Any of your family member is interested in your audio hobby?

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plasnu

Member
Joined 2011
#1
In my case, only my elder brother is.

My wife loves music, but she does not care about the sound quality at all. Absolutely zero interest. (Am I lucky?)

I gave my son HD-600 headphone and headphone amp, but I recently found he only brought HD-600 to his college and he left the amp in the closet. LOL.


Happy holidays to you and your family.
 
#2
My son used to like showing his mates my lab in the basement with notices of ‘High Voltage Keep Out’ and lots of interesting stuff and equipment in there, but audio for my kids mostly comes through a pair of Air Pods or Bose headphones.

My girlfriend gave me a pair of Klipschorn cabs (no drivers) to restore. That’s a good start 😀
 
#3
Not so much, my dad had been interested for a while, but doesn’t have the bug to continue, and I understand that. He got a setup put together that works for him, and now it’s time to go do other things.
My mom keeps asking me to setup a CD player, and I keep telling her that there’s one on her computer, and her computer Bluetooth is what feeds her stereo.

My autistic daughter is the only one who clues in to better recordings, and when improvements have been made. The smile and intense focus gives it away.

Wife used to work for a popular local Hi Fi store 25 years ago, and am pretty sure she appreciates it when it’s done right, but doesn’t say much unless something is amiss.
 
#4
Nobody in my family thought it was worthwhile. My father argued with me about how I did stuff and he was wrong, wrong, wrong; even at the fundamental level (Ohm's Law). He was still pleased that I was learning about electronics. My brother (a dimwit) always scoffed and told me to just buy a receiver. He also shoved a nail file into one of my amplifiers which melted the transformer down, and then blamed it on faulty design. My college girlfriend didn't care but she sure liked to crank it up. My mother was clueless but glad I was gainfully occupied.

In college I had hi fi buddies, and now that I'm building again I have hi fi buddies that include musicians and a DJ. Much better than family, with the glaring exception of my mother.
 
#5
My wife loves it, and is also instrumental in testing new setups for critical listening sessions. She has a very good ear too.

I consider myself lucky as I don't think many people would accept the mess I make with parts and not-yet-completed prototypes and boxes of parts lying around everywhere.

The dinner table routinely and randomly is converted into a Lab Desk.

I often have bouts of insomnia and so I wake up in the middle of the night and do some research or audio DIY.

She gave me a really nice scope for one of my birthdays. This Christmas, I got a nice Sig Gen too. Toolset-wise I am gearing up nicely.
 
#6
My wife realized that a) the speakers were here before she was, and b) big speakers sound better than little ones. But all physical construction and unfinished prototypes must be confined to the other building. She draws the line at aluminum shavings on the floor or anything that could stick us with a thousand dollar vet bill.
 
#7
My wife and our 16 yr old boy both hear much better than me, but they dont have the "bug" for HiFi like I do. For example, she can hear things in one of my favorite recordings that are long gone for me - and it doesnt do anything for her - she's perfectly happy listening to her laptop speakers while watching a movie. The 16 year old, who I'd think would be at the top of his game hearing wise, is similarly unaffected.

I dont know how I got this way.
 
#8
No, although my cat once thoroughly inspected my valve DAC.
 

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#9
My late wife loved music, had excellent hearing and appreciated good audio. The amount of money I spent on all this, was another matter. Often hit the ceiling at the prices. When I carried in stacked Quads (57s) her reponse was "They stay, I go". Then she heard her favourite aria from Carmen. She paid my friend the $420. Best lady ever. My daughter enjoys music and good quality sound, but is a gaming geek. My son, who is a Down Syndrome chap, loves his music and appreciates good sound. Always hounds me to play my music on the system, though when working not always practical. My brother (electronics engineer and radio-ham) and sister were never interested, nor my folks. And I should not sing - sounds quite horrible and very flat.

Though as per Marcel's cat, one of my cats liked sleeping on the turntable cover. Cats banished from the lounge.
 
#10
My son was interested in the kit I had and used to join me for music sessions when he was at home. He is now married with a child and like our old home with attached garage I converted to a hifi den, he too converted his attached garage into a cinema room. Doesn't do a lot for me but when setting it up he was happy to "relieve" me of a couple of subwoofers and lots of rca and speaker leads!
 
#13
My wife prefers classical music and I prefer classic rock. The other day I was playing some music and she said the JBL speakers sounded really good.

Our son is a musician and prefers the tube amp to the solid state amps I've got. Nothing beats good live music.
 
#16
My wife now and then comes with the idea that I should get rid of my big planar speakers, they don't fit in an ordinary living room after all. When I tell her they are worth a good amount, this is one more reason to sell them and spend the money for something "that is good for other normal people".
But: when I replaced the PSU diodes to Shottky in my CD player, entering the room she immediately realized that something has changed for better.
 
#19
Wife loves me and tolerates my "hobby" - she also has been a big facilitator, giving me the man cave as an engagement present decades ago. She can hear the difference, but really isn't very interested. My wide range in musical taste means there is some overlap but she is really more a background music listener. Some of the power amplifiers run at 1kV and there have been a few rare and rather loud component failures over the past decade which she finds unsettling. (As do I..) No other family or inlaws have any interest whatsoever, however in normal times I have plenty of friends who are in the hobby and visit frequently.
 
#20
My 20 year old son is a music head and loves the sound of my systems. We're quite different in our low end tastes though. He thinks if the subs aren't shaking drywall that they aren't dialed up enough. My girlfriend is a songwriter/singer, and she can be happy listening to music on her iPhone, but she specifically asks to listen to certain things on my JBL horns and sub room setup, since she doesn't want to learn the turn on procedures. She loves the sound and imaging of that system, but she can't always take the spl levels that I sometimes run. She likes the vintage room setup a lot for background music when she's in the kitchen , but she thinks that I'm obsessive and hear things that most people wouldn't even consider to listen for. She has asked me to please not use oil stains in the house. She's loves my audio and motorcycle addictions and is 100 percent supportive. If she weren't, I highly doubt that I would have chosen her to be the one and only. I was married to my ex wife for over 17 years, and she helped show me where I draw my lines of acceptance and tolerance. I would never live with another foot stomping, tantrum throwing, spoiled brat again. We either support each others pursuits, or move on. Life's far too short to let anyone else make you miserable. Philosophically speaking, it's about much more than the things that fill a room. Glenn.
 
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