why is sbaf so different?

Sounds good. I accept the challenge!

 

Dig up posts and hone into the gist of things read in between the lines if possible.

 

I joined HF in early '15, then eventually found my way to Changstar while searching for more info on gear. After lurking for several months, I was just starting to get a grip on the culture when the reboot happened. This place gets a bit edgy at times, but if you don't know what's going on or why it's happening, it's best just to observe until you figure it out. The randos that run into problems just start waving their swords around before properly getting the lay of the land. It's understandable given what the rest of the Interwebs (and another certain personal audio site) are like. Anyway, I'm glad I invested the time to first figure out WTF Changstar was about and then SBAF. Just wish I wasn't so far away so I could take part in the meets and loaner tours.

@shaizada I'll find some time to sift through the archives. www.changstar.com/www.changstar.com/ doesn't seem to be up, so I guess I won't have to go back that far.

 

Don't worry, I also have no idea what it means either. I thought it was a portmanteau of Guarav and midichlorian, but come to think about it, that doesn't make any sense.

 

It seems the force runs weak in me. I Wookiepedia'd midichlorian and it seems I missed its first mention in Episode I. I did find a post by @sphinxvc that defines gauravidians as a unit of audio virtue. Exactly which/what virtues I'm still not sure. I guess @shaizada has excellent critical listening abilities and the unit of audio goodness has been named in his honour, or just became so organically. Gauravidian nervosa seems to be ...

 

Regarding virtues ask for Aristotle. He might be dead but his theory on virtues is still available...

 

I haven't experienced one "hyped" product on here that hasn't been really good. Terrifying is the wrong word but nothing that came off popular or well received here was ever bad when I listened to it - it was on point. Can't say the same for a few other forums.

When Marv reignited the HD 650 thread on SBAF and posted a guide on modding I modded mine (first HD 650 I bought was in 2012 and my chain sucked so match that I kept on with the veil stuff and sold them really quickly) with the dynamat a dutch SBAF sent to me and it was totally worth it. I was (re)amazed how overpriced other headphones came off in comparison. I've been bothering Marv and others via PM about gear stuff and it was always on point. Sure I could have accidently PMed GUTB and received death threats from North Korea but my main point is that perceiving this forum as "edgy" or "anti-mainstream" seems to be a projection of the accuser's own dissatisfaction and confusion with his own purchase choices.

Still I also have a hardon for a few gear related stuff that doesn't bode too well here but totally strikes into my heart (TH-900, modded T5p, Violectric V281, UE 900, Signature Pro). It's fine to me as I know their wrongdoings.

 

You like what you like, that is respected.

When you have certain audio-gear preferences here, that is your privilege. Sometimes we make jokes about these things and criticism might follow but no witch hunts or "for a myriad of reasons" B.S.

Value for money in the audio hobby is so personal. We can understand why one person might have a 200 Dollar audio system and another might have a 5K plus audio system. (If I personally would have the funds, f**k yeah I would build a proper audio-system and 5K would not be that much. But hey, that is the nature of our hobby.)

 

I truly don't know how to respond to that post...

One of my life outlooks has always been to dream, yet to keep my feet planted firmly on the ground. To build that castle in the sky, but to keep in touch with reality so that the dreams are grounded.

Somewhere along the line, audio simply became an extension of my life, my philosophies and myself really. Beyond the hobby, beyond the gear and well beyond the feelings of "ownership". I never really knew what I was going for with audio, but I had a FEELING I was looking to elicit in myself.

That feeling is what drove every component change and crafted every choice I made. I really had no goals, just that feeling. Then it just happened and stayed ever since. The technicalities of the system went away completely and feelings remained.

One might not "agree" with my feelings being expressed through the audio system, but one thing will always remain...one cannot help to NOT feel.

That's also the reason to join SBAF for me. A true, unadulterated way of sharing those feelings with others. I simply didn't want it exclusively for myself. I felt an urge to share, for better or worse. If only just one life was impacted and connected with that feeling...all this effort would have been worth it.

I really hope everyone finds what makes them feel alive through their journey. It's worth everything!

HINT: Analog! Get a turntable. Any turntable...even with its flaws, it will connect your mind to your heart. Have thoughts/questions, post in the proper forum section and someone will help. Happy Holidays folks! My best to you and your loved ones. I look forward to 2017.

 

related Gauravidian (if I'm understanding the term correctly) aside: Outside the normal headphone space, the setup that, while being outrageously expensive, punched me straight in the feels more than any other anything, multi-10k$ setup or strung together midfi garbage, including the usual rich-guy-Hi-Fi suspects, e.g., Levinson, Wilson, Classe, B&W, Luxman, blah blah, was a version of the AN UK room at DejaVu. For a while Vu had the AN-E/SEC Signatures running from Conquerors (and the rest of the chain, all AN). I don't have words to describe how the music in that room affected me. All of it - every last drop of music; genres of music I typically can't stand were filled with emotive force and conviction where I had once thought some music just cheap throw-away crap or fussy shit for deaf old men. I spent more than 3 hours in that room before Vu politely asked me to leave because he wanted to grab some dinner.

 

Also worth mentioning is that the the most beneficial and potentially cheapest (but temporary) enhancement to your listening rig is a bottle* of your favourite vice.

*or rolled paper or leaf, or a pair of legs

 

Perhaps equipment could be given a GUTB rating? Anything above zero would undesirable and indicate throwing away of cash on price-tag/brand/case-design elitism.

But, ok, no: people here supposedly know all that stuff already.

 

Did you mean the listeners? Or someone else's straddling the listener's?

Edit: This was actually a serious question as I was confused at first. But rereading it and inserting it into the referring sentence, I guess it's "a pair of legs of your favourite vice."

Edit2: Holy amazeballs! When did I make Friend? w00t!

 

Well um... it's like this... uh... look, it rhymes with... hornpub.