Are you one of those audio guru?

[chrisb]

So, about 1/2 of “the Queen’s English”, then.

 

[wintermute]

Which definition of 'Guru' are we working with here?

I'm thinking the "General Understanding, Relatively Useless" one 😀

Tony.

 

[KaffiMann]

Wait, what - there are words in the modern English lexicon that can have more than one interpretation?

Esp the ones we mugged other languages for 🙂

And what kind of English are we talking about?

Comparison of American and British English - Wikipedia
Quote:

Words such as bill and biscuit are used regularly in both AmE and BrE but can mean different things in each form. The word "bill" has several meanings, most of which are shared between AmE and BrE. However, in AmE "bill" often refers to a piece of paper money (as in a "dollar bill") which in BrE is more commonly referred to as a note. In AmE it can also refer to the visor of a cap,[9] though this is by no means common. In AmE a biscuit (from the French "twice baked" as in biscotto) is a soft bready product that is known in BrE as a scone or a specifically hard, sweet biscuit. Meanwhile, a BrE biscuit incorporates both dessert biscuits and AmE cookies (from the Dutch 'little cake').

As chronicled by Winston Churchill, the opposite meanings of the verb to table created a misunderstanding during a meeting of the Allied forces;[10] in BrE to table an item on an agenda means to open it up for discussion whereas in AmE, it means to remove it from discussion, or at times, to suspend or delay discussion; e.g. Let's table that topic for later.

The word "football" in BrE refers to association football, also known as soccer. In AmE, "football" means American football. The standard AmE term "soccer", a contraction of "association (football)", is actually of British origin, derived from the formalisation of different codes of football in the 19th century, and was a fairly unremarkable usage (possibly marked for class) in BrE until relatively recently; it has lately become perceived as an Americanism.[citation needed] In international (i.e. non-American) context, particularly in sports news outside English-speaking North America, American (or US branches of foreign) news agencies also use "football" to mean "soccer", especially in direct quotes.

Similarly, the word "hockey" in BrE refers to field hockey and in AmE, "hockey" means ice hockey.

Words with completely different meanings are relatively few; most of the time there are either (1) words with one or more shared meanings and one or more meanings unique to one variety (for example, bathroom and toilet) or (2) words the meanings of which are actually common to both BrE and AmE but that show differences in frequency, connotation or denotation (for example, smart, clever, mad).

Some differences in usage and meaning can cause confusion or embarrassment. For example, the word fanny is a slang word for vulva in BrE but means buttocks in AmE—the AmE phrase fanny pack is bum bag in BrE. In AmE the word pissed means being annoyed whereas in BrE it is a coarse word for being drunk (in both varieties, pissed off means irritated).

Similarly, in AmE the word pants is the common word for the BrE trousers and knickers refers to a variety of half-length trousers (though most AmE users would use the term "shorts" rather than knickers), while the majority of BrE speakers would understand pants to mean underpants and knickers to mean female underpants.

Sometimes the confusion is more subtle. In AmE the word quite used as a qualifier is generally a reinforcement, though it is somewhat uncommon in actual colloquial American use today and carries an air of formality: for example, "I'm quite hungry" is a very polite way to say "I'm very hungry". In BrE quite (which is much more common in conversation) may have this meaning, as in "quite right" or "quite mad", but it more commonly means "somewhat", so that in BrE "I'm quite hungry" can mean "I'm somewhat hungry". This divergence of use can lead to misunderstanding.

Looking at the most likely origin we can see that:

In Sanskrit, guru means the one who dispels the darkness and takes towards light

Darkness and light
गुशब्दस्त्वन्धकारः स्यात्* रुशब्दस्तन्निरोधकः।
अन्धकारनिरोधित्वात्* गुरुरित्यभिधीयते॥ १६॥

The syllable gu means darkness, the syllable ru, he who dispels them,
Because of the power to dispel darkness, the guru is thus named.

— Advayataraka Upanishad, Verse 16

Guru - Wikipedia

Not sure if any of us fall into that description. ... unless we add disco lights?

 

[billshurv]

So, about 1/2 of “the Queen’s English”, then.

Probably more that that! Hindi was a particularly rich source of words to steal then destroy the original meaning.

 

[edbarx]

Claiming oneself as guru is useless. Guru recognition has to come from third parties or better highly esteemed institutions.

Speaking for myself, I am NOT a guru, far from it, but only a third-class enthusiast, who is not satisfied with modern day audio equipment designed for home use.

This forum was my refuge. Many thanks to whoever created it.

I am still very naive in certain audio areas like say, speaker design, room acoustics, valve amplifiers, DACs, precise modelling for electronic components, ....

 

[scott wurcer]

To be an Audio Guru you must first be *A* Guru.
Such as:

Sarlo was the first and still going:

Guru Ratings Main Page

 

[lcsaszar]

Guru in broad sense is an authentic source of knowledge. Has it happened to you that people keep turning to you asking for advice in audio? It could be from "what loudspeaker under 100$ should I buy?" to "how could I make my high-end CD player sound better?" If the answer is yes then you are an audio guru (in their eyes).

 

[Galu]

Who'd want to be an Audio Guru when they could be a...

 

[limono]

It's way too easy to be an Audio Guru. The acknowledgement that there are other sources of audio equipment than Best Buy type of retailer automatically makes one a Guru in the eyes of 99% of population . There is no need to mention directionality of cables or other esoteric concepts or involve bats. Your shopping habits make you a guru in any given field .

 

[dreamth]

Guru in broad sense is an authentic source of knowledge. Has it happened to you that people keep turning to you asking for advice in audio? It could be from "what loudspeaker under 100$ should I buy?" to "how could I make my high-end CD player sound better?" If the answer is yes then you are an audio guru (in their eyes).

I honestly hate when somebody asks me what speaker he should buy...I'd send the person to an audiologist right away, but then he might feel offended by that ...the hearing health care professional might tell him more on this subject 🙂

As a musician once told me:

"When you're young you can't afford audiophile equipment.When you finally have the money you're deaf..."