This may presumably be a question for former non-audiophiles, but I’m curious if moving to dCS and an audiophile 2-channel setup changed your preference for a genre/genres of music that you weren’t listening to much before but now can listen to for hours without getting tired of it.
I came from HP listening with Apple Music and as a 2-channel “system” the Devialet Phantoms and before that a B&O Beosound 9000. There it is/was Pop/Rock mostly.
Great question. My answer is yes. I’m able to enjoy more types of music than in the past as I ‘feel’ more in the music that makes me want to try different genres.
Example - I’m not a jazz/big band person but Ali played a piece the other week at the factory that made me want to explore that area. So maybe I’m actually a jazz/big band person after all and just didn’t connect with the music before.
Another… My wife loves Elton John. I’m the opposite but last week at Audio Deluxe, Absolute Sounds were playing a track I actually liked…
Imho it’s more a matter of experience in music and the age one has vs 2-channel setup or highend.
F.ex. I didn’t get into classical music until I was in my twenties and heard Grieg’s morning mood first time alone in my car. Bought that CD (still have it) and my music direction changed from punk/wave to Mozart and Bach 
My 2-channel system with a dCS Rossini and Clock has made a significant difference to the music I enjoy now. I got it ten days ago, and every component in the setup has been chosen for listening mainly at low volume in the living/dining room (I can enjoy the music all the way to the kitchen now even at low volume). There is no acoustic treatment of the room except for a rug in front of the speakers that are fully active with a neutral sound and an accurate, flat frequency response similar to what one would expect from studio monitors. The preamp (WestminsterLab Quest with the carbon fiber option for additional shielding) was a must for my needs, but I don’t disagree that under a different setup going direct could make sense. I’m currently in the process of burning everything in. The speakers only need 30 hours to reach their full potential, but the preamp and the cables need about 200 hours. I’m using Cardas Clear Beyond XLR interconnects between the Rossini and the preamp and the same from the preamp to the speakers. The five power cables (for the three units and for the two speakers) are Cardas Clear Beyond Power XL.
The morning usually starts out with EDM on the radio with the volume set to 3. EDM can get very tiring when it’s played too loud at home, and I only listen to it at higher volume in the car. In the afternoon it’s all Blues then for hours with the volume dial between 8 to12, and in the evening it’s Jazz until midnight with the volume dial between 3 and 10.
What can I say, Blues and Jazz sound amazing. My jaw really dropped when I listened to Oscar Peterson’s album “The Trio, Live from Chicago (Doxy Collection) (Remastered Version),” particularly the tracks “Chicago” and “Sometimes I’m Happy” (I usually set the volume dial to 16 for those because they sound superb). A few weeks ago I didn’t even know who Oscar Peterson was. BTW, I have Tidal and Qobuz subscriptions, but the Tidal version almost always sounds better with my setup and speakers.
I will choose these two genres in Roon in the afternoon/evening, and pick one of the recommended albums. Once it has been played, Roon will continue to play tracks from other albums of the same genre. If I like an artist, I will add the whole album to my library to listen to it later. There is only one song from Christina Aguilera „You Lost Me“ and one from Luther Vandross „If I Didn’t Know Better“ in the albums you see below. I’ve listened to the whole albums of B.B. King, Oscar Peterson, Kenny Burrell, Miles Davis, Memphis Slim, Otis Spann, and T-Bone Walker (not shown below) so far and am still adding recommendations from Roon.
Amazing that your Rossini has (IIUC) catalyzed this voyage of musical discovery. I don’t think you can pay a higher compliment to a component (although you’ve put it in a very nice system which is maybe helping a bit I am so happy for you!
I can’t say my system has led me to discover any new genres per se** but it has helped me rediscover some of the music from my formative years at high school and university. Music I had only heard through my dorm room Rega Planar 3/Mission Cyrus 2/Mordaunt Short MS-20 system sounds, put mildly, different through the bigrig. The odd background sounds such as the guitar amp mains hum at the beginning of Walking on the Moon being but one example.
** Although it was through the dCS forum that I met @glevethan who introduced me to a whole new subgenre of reggae, so it did indirectly.
Jah…Rastafari !
See there AndrewS is why you don’t notice the difference from your formative years.
This is the stereo (lower left for those who have never actually seen a stereo from the stone age) i shared with my college roommate for 4 years. Note the 8 tracks on my empty shelves and the stereo is his. he’s not in the photo. For reference i think it was Panasonic as that was one of the few Japanese companies with electronics in the market at that time. 3 years later my own stereo was marantz/jbl/garrard/sure/teac. Money changes everything
Not sure about you all, but I do find it a slightly frustrating twist of fate that as my budget allows for better equipment to enjoy music with, my ears are already moving in the other direction, so the end result may be very tantalising.
Do you mean that the better the equipment, the less music you enjoy?
I’ve had a tinnitus for number of years now. It varies in intensity, and I learned not to hear it when I’m not paying attention. It certainly doesn’t stop me from enjoying the music.
No, I mean my ears are gradually getting worse. Some tinnitus and most probably some slight loss of hearing. Nothing too bad yet, but I wanted to make the point that as we age our hearing will diminish while at the same time we could be having more disposable income for music playback. Youth is definitely wasted on the young
My quality of sleep has improved substantially ever since I started to listen to Jazz in the evening and to nap for an hour to an hour and a half in the armchair with the volume set to 3 before going to bed. I get much better night rest with a lot more deep sleep. I don’t exercise except for swimming four to five times a week for 2-3km (very slow at a pace of 2:50/100m). I learned freestyle swimming three years ago when I became a pre-diabetic. When I overdo it, I get really poor sleep due to stress and need rest for two to three days which means higher blood sugar during those days. It seems this is all gone now. I’ve slept like a baby ever since I got my system. I did 2k on Friday, 3k on Saturday, 2.9k on Sunday, and 2.2k today (a bit slower at 2:55/100m), and I’ve slept like baby. Normally, I would have slept horribly a couple of nights. I don’t drink so the music is definitely having an effect.
Absolutely. I’ve always loved music, but when I became an “audiophile” and really got into gear, I discovered and absolutely love vocal jazz.
Yes me too - absolutely. But for me its a combination of dCS, Roon and Jazz24. I’ve learned so much about music using Roon - particularly about the origins and development of Jazz whereas previously my Jazz exposure was UK Trad Jazz (e.g Acker Bilk, Chris barber etc). I’m not sure if I’m giving up sound quality by using Roon but as a knowledge base its fantastic.
What are some of your favorite recordings Nate?
(Feel free to start a new thread in Music, or DM me, if you don’t mind) : )
Richard
I’ve been a audiophile for a very long time, but it’s only the last 4 years I’ve been able to afford a Vivaldi…Apex awaiting…my music tastes have changed from rock to ambient. This in a way has come about because of streaming and ROON, I use Qubuz too…all my 900 CDs are on a naim server and the suggestions have certainly widened my listening tastes.
Last year I went to Leeds to see Hania Rani …and stood for nearly 2 hours…at 68 I won’t be repeating that…but it’s reawakened my love of live work…except this concert was let down by not great acoustics…and standing 
.
I too have tinnitus and playing music loud doesn’t help…so in a sense My DCS set up has certainly opened my ears.
Hi Richard. I went to the AXPONA audio show and have returned-wasn’t ignoring you.
I would say I am at the beginning of my discovery, in the sense that the well of amazing albums probably lies deep. But the masters like Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nina Simone were artists I completely ignored until I had a system that captured the intimacy of what was happening. And they’re all so completely unique. There’s a mood for each of them.
Nina Simone’s live track of “You’ve Got to Learn” just floors me. It might not be the best recording, but the emotion, my goodness.
Also, I really didn’t discover masters like Ray Charles and Chet Baker until I leaped into the audiophile rabbit-hole. Ray Charles is sensational. Who do you enjoy Richard?
Not for me - but my Bartok has really allowed me to really enjoy the music enjoy most (classical, jazz, some folk). I wish there was a magic dCS filter button that would make my guilty pleasure pop music sound great, but sadly no. I guess that’s what AirPods are for.
What my dCS system has really done for me is helped me get off the insane tweak bandwagon. All sensible studio grade cables now and stock power cords are all i need and I’ve never ejoyed my system more!
Thought about that again…
did an audiophile setup change the genre of music…
So now I would say: Yes!
Years ago, I started listening to classical music (coming from Ambient, Pop, Electronic…) with my Naim full-stack hifi 183-all-black-boxes-with-PSU (Naim folks know what I’m talking about…)
Suddenly, that didn’t work for me- PRaT is cool with Naim but I couldn’t listen to baroque without the feeling there’s something missing. Got a ND555 in the end (with other black boxes) and sold it together with the rest…
Long story short- I think that hifi can influence your musical taste- vice versa.
I thought it might be worth mentioning. I did find the limitations of my setup with the type of songs/recordings that I can’t enjoy. As a reminder, my system is in the living room which has a tile floor and there is no acoustic treatment whatsoever except for a rug in front of the speakers. The speakers, fully active, are on double bFly bases.
In the “Welcome dCS Varèse” thread there is a post by Andrew referring to Chris Connaker’s Axpona 2025 review. Conneker listens in one of the rooms to a track by the The War on Drugs called “Living Proof” and how much he enjoyed it there. Well, on my system this track is very enjoyable and the vocals evoke emotions but the bass that sets in later sounds really boomy and the guitar at the end of the song is too bright. I never had this challenge to that extend so far. Dire Straights and “Hotel California (Live On MTV, 1994)” by the Eagles sound really great, but “Living Proof” is utterly unlistenable at the end on my setup.
