audio fraternity; you spend more because you want something that looks and feels better. Maybe you don't just want a vinyl wrap and would like a real veneer or piano finish. Perhaps you don't want your audio pride and joy to be housed in a slightly glorified cake tin. One of the great joys of listening to good audio in the 2020s is that this is no longer an either/or choice; you can get products that look good that also sound good too.

A part of the reason why we are able to extract so much more out of our audio systems today is down to modern design and engineering standards. While there's always room for the visionary designer, the tools at the disposal of today's manufacturers to both develop and produce new products help raise our collective game.

So, yes. Despite soaring fuel costs and falling disposable income, despite supply chain issues turning 'you can have it today' into 'hopefully within a few months', despite the 'bulldog chewing a wasp' white-noise from the trolls... we are living in a Golden Age. Enjoy it!

 

 


Alan Sircom, Editor Hi-Fi+

 

 

 

 


Subscribe To Hi-Fi+ Magazine
Click here to subscribe to hi-fi+ magazine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     
 

Quick Links


Audiophile Review Magazine
High-End Audio Equipment Reviews

 

Equipment Review Archives
Turntables, Cartridges, Etc
Digital Source
Do It Yourself (DIY)
Preamplifiers
Amplifiers
Cables, Wires, Etc
Loudspeakers/ Monitors
Headphones, IEMs, Tweaks, Etc
Superior Audio Gear Reviews

 

Videos
Enjoy the Music.TV

 

Columns
Viewpoint By Roger Skoff
Viewpoint By Steven R. Rochlin
Various Think Pieces
Manufacturer Articles
10 Questions For Manufacturers


Show Reports
Capital Audiofest 2023 Report
Toronto Audiofest 2023 Report
UK Audio Show 2023 Report
Pacific Audio Fest 2023 Report
T.H.E. Show 2023 Report
HIGH END Munich 2023
Australian Hi-Fi Show 2023 Report
AXPONA 2023 Show Report
Salon Audio Montréal Audiofest 2023
CanJam Singapore 2023 Report
Florida Intl. Audio Expo 2023
...More Show Reports

 

Other
Audiophile Contests
Cool Free Stuff For You
Tweaks For Your System
Vinyl Logos For LP Lovers
Lust Pages Visual Beauty

 

Resources & Information
Music Definitions
Hi-Fi Definitions

 


Industry & Music News

High-End Premium Audio & Music News

 

Partner Print Magazines
audioXpress
Australian Hi-Fi Magazine
hi-fi+ Magazine
HiFi Media
Sound Practices
The Absolute Sound
VALVE Magazine

 

For The Press & Industry
About Us
Press Releases
Official Site Graphics

 

Contests & Our Mailing List

Our free newsletter for monthly updates & enter our contests!

 

 

    

Home   |   News   |   Equipment Reviews   |   Press Releases   |   About Us   |   Contact Us

 

All contents copyright©  1995 - 2023  HighEndAudio.com and Enjoy the Music.com®
May not be copied or reproduced without permission.  All rights reserved.