The word “audiophile” is very commonly used in reference to headphones, where many companies will brag about their product being “designed for audiophiles”, which gives them an added appeal. But in reality, an audiophile is a person who absolutely loves the idea of sound reproduction. They are overly enthusiastic about almost everything related to audio and will not back down from an opportunity to experience sound in a detailed manner. But have you ever wondered what exactly are the characteristics of an audiophile, and do you fall under the category? So in this article, we’ll talk about the signs of an audiophile and help you identify if you’re one of them.
Signs of an Audiophile
An audiophile is often confused with someone who in general likes music. Well, we understand how that could be very confusing, but in practical terms, an audiophile is a person who is incredibly enthusiastic about the concept of sound in itself and seeks to reproduce live music inside a room with good acoustics. That being said, let’s find out if you’re one of these rare individuals by describing the most common audiophile characteristics, and let’s get started!
1. Continuous Engagement With Music
If you’re one of those people who is often, if not always, seen with a pair of headphones on, you might actually be an audiophile. Again, only liking music does not label you as an audiophile, but when you realize you’re unintentionally rating your audio equipment like headphones and speakers, you might actually be one of these rare individuals.
Not only the equipment, an audiophile constantly keeps judging the quality of sound, rather than focusing only on the composition and notes of the music. When you start to notice the quality of the audio instead of focusing on the instrument and the vocals and are constantly talking to yourself regarding how better the quality could be, you might actually be an audiophile without even knowing it!
2. Having the Latest Audio Gears
Imagine it’s Christmas, and you’re expecting a gift. Where most people would want something like new oven mitts, a new pair of socks, or something a bit more tech-heavy like a new phone or a console, you wait for something a bit more practical, which could be that new high-performance headphone you read an article about last night. It could be a pair of new bookshelf speakers you watched a review on for two days straight. It might be that awe-inspiring microphone that you think will take your voice to another level. If even a fraction of this imaginary scenario strikes a nerve, as in you can relate spiritually, you are most probably, an audiophile.
Being on the lookout for the latest audio gear also means you have extended knowledge of said audio equipment, which is a direct indication of how in-tune you are with the equipment, another sign of being an audiophile.
3. Being Familiar With the Jargon
Most of the time, you feel a distance from people because most people around you aren’t familiar with the words like distortion, reverb, acoustics, or compression. If those words brought an involuntary smile on your face and if that sounds like something you’ve dealt with before, you’re an audiophile.
Being an audiophile, these phrases are pretty common to you, no matter how hard it is for other people to process and understand what it means. Not only that, you feel a sense of relief and an overall warm fuzzy feeling when you meet someone who actually knows the jargon because that’s one of the only times when you can actually communicate properly, with no holds barred. If you prefer to say “This pair of TWS earbuds which has custom high excursion and dynamic range amplifiers with adaptive EQ, Head Tracking, and transparency mode is pretty good for the money” instead of simply saying “This is a good pair of earbuds”…you’re an audiophile.
4. Audio Engineer, a Dream
You’re surrounded by people whose dream is to explore space as an astronaut, or get their head on the ground and work the fields as a farmer, maybe a painter to paint out their emotions, or perhaps a simple accountant. But being incredibly obsessed with the concept of audio, you dream of tinkering with audio for a living, and having the profession of an Audio Engineer sounds like a dream job. Maybe a sound designer, or a sound editor, or maybe a production assistant, perhaps a sound-supervisor, the possibilities and opportunities are vast, and that vast area falls right under your radar as a field of work. Sound familiar? Bingo. You’re a straight-up audiophile.
5. Having the Best Equipment
Hypothetically, if there was a contest where the winner would be determined by the type and variations of audio equipment they have, you’d go and bring home nothing but the gold medal. Not only superior in numbers, but you’re the kind of person who has five pairs of TWS earbuds and still has a hunger for more. You might have 10 different kinds of microphones lying around where people complain you have too much, but you cannot make them understand that all 10 of them serve 10 different purposes.
This feeling of possessing the very best equipment, no matter the cost and rarity, is one of the key signs that you’re actually an audiophile. And having a sixth sense of being able to intricately differentiate the quality of audio only confirms it. If even one of the things said above has made you feel like “Hey…that sounds something like me…”, you fall under the category of an audiophile, and are one of those rare people you always hear about.
