What’s all this Nonsense?

This blog is a reflection of my journey through sound, music, and audio reproduction, inspired by the wide range of music I like; metal, electronica/experimental, ambient, world music and anything else that sounds good to me. For me, reproducing music through a good hi-fi system is like audio archaeology: uncovering layers of detail and emotion that often get lost in less careful listening. It’s a way of digging into the past and rediscovering the true essence of a recording. I don’t chase pristine recordings though, that’s way too boring. There’s too much good music out there to worry about bitrates and remasters and blah blah blah. None of it really matters at the end of the day. If the music is cool, then it’s cool, regardless of how well it is recorded. Don’t take it too seriously, it’s supposed to be fun after all, I think.

Beyond music, I’m inspired by Japanese and Scandinavian craftsmanship and aesthetic, how the balance of precision, beauty, and function can elevate everyday objects into something more meaningful. I’m also somewhat of a retrofuturist, fascinated by how the past’s vision of the future intersects with modern technology. I love tubes and efficient speakers and vinyl playback, as well as streaming, cds and cassettes.
I am no talented writer, and don’t really try to put into words what I hear, I leave that for far more eloquent scribes, but I will give overviews and vague impressions and whatnot.
I realise all this gear is beyond what most people would ever think of investing in, even if it is a lot more modest than some high end stuff out there.  I always enjoyed reading about other people’s systems, and hope people find my stuff interesting as well.
I’ll try and share what I’ve learned along the way, the gear I use, and the interesting stuff I find. It’s really just a personal exploration, and if anyone happens to read it, that’s a nice bonus. There might even be the odd tongue in cheek rant here and there for some fun.
I used to be pretty active on a few forums here and there, but over time they all seemed to drift the same way, more sniping, more arguments, more ego, less actual conversation. They stopped being places to share ideas or enjoy the hobby and started feeling like wading into a daily fight for no good reason. That just isn’t my idea of a good time, so I stepped away and put my energy into better spaces. I do occasionally lurk in places though.
I work professionally in the audio industry, but I’ve always made a conscious effort to keep a clear line between work and my personal audio hobby. Mixing the two tends to take the joy out of it for me, what I do for passion, I like to keep free from deadlines, expectations, or commercial considerations. With very few exceptions I own everything I write about, I spend my own money. If I have the chance to borrow something to listen to I might write about it, but I’ll make that clear. Also, I am not paid to write anything, by anyone. This is purely for my own entertainment and isn’t a revenue stream for me. Some of the things I might write about will out of necessity be things we have in the shop, others, just curiosities I find. Most of the random rants will be prompted by a discussion or experience that happens during my work life. Some of the things I find aren’t written about much, especially not in my corner of the world, so it’s good to be able to expose people to them.

If you feel like you’ve gained any benefit from what I’ve written, and want to help support my endeavours, you can donate here, this would just help cover the cost of hosting, anything would be appreciated!