March 13, 2011

The Amish Amongst Us?

A little bit of Amish humour perhaps?

Soon after I adopted CAS(Computer Audio System) for my music enjoyment via the Bryston BDP-1/BDA-1, I started receiving cryptic messages that looked like this:

The audio gods are not pleased at all, for you are championing the devil's work, in something as sacred as music, the most beautiful gift of all.

Should you continue to pursue in to the un holiest of ways, ye shall be cursed, never to discover the joys of music and audio dom again. May your ears turn to tin, and never midas again.

Remember, ye have been warned!

I had later discovered that more than a few senior people in the circle are not pleased at all that I've discovered the future of music(just my opinion only), and CAS is set to invade hi-end audio now. Like many of these people, I was once upon a time, not convinced that the work horse called computer, can be just as effective as an hifi equipment. However, with an open mind, and heart, I've come to accept it as a progress in audio technology, with the adoption of hi-rez music materials.

Most of the folks in question are vinyl and CD based music lovers who do not see a place for computers in their musical path to audio nirvana. They remind me of a group of people called the Amish, whom are adamant in their belief that technology is the root to all evils, in modern society. They chose to live the 18/19 century life style, as a means to stay pure, and away from technology(the devil himself). They travel in horse carriages rather than automobiles. They have no radio, telephone, nor television sets in their homes. The most extreme examples of Mormons go as far as not even using electricity in their homes. The arrival of computers(666) signalled that the devil himself(Bill Gates incarnate) will start to rule the world, as we know it.

I actually know a guy whose family lived the Amish life style. They had no radio, nor TV set in the house(believe me they can very much afford it, because they reside in a trully high income, people first, performance now, advanced first world country!), and he's a big, big, soccer fan. So what does this dude do when his favorite soccer team plays? He goes to the sports bar, one that's equipped with the biggest projection screen, if he can help it! Have a few hearty malt brews too, when he's thirsty! Ha!Ha!

I am sorry I digressed, back to the topic of hifi. I am not saying that any of you should give up your chosen path to music, even if it should NOT be the same as mine. All I am asking is that I should be allowed to choose my own route, even if it means a path of uncertainty(Do any of you remember the best seller Dare To Fail book and university?). And if it's any consolation, I still have part of my 19th century vinyl set up(in the form of a Linn Sondek LP12), which I still enjoy enormously. All I am asking is for us audiophiles to give technology, and me, a chance to do my thang.

And just to prove that the dear devil is indeed alive and well, Odiosleuth is now putting the Naim Unity all in one music streamer thru it's paces. Do stay tuned for that, if one is not living the life style of a hifi Amish.

Any more hifi Amish still lurking in here?

9 comments:

GCK said...

Big E, from yr description I think you are referring to Amish. Mormon is something else. Look at link below .

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish

unker vic said...

Big E, vinyl was from the 20th century not the 19th century lah!!! You are lost in time!!! Hah, ha, hah!!!Would like to come by to enjoy the fun from the 21st century!!!!

Shaharudin said...

errr, Big E, just as GCK said, I think you were referring to the Amish and not the Mormons.... The Osmonds are Mormons and I believe they are not at all against technology. An honest mistake which I hope no Mormons amongst us will take to heart. :)

Ken said...

FYI, they are adopters and they are luddites.

Again YMMV;-P

Ken said...

FYI, they are adopters and they are luddites in almost all categories in life.

tan said...

I would prefer to stay primitive lurking here and there.
The CAS is always evolving for the moment, like pc and handphone, easily get obsolete and depreciated once more advanced products appear.
I'm sure I will regret in the future by completely adopting CAS and abandoning cd based sys.
Moveover this primitive system sound is still competitive as long as one can get the system tunefully right.

The Wise One said...

Big E, how can you make such a sweeping statement - "Most of the folks in question are vinyl and CD based music lovers who do not see a place for computers in their musical path to audio nirvana"! You are accusing everybody and anybody who loves music with the exception of those that only listen music on the radio, tapes, minidiscs, MP3s, mobile phones and computers. I don't know what that person did to rile you up to such an extent, but surely as a blogger, you would expect rebuttals, hate mails and what nots, right?

Big E said...

GCK,

With such smart readers like you, I cannot afford to slip up, but thanks for pointing em' out. The article has been corrected.

unker vic,

Ya, with the Bryston combo, I can be totally lost in time and space too, if only for a few brief hours. You're more than welcome to drop by.

Shaharudin,

Yes, guilty as charged! No offence taken or meant in the article. Thanks again.

Ken,

It's been a while, but I do believe that I am not an early adopter at all, but then compared to others who have not, then maybe so?

BTW, nice of you to drop by every now and then.

Tan,

Agreed with you totally, get system to sound as best as one possibly can is priority. All else is nothing if a system doesn't sound right, regardless of cost.

The Wise One,

It's not a sweeping statement, just the few folks who sent me the messages. I just thought I'd like to share some of the things I've encountered on the hifi social scene.

Lastly, I am glad this article did elicit a few response from our readers. It shows that our readers are not zombie like and will voice their concern for the subject matter when it irks.

Thanks to all who took the trouble to respond.

Big E said...

Hi! All,

Just one more thing, I've been away for a few days. Sorry for the slow reply.