How do you listen?

We use the Tune Method to evaluate performance

Moderator: Staff

Post Reply
Charlie1
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4831
Joined: 2007-12-11 00:30
Location: UK

How do you listen?

Post by Charlie1 »

How do members enjoy their music?

I'm not talking about system evaluation or tune method here.

Excluding background music whilst doing something else in the house, does everyone take time out for dedicated listening where they just sit and listen?

Anyone ever slip into a daydream whilst listening to music, so that the music becomes a soundtrack to your imaginings? Or is that just a weird thing I do? :)
beck
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 2752
Joined: 2012-10-22 22:25

Re: How do you listen?

Post by beck »

Dedicated listening and daydreaming are both good describtions of what I do when using my hifi system. Sometimes the one and sometimes the other. Sometimes both at the same time.
It is always about listening to music though I can be caught up in listening to certain aspects of the reproduction from time to time. Especially when evaluating a change of the setup or other changes.
I can remember listening to certain records in the past while reading a certain book or doing something else. It is a bit like when someone remembers what they were doing when Kennedy died.
Playing cd’s…………
Spannko
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 2292
Joined: 2008-01-24 21:46
Location: North East of The Black Country, UK

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Spannko »

Charlie1 wrote:How do members enjoy their music?

I'm not talking about system evaluation or tune method here.

Excluding background music whilst doing something else in the house, does everyone take time out for dedicated listening where they just sit and listen?

Anyone ever slip into a daydream whilst listening to music, so that the music becomes a soundtrack to your imaginings? Or is that just a weird thing I do? :)
I'd say that was just weird charlie! Seriously though, after doing all the evaluation stuff, when things are right, anything to do with a "HiFi sound" takes a back seat. Then I just "zone out" and become one with the music.
Charlie1
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4831
Joined: 2007-12-11 00:30
Location: UK

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Charlie1 »

beck wrote:Dedicated listening and daydreaming are both good describtions of what I do when using my hifi system. Sometimes the one and sometimes the other. Sometimes both at the same time.
Glad I'm not the only one - cheers Beck :)
Spannko wrote:I'd say that was just weird charlie! Seriously though, after doing all the evaluation stuff, when things are right, anything to do with a "HiFi sound" takes a back seat. Then I just "zone out" and become one with the music.
LOL Thanks Spannko - I knew you'd understand. It's just that I find wearing skin tight pants and a mask so uncomfortable in real life. Not to mention I don't really have any special powers.
matthias
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 2092
Joined: 2007-12-25 16:47
Location: Germany

Re: How do you listen?

Post by matthias »

I am looking for complete immersion into the music. That means for me:
*Only one set-up at my place (living room area)
*No listening to background music
*No headphones
*If ever possible listening very loud, sometimes volume at live level

Matt
Matt

MBP / Exposure pre + power (both modified) / JBL3677
Charlie1
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4831
Joined: 2007-12-11 00:30
Location: UK

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Charlie1 »

matthias wrote:I am looking for complete immersion into the music. That means for me:
*Only one set-up at my place (living room area)
*No listening to background music
*No headphones
*If ever possible listening very loud, sometimes volume at live level
Thanks Matt. I often lack the ability to just sit and listen without mind wandering. I don't know why. It's not caffeine - my mind has always been very active. It quietens down when I have a cold or when I have to focus on a physical activity like sport.

Maybe meditation would help. My kids are into dot-to-dot at the moment, so maybe I should do that whilst listening :)
matthias
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 2092
Joined: 2007-12-25 16:47
Location: Germany

Re: How do you listen?

Post by matthias »

Charlie1 wrote:I often lack the ability to just sit and listen without mind wandering. I don't know why. It's not caffeine - my mind has always been very active. It quietens down when I have a cold or when I have to focus on a physical activity like sport.
Charlie,
I know this condition as well. Sometimes I listen to music at the weekends only or at one single day in a week. Thats all. Quality than quantity.

Matt
Matt

MBP / Exposure pre + power (both modified) / JBL3677
Lego
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 1147
Joined: 2007-04-18 11:42
Location: glasgow

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Lego »

Pre family when i lived alone or living at home with hifi in my bedroom l always sat and listened to the music paying full attention,if my mind drifted i would simply change the record to something that keeps my full attention and if nothing did I'd put on Sun Ra :0)

So my main priority for any upgrade has to better engagement not sure if tune dem brings that or not.

Now with the advent of streaming and being online with kids running in and out screaming and playing piano violin and French horn etc i don't get much of a chance to tune in without interruption which is probably why i hardly listen to LP12 these days,to be honest i don't really want to zone away from the family at present as there'll be plenty of time for that when the house eventuslly empties itself

Sometimes I wonder if the reason I spent so much time and money listening to music and buying hi-fi in the past was simply due to boredom.
I know that tune
Charlie1
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4831
Joined: 2007-12-11 00:30
Location: UK

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Charlie1 »

Matt and Leo, I find this very interesting so thanks for sharing on this topic.

Leo, I'd not heard Sun Ra before. I don't think I will be scouring discogs for their works. I'm already max'd out with alien space music (1).
maffe
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 300
Joined: 2016-02-14 20:05

Re: How do you listen?

Post by maffe »

Usually I´m sitting on the left side of our sofa, right in front of the left speaker, processing photos or reading on forums. Find it hard to actually focusing on what I do on my computer, just floating away into the music. Almost always with our cat in my knee and he gets grumpy every 15-20 min when I turn/change record :)
I listen to music for about 2-5h a day depending on other activities.
User avatar
ThomasOK
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4358
Joined: 2007-02-02 18:41
Location: United States
Contact:

Re: How do you listen?

Post by ThomasOK »

How about that? A really interesting idea for a new thread.

I like this subject as I feel it is likely we listen in a number of different ways. So here is how I listen. First off, if I am listening as described, listening as the main activity, I almost always listen to vinyl. The exception would be if I really want to listen to an album that I only have in digital format. However, these are getting fewer and farther between as so much stuff has come out on vinyl. A good example is Loreena McKennitt, who I have mentioned on here before. Much of her music has only been available on CD including The Visit and Book of Secrets which are two of my favorite albums she has released. So I used my streamer to listen to them. But a few years ago she released her latest album on the newly popular vinyl. Then The Visit came out a little over a year ago and she just released Book of Secrets for its' 20th anniversary in April. So I now have all the albums I own of her music on vinyl, reducing the amount I listen to the streamer. Right now the only albums I can think of off hand that I go to the server for are Mino Cinelu (self-titled and not available on vinyl) and Deadwing by Porcupine Tree (I am unwilling to pay the $400+ the original 300 to 400 copies pressed go for and it has not yet been rereleased on vinyl due to contractual problems). I also have a reasonable amount of live Porcupine Tree and King Crimson not available on vinyl so I use it for that. But mostly the DS is used for background music when I am cooking, eating, etc. or to keep the system warmed up for when I can sit down and listen to a record.

When I sit down to really listen I do try to minimize distractions including turning off the lights at night. Do I daydream? Sometimes. Music is an emotional communication which connects you with the artist and their expression. But the way you experience a piece of music can be quite different than what the musician intended - it is all personal. Also the way you experience a piece can change from time to time depending on the space your head is in. I also have found that certain pieces of music get connected with certain feelings or atmospheres that I was experiencing when I listened to them, especially if it resonated with what I was feeling at the time so I listened to them a lot. The album Lizard by King Crimson I listened to a lot when I was first reading the Tolkien Lord of the Rings trilogy and the second side (which is basically one long track) has a certain maedieval feel to it so it goes well with the books and remains connected with them to me. Other songs that I have a strong connection with are often dark pieces from dark times in my life (I find them rather cathartic). One which I mentioned recently on another thread is Locomotive Breath by Jethro Tull. But there are also Something I Can Never Have and The Perfect Drug by Nine Inch Nails, Wicked Game by Chris Isaak, the entire Dark Side of the Moon and Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd and Starless and Epitaph by King Crimson, among others. When I listen to this kind of music, as well as other music of all types associated with a certain time or phase in my life, I tend to be transported back to those times. Now I don't actually listen to that stuff a whole lot as I am mostly a person who lives in the present and am not really nostalgic for old times - although I do believe the mid 50s through the mid 70s was the golden age for modern music. I actually listen to more newer music than that but mix in a lot of stuff as there isn't as much newer music that moves me like that music did. I think Fredrik will attest that when we did RMAF I had a fair representation of music from a wide range of times and styles.

When listening to music I don't have such a strong connection with I just let it move me in whatever way it connects. The Last Mall by Steely Dan makes me want to dance, Clarissa by Jamie Saft, Bobby Previte & Steve Swallow off The New Standard makes me want to bop, The Raven That Refused To Sing by Steven Wilson makes me sad as its' sense of loss hits too close to home (it is even worse when I watch the video). So I don't generally drift off but find myself drawn into the feeling of the music. But the idea of drifting off reminds me of a funny incident quite a few years ago. I was a fan of early Keith Jarrett, and especially The Köln Concert, and I took my girlfriend at the time to a live solo concert of his. At the time in his solo concerts he tried to empty his mind and just play whatever came through him. Sometimes this worked well, as in The Köln Concert which is a masterpiece, and sometimes it didn't, as in The Sun Bear concerts which are mostly of no value. This concert was a mix. But the interesting thing is that in the middle of the concert, when he was playing some powerful and dynamic stuff that was however not very interesting I actually fell asleep! Apparently I didn't snore as I didn't get an elbow in the ribs from my girlfriend. But what I remember most is that he transitioned into some very quiet snd mellow music that was really beautiful and that is what I gradually woke into with a beautiful sunset and a rippling lake filling my mind as I awoke. It was a really beautiful experience and one that I can't easily recreate as the concert was not released. (Just as well as I'm certain I couldn't recreate it anyway, even with the same music.)

So there is some idea of how I listen to music. My music listening is likely to change soon as I am in the process of emptying out the house and will have the place to myself. Will I listen to music more or less? And what music will I listen to? Only time will tell. And that will change again when I find a new girlfriend - Ah, all kinds of opportunities for new musical experiences!
The LP12 Whisperer
Manufacturer, Distributor, Retailer and above all lover of music.
User avatar
ThomasOK
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4358
Joined: 2007-02-02 18:41
Location: United States
Contact:

Re: How do you listen?

Post by ThomasOK »

Well, I didn't mean to kill this interesting thread but it looks like I might have inadvertently done so. Since I have gotten some comments in PMs I thought I should clarify a bit here. Debbie and Jake are moving out of the house to a new place. This was my decision after a long period of consideration. There is no enmity between us, indeed I still consider her a friend and Jake as basically a stepson. There was no substantial disharmony in the house but it was time to move on and develop my life further. For now I am looking forward to reorganizing the house and doing some updating. I also look forward to seeing what it is like being back "on the market" after some 17 years off it. To me the future looks bright and I believe the change is in the long term best interests of Debbie and Jake as well.
The LP12 Whisperer
Manufacturer, Distributor, Retailer and above all lover of music.
donuk
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 406
Joined: 2010-02-21 13:25

Re: How do you listen?

Post by donuk »

Good luck with your life-changes Thomas.

Donuk
User avatar
Music Lover
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 1673
Joined: 2007-01-31 20:35
Location: In front of Lejonklou/JBL/Ofil

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Music Lover »

Thomas, thank's for the update. Wasn't sure how to respond to your first post...but nice to know it wasn't an accident or something.
I hope it going to work out well.

On topic I can say I listen to music as often as possible. And I don't listen in a special way, thinking in a special way, doing something in a special way.
I listen when I work, relax, read, cook, make household work and also sleep (stretching out on the sofa, listening until I start sleeping - waking up later on)
For me, great reproduction gives you more possibilities: you can party or relax to the music. Bad reproduction and I don't feel for dancing and it's impossible to relax as I only getting irritated. I just wan't to turn off basically.

Possible the only strange item is that I play loud. As loud as possible. Also in the car. I like to feel the music.
On the other hand, I always use ear protections when I travel (train, bus, aircraft) or at concerts. And the TV-set is on very low volume.

Simple rule: sounding good = turn up the volume. If not, turn down as low as possible.
It's all about musical understanding!
Charlie1
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4831
Joined: 2007-12-11 00:30
Location: UK

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Charlie1 »

I hope everything works out for the best Tom. Sorry, I had a stinking cold and then just forgot about the thread, until it got refreshed today.
tokenbrit
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 2039
Joined: 2012-03-22 19:47
Location: New England

Re: How do you listen?

Post by tokenbrit »

I only just saw your posts Thomas..Debbie's ears and opinions have been a welcome addition to some of your system & component comparisons I hope everything works out for the best for you, for her, and for Jake. Not forgetting Bella.
User avatar
ThomasOK
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4358
Joined: 2007-02-02 18:41
Location: United States
Contact:

Re: How do you listen?

Post by ThomasOK »

Thanks for the kind comments. Debbie does indeed have a good ear and it was nice to have that backup, although she was admittedly less thrilled with doing A/Bs over time. To be honest Bella (our Black Lab) is one of my bigger concerns in this. She was a Christmas present from Debbie and I to Jake a bit over 7 years ago. With the exception of barking at anyone who comes to the door because she wants to go and meet them, she is a very well behaved dog and has never chewed a remote control or disturbed the Hi-Fi. But she has also never lived anywhere but in this house after her first few weeks of life and she is used to having all of us around. Whenever somebody is gone for a week or two she is always extremely excited when they come back. She will be moving to the new house but I will have her here for visitation a couple of times a month.

But all in all I am looking forward to the future in a way I wasn't a few years ago. Time to move forward!
The LP12 Whisperer
Manufacturer, Distributor, Retailer and above all lover of music.
Charlie1
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4831
Joined: 2007-12-11 00:30
Location: UK

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Charlie1 »

ThomasOK wrote:But all in all I am looking forward to the future in a way I wasn't a few years ago. Time to move forward!
That's good to hear.

I would think a 7 year old lab will cope OK. If she was 3-4 years older then I'd be more concerned for the old girl.
Charlie1
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 4831
Joined: 2007-12-11 00:30
Location: UK

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Charlie1 »

Back on topic, how do you all feel about the tidiness of your listening room? Can it be a mess? Do you prefer it to be a bit of a mess? Or can you not relax until the room is dusted and neat and tidy?
User avatar
Music Lover
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 1673
Joined: 2007-01-31 20:35
Location: In front of Lejonklou/JBL/Ofil

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Music Lover »

Charlie1 wrote:Back on topic, how do you all feel about the tidiness of your listening room? Can it be a mess? Do you prefer it to be a bit of a mess? Or can you not relax until the room is dusted and neat and tidy?
Tidy, a I prefer good order.
The other family members are less careful so nobody in the family is allowed to put stuff in my room, or tough the system. Using it is fine of course!
But I can relax regardless of the tidiness level in the room.

I have no issues with dust, so I dust only each quarter or so.
It's all about musical understanding!
Lego
Very active member
Very active member
Posts: 1147
Joined: 2007-04-18 11:42
Location: glasgow

Re: How do you listen?

Post by Lego »

I think hi-fi sounds better when room tidy, only dust hi-fi if changing cables or when unplugging and plugging cables ie cleaning connections ..When I mean tidy it's nothing between me and speakers, chaos along the periphery doesn't bother me
I know that tune
jlwdm
Member
Member
Posts: 33
Joined: 2014-05-19 02:24
Location: US

Re: How do you listen?

Post by jlwdm »

Unfortunately, my audio system is in my home office and when I am listening to music I am working all most all of the time.

Jeff
Post Reply