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The rise of Britain’s listening bars…

I hope they're using some nice British loudspeakers! Tannoy and/or Goodmans coaxes, Quad "ESL-57", heck, even Lowthers!
:cool:
 
Having been to some really cool listening bars in Japan, I am glad to see the concept getting a little traction in the west. There's one on Oakland (Bar Shiru) but it's way bigger and noisier than most of the Japanese ones. I think running a bar like this would be a fun lifestyle business, (big excuse to mess around with audio gear and make/drink cocktails...) if only it weren't so hard to keep a restaurant / bar running these days...
 
I started reading this article earlier, but stopped when I got to...

You don’t need to be a hi-fi obsessive to recognise that listening to a compressed digital file through earbuds is not the best way to appreciate great music, Tran says.
 
Here I'm hoping Lucas is not involved :cool: :facepalm:
 
They're right though, technically earbuds are not IEMs and as far as I know, they all suck. How good can they be with no seal?
""The main focus that we put towards the public are our speakers, because the speakers are the crown jewels, the showpiece.” In Ōdiobā’s case, that means vintage 1970s Tannoys"

So 50 year old speaker technology is what there using?
 
So 50 year old speaker technology is what there using?
In Japan you do see all sorts of "characterful" vintage stuff. Vinyl pretty much everywhere. (same in the west I guess).

Let's say there is a sense of "vibes" over "modern objectivist high fidelity". But I still think these spaces are great for 1) prioritizing sound quality even if it's outside the orthodoxy of ASR and 2) getting people to slow down and focus on the music / sound.


If I opened one of these bars, I'd probably do something soffit-mounted with a double bass array, lots of DSP, and quadratic diffusers all over the place to make the space seem interesting, but also aim for a very high standard of sound quality.

Purifi 10"s all around with plenty of power on tap... hmm...

Now I'm realizing the appeal of opening these places is just having a bigger budget and space for a stereo system.
 
""The main focus that we put towards the public are our speakers, because the speakers are the crown jewels, the showpiece.” In Ōdiobā’s case, that means vintage 1970s Tannoys"

So 50 year old speaker technology is what there using?

I’m a big fan of Brilliant Corners, that’s 4 x Vintage Klipschorns, Mcintosh amps, and Technics decks.

They’re all definitely going for that Japanese jazz kissa vibe
 
""The main focus that we put towards the public are our speakers, because the speakers are the crown jewels, the showpiece.” In Ōdiobā’s case, that means vintage 1970s Tannoys"

So 50 year old speaker technology is what there using?
Suspect since most customers will be civilians they want a feature they will notice and will attract them. Most modern speakers will just be 'a speaker' to them.

Most will never have seen let alone heard a big Tannoy DC so the size and appearance is something for them to marvel at and a feature for the bar.
 
So more about fashion than hifi. Figures.
Don't let perfect be the enemy of 'better' here. If people are getting interested in larger speakers, I think it's OK if the entry point is more show than go. A lot of people have never even sat down and heard a proper stereo image. Anything remotely proper is better than the typical bar's sound system or the bluetooth thing they've got at home.
 
They're right though, technically earbuds are not IEMs and as far as I know, they all suck. How good can they be with no seal?
I know what you mean, but I don't believe that there is any commonly accepted definition of what an earbud or IEM is and how they differ. For example, would you say my Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro are earbuds or an IEM? - they have 'Buds' in their name but fit in my ear and seal like an IEM? They are also generally accepted to sound pretty good and not 'suck', but I think most of the general public would call them earbuds.
 
So more about fashion than hifi. Figures.
Bit harsh to suggest a 1970s Tannoy is not a hi-fi speaker. Off the pace for accuracy nowadays but some UK studios were still deploying them into the 1980s. The larger ones have scale and ease that make a lot of speakers seem like toys in comparison.

Its a business. They need something that's both sonically and visually impressive. A couple of little active monitors and some subs doesn't tick the second box.
 
I know what you mean, but I don't believe that there is any commonly accepted definition of what an earbud or IEM is and how they differ. For example, would you say my Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro are earbuds or an IEM? - they have 'Buds' in their name but fit in my ear and seal like an IEM? They are also generally accepted to sound pretty good and not 'suck', but I think most of the general public would call them earbuds.
You are correct, but if you go with formal definitions, if you can even find one, "buds" are usually the ones that sit right outside the ear canal. But yeah, the formal definitions barely exist and aren't universal at all. I had to spend some time looking into this when we were getting ready to sell IEMs at my last job. To avoid confusion with mainstream consumers I went with "earphones".
 
Don't let perfect be the enemy of 'better' here.

Exactly!

Plenty of non-audiophiles (as well as audiophiles) have had eye-opening, compelling listening experiences to systems that were not ASR-approved neutral.

Think of how many people even hear worked their way towards a more neutral ASR-approved system by first having been impressed by less perfect “high end” gear as a start.

And it’s not like we have to look at these listening bars as proselytizing for audio equipment anyway. They can just provide a cool vibe and entertaining, listening experience that focusses people more on the music closer to foreground rather than background.
 
And it’s not like we have to look at these listening bars as proselytizing for audio equipment anyway.
True! But for better or worse, I think they may be the best hope for converting certain urban people in their 20s and 30s to being more interested in "real" hi-fi. So it's unavoidable for us to have opinions on how they go about it. ASR has strong opinions on much less consequential stuff, like when to use the word "timbre"... ;)
 
Bit harsh to suggest a 1970s Tannoy is not a hi-fi speaker. Off the pace for accuracy nowadays but some UK studios were still deploying them into the 1980s.
And, if the studios were using them and you aren't, then you aren't hearing the recording the way it was intended.... :p
 
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