Sometimes, you just can't win!

[pmakres1]

As my wife says daily, "No one cares about your stereo."

These are the people who are missing out....

[maxwedge]

You guys just need a better stereo. When Mrs. Gadget comes home and the system is warmed up, she starts singing along with it... or dancing when that is more appropriate.


Widget

My wife and I are totally opposite but we get along well because we're both easy going. Shes gone right now so the music is flowing, Traveling Wilburys.

[ironman]

I feel and have felt your pain on more than one occasion ! Back in '78 my parents were furious with my decision to "waste" good money on my L-110's. I just knew I'd be vindicated when they finally heard them. I drove directly to their house from the store, set up the system (Sansui/JBL) and asked them to pick out their favorite album. I positioned them and the speakers just so, told them to close their eyes and prepare for Ol' Blue Eyes himself to "appear". I was devastated by my mothers reaction ! She actually said she thought her radio in her Ford Pinto was comparable !!!!! AGHHHHH !!! "I dunno, I think my radio sounds pretty darned good - I love it". This past summer I was determined to repeat same. This time with my L-112's. Even with the 160 watt Sansui on "2" we had to speak up to hear each other. I asked her "Mom, is this too loud for you". She says "No, its a comfortable level". I said "do you notice that with the volume this low we can't hear each other at normal conversational db level ?". She finally started getting the idea. I popped in one of her CD's she had brought along. I has her sit in "my" seat,told her to close her eyes and relax and that I had a few chores to do and would come back to the room when I heard the CD end. She did acknowledge the imaging - finally - THIRTY years later !! You don't need to remind me of the 110/112's deficits or comparisons to today's speakers, I'm well aware. But, to what my mom is used to... ! NOT that I haven't tried !! I did give them my ARIIax's and a decent receiver many years back. They collected dust. When my father passed away my mom started "cleaning out". She offered the set up to my sister (who I love dearly BUT...). I had to step in ! "Mom, if you don't want them anymore, please return them to me". To her and my sis they were just another piece of electronics -like a clock radio. I know this is not an AR fan site but hey, they did have their place ! I still have my ARIIax's, my KLH Model 6's along with 6 pair of various JBL bookshelves/floor standers. I enjoy them alone.
Somehow this is all linked to "priorities". Especially with the "Great Depression" generation. They can't be bothered with "imaging". Its a waste of precious $. And they are right - at least they have their heads screwed on right. I had NO business spending what I did on that system back in '78 when I could barely pay my monthly car loan/insurance ! BUT, they were JBL's and they were on SALE. No need to explain here I know LOL !! 'Nuff said !

[Rolf]

It's possible I'm not as old as Rolf (or maybe I am),

Ha-ha. I am a model 52. (you could have find it out yourself).

Anyway, my parents did not agree with my choice of music, and certainly not the volume I played it.

Then, when I finally moved to my own home I could play the way I wanted. ... and have done so ever after.

[Croc999]

Doc,
that's a funny story.
i guess that's a very good thing that not all people think the same - it would be a quite boring world

you know, quite a lot i hear in my "home" audio forum "normal" people wondering "how come you guys pay 1,000$ for a CD player or for an amplifier?" - it just sounds so redicolous to them.
then i ask them back "how many people do you know that invested 2,000$ in their car audio system? why it's OK to do it in the car but redicoulous for a home stereo?"

so, it's a matter of perceptions and education.
most of the public is not exposed to stere magazines and comercials - so Bose and Yamaha are the only things that they know.......

[Fred Sanford]

As my wife says daily, "No one cares about your stereo."

My wife's house, car and clothes were paid for by my interest in Audio/Video. She cares, and likes it just fine.

je

[Doc Mark]

Greetings, All,

Thanks for the friendly comments and commiseration! I am SOOOO very happy that Sweet Bride is nothing like her Mother, especially when it comes to our stereo system!! She dearly loves our music playback equipment, and easily sees a massive improvement over what we used to have. She understands frequency range, dynamics, and all the other things that makes our music sound so good to us, and appreciates what it has taken to get the sound we enjoy. The interesting thing is that she made a VERY good suggestion for yet another demonstration of our system to Mom! Mombo loves Michael Flatley's "Riverdance", and so Sweet Bride innocently suggested, this morning at breakfast, "Hon, why don't you put on the "Riverdance" DVD tonight? I'm sure that Mom will dearly love the way it sounds on our new L300's!" Mom was all for it, believe it, or not, and I told her, well, I'll go for it, but understand that it's going to be a much different sound than you've ever heard before, and you will hear the sound of their dancing, just like they were right here in the room with us! Her eyes actually sparkled in anticipation, my Friends!!! I'll report back to you tomorrow, and tell you how it all turned out. But, even if Mom doesn't see the "wonder" of our good system, even after "Riverdance", I am so proud of Sweet Bride for not only loving our system, but for being smart enough to suggest yet another way to possibly win Mom over to it!! Great Gal, my Sweet Bride!! Take care, Friends, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

[Doc Mark]

Update:

SUCCESS!! Mom now "understands" what makes JBL Legend speakers, like the L300's, so much better than any others that she's ever heard!! Yippee!!

Last night, we watched "Riverdance", as suggested by Sweet Bride. From the opening music, Mom was sitting forward in her seat, completely enthusiastic about what she was hearing! After it was all over, she told us she'd watched that same video, hundreds of times, and never before had she heard the depth of sound that she enjoyed last night! She was also shocked at how crisp the dancing "clicks" were, as though she'd never heard that kind of thing before! Then, as if that wasn't enough, this morning, she asked if we could watch the new Indiana Jones movie, "The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull", and she was totally amazed at the deep bass, and the clean dialog, that we enjoyed watching the movie! During the film, I asked if it was too loud, and she say, "Oh no, not at all!!" For figure... The rumbling of the waterfalls, the lift-off of the space vehicle, and everything else, was really enjoyable to her, even at a fairly high volume. When we were finished, I told her, without mentioning the Bose system her sister now has, "Mom, this is what makes such JBL systems so much better than most anything else that's out there today! Very few people, today, can even FIND such a nice system as what you've enjoyed this past week". She nodded her head, in complete agreement, and looked at our L300's with new respect in her eyes! YES!!!!

Now, I can rest easy, knowing that someone who, heretofore, was totally unimpressed by our speakers, finally has "seen the light", and has become a JBL believer!! By the way, I also played the fantastic CD, "Super Double-Bass, The Artistry of Gary Karr", that one of our JBL Brothers suggested that I buy, and wonder of wonders, Mom LOVED it!! She asked if she could get a copy, and I told her how much it cost. That was the end of that! I also told her that she might not be too impressed with how it sounded on her super tiny, little upright all-in-one CD/speaker system at home. But, I did mention that maybe she might like it on her sister's Bose system...... (ain't I a bastige!! ) All's well that ends well, eh?! Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

[pmakres1]

Congrats Marc,

The truth always prevails!

Pete

[robertbartsch]

The first time I heard Bose was in the early 1970s. They were 901s and I thought they sounded like 100 transistor radios playing at full volume - just TERRIBLE!

Anyway, the great Bose sound is the same to this day.

I even was given a pair of Bose headphones by American Airlines. They suk too! Apparently, they need battery power to provide equalization.

[hjames]

Need to change the title of this thread ...

You have JBLs - thus, you DID win!

(if you had Blows or whatever, you'd be a looser, eh?)

[metabaron]

Hi Doc,
that's fine, that your mom was convinced by your JBLs She seems to be not the "loud music" listener like us but a movie with appropiate sound devices moves mountains. That's the reason, how JBL had succses with cinema systems. So you have both, cinema and studio, great

[Doctor_Electron]

QUOTE: "how many people do you know that invested 2,000$ in their car audio system? why it's OK to do it in the car but redicoulous for a home stereo?"

The most I've ever paid for a car or truck was $4,700, for a like-new, but eight year old F-150 pickup. A heavily discounted Blaupunkt Cheyenne from COSTCO, with it included Blaupunkt speakers sounded better than most high $ car rigs I' heard. Musical, imagine that. Around $150

Probably 10X that much I blew looking for the Holy Grail of hi fi, but this year I bought "new" (4412) speakers for the first time since 1986 (4410's). I use old Sansui electronics because I like the sound (no chase needed). I would love to have some big 80's large format BiRadials, but would need a major structural rebuld as well as a Wide Load Permit for the full-time RV. The chase is OFF !

I've stayed `with the small JBL Pro monitors because as mentioned in an earlier post, in their best phyiscal settings, you can get your ears on some great grail.

[JBL 4645]

LOL I think Doc, you’ve now converted your mom to the JBL side. The Dark side is BOSE. Now your mom has seen the light, maybe she’ll pay strict attention to the leader in sound that is JBL.

Hi Doc,
that's fine, that your mom was convinced by your JBLs She seems to be not the "loud music" listener like us but a movie with appropiate sound devices moves mountains. That's the reason, how JBL had succses with cinema systems. So you have both, cinema and studio, great

Well they where at the birth of cinema sound late of (1927 The Jazz Singer).

Need to change the title of this thread ...

You have JBLs - thus, you DID win!

(if you had Blows or whatever, you'd be a looser, eh?)

LOL is that the new word now Heather, Blowers LOL BOSE blows. LOL

[SMKSoundPro]

For along time, my dad thought I was using large Klipsch speakers. He always seemed to forget that they were JBL's. But at a family friends wedding reception that mom and dad were guests at, dad said: "these JBL's are tremendous!"

The point is once mom and dad really heard the JBL sound, they knew it and did not forget it.

Goodluck to your mother in-law! She may bring all of her friends to your house for "RiverDance" night!!!

Happy New Year!!!

scotty.