Rolling Stone magazine discovers high-end audio

Thiel's CS3.7

(Credit: Thiel)

Here's the concept: It's no secret young consumers don't get high-end audio. It just seems like either total BS or an extravagance for the rich. Yes, it can be both of those things, but there's a lot of great, affordable high-end audio that's available to anyone who's truly passionate about music. Here's one quick example, Usher Audio's staggeringly good S-520 speakers that go for $400 a pair (I'll review them in this space soon).

Anyway, a high-end publicist friend of mine proposed this reach out to the youth concept through Rolling Stone magazine. He wanted to blow the magazine's writers away with high-end sound and convinced two of his clients, Canadian electronics manufacturer Bryston, and Thiel, a speaker company from Kentucky, to loan Rolling Stone $40K worth of gear for their reviewers to enjoy for three months. Seems like a great "what if" idea to me. Obviously, the reviewers know music, and I can't wait to hear how they're affected by hearing music like never before.

It's a killer system, with a Bryston BCD-1 CD player, Bryston BP-26 preamp, and Bryston 28B-SST power amps mated with Thiel's astonishing CS3.7 speakers and SS2 subwoofer. For guys used to hearing music over $29 PC speakers it's the equivalent moving up from a skateboard to a Chevy Corvette. Now they'll actually get to hear the music they're critiquing at least as well as the people who recorded the tunes in the first place. Who knows, maybe they'll communicate that experience to their readers. Point is, sound matters, and hearing it with the best possible speakers and electronics is a good idea. We'll see.

The gear, installed at Rolling Stone's NYC office

(Credit: Bryston)

[Computer_Audiophile]

Hey Steve - You must be friends with Micah! He is great to work with. I love this idea with Thiel & Bryston at Rolling Stone. Very cool.

Chris

Founder
ComputerAudiophile.com

[shomie911]

I don't exactly buy into the whole "young people have no hi-fi audio taste" stereotype.

While I agree the majority of kids nowadays are very simple minded in their pursuits for audio, but a quick pop to head-fi.org will show you that there is an entire community of under 16 year old audiophiles.

I'm 16 and I just wrote this while listening to $300 Beyerdynamic DT880's and a $150 Minibox-E headphone amplifier. While that may seem cheap to a grissled audiophile such as yourself, it's the best I can afford and I enjoy it immensely.

I'm planning on moving to bigger and better things once I have some extra money rolling around.

I was looking for a new pair of loudspeaker and the Usher Audio S-520 look the best potential candidates I've seen thus far. Thanks for bringing them to light!

[graxxus]

Nice setup, but it'd cost a good bit more than $40k.
Almost a shame to be listening to recent recordings with poor mastering on such a revealing system.

[Bill_I]

There is a running debate among mastering engineers who are told by their clients to make it loud no matter what. The resulting mess which involves deliberate clipping comes off as a continuous blast of noise. After about three tunes you turn it off, not sure why its so annoying. On a cheap system or typical car stereo this can be accepted, but on a high-resolution playback it is revealed for what it is, trashed audio. A good reason to go out and enjoy live music and hear it the way the musicians intended, as they are there in person to insure you are hearing what they have in mind.

[XJonathanX1991]

Yes, a very nice setup indead. I wish i had the money to shell out for stuff like that. But I don't. Think about it, are the materials used in those speakers worth that amount of money? I have a 7.1 Suround Sound System by Onkyo and the prce of $500 dollars is probally for you guys, chicken feed. Speakers are mainly made of plastic or some other microfiber or as my subwoofer is...ceramic. i guess my point is why pay that much for speakers. Bose would be one of the greatest ripp offs of all times and makes your speakers sound like a good deal. My system has 1000 watts and my reciever 110 per channel. The price of a speaker isn't all there is...and ask for Bose i hate their little demo CD's boasting edited audio to fit each of their systems. i would enjoy takeing one of them and playing it on mine.

[graxxus]

Thiel is one of the few manufacturers who produce their own drivers - R&D is expensive and getting it right a sign of a very talented crew. I have always been impressed by Thiel speakers. The same goes for Bryston. Visit their websites and you can read about what makes each of these companies very special.

It is also good to realize that one can easily buy lower in the Thiel and Bryston lines and still have an incredible system.

Why pay this much for a system? Go and visit a respected audio retailer and ask to demo a few songs on one of their better systems. If you still don't understand, consider yourself somewhat lucky. :-)


Aside: As for receivers, most do not provide anywhere near the output they publish, so it is not a good point for comparison.

[egelb]

I doubt it will be difficult convincing the Rolling Stone staff that the sound from the new setup is better than what they presenly have. I do not think this is the best way to convince them to spend some more on better equipment since the alternative system you give them is not affordable to the target audience. I would have given them something definitely better than what they have but affordable so they can recommend it to their readers.

[Jcusco407]

I also disagree with "young people have no hi-fi audio taste" idea. It is true that many kids have no idea what it is to listen to a song as it was meant to be heard and dont care, there are still some that do. Im 15 and I have a $1800 system in my room consisting of a pair of KRK's and a KRK sub and a set of AKGs with a Headroom desktop amp. I work to improve it because it is what i love. There are more young audiophiles than people think.

[Atulkanagat]

Hi Steve. It's Atul Kanagat, CEO of MusikMatters Inc. distributors of Usher loudspeakers and JPS wire products.

I feel that you are right about younger listeners; there will obviously be exceptions that prove the rule, but it is tough to deny that most young adults graduating from college do not have a Hi Fi system on their top 5 list of things to get when they have the resources. I can identify several factors for this shift from the days you and I graduated from college. In my case, a Hi Fi system was #1; and I was far from alone.

Factors:
1. Price of entry (perceived to be too high)
2. Plethora of high function alternatives (computers, game consoles, DVDs)
3. Availability of music; everywhere; the IPod effect
4. Limited opportunities to experience the performance levels of high end audio; dealer decline in providing properly configured demos don't help.

Maybe we should stop thinking about music consumption as a zero sum game among formats. Instead, maybe we should think about "occasions" rather than platforms. While Americans are consuming music like never before, different listening occasions (driving, flying, working out, studying/working, partying, musical evening out, serious in-home listening asession) favor different platforms.

We at MusikMatters believe that reducing the overall cost of ownership to offer more attractive price/performance levels is an important dimension, and we are dedicated significant resources to achieve this. However, this on its own will not be sufficient. We need to figure out how to get people to give us "10 minutes in the sweet spot" so we can offer them something that enriches their musical experience AND makes sense in their lives.