I did something similar with a good friend of mine. He’s a decade younger than me, and thought that Sony and The like were high-end audio.

I took him to The Inner Ear show in Toronto many years back, I told him to bring a CD of his fave band and pick one song to listen to. We went from room to room of the hotel that the show was held.

I had him get his song played, and at several, he was, ya, that’s nice sounding…, but not really there yet. So then I told him to listen really carefully at certain parts that seemed to me to be buried in lower end systems.

Sure enough, after one room, he said, “Hey, I never noticed that there was a little bell sound at xyz part.” Then, after going to a better system, he was bouncing. He said there were 2 bells, and I swear I’ve never heard before. And on his fave system, there were 3 bells… and the lightning went off over his head.

He asked me if there was stuff like this in all music, stuff that you just couldn’t hear on low quality speakers. I just laughed.

So unfortunately he ended up having 2 kids, and lost his high paying job, so he never bought the speakers he wanted, but at least he understood why I was wiling to spend so much money on audio stuff.

So what is your new system?

Which media format did you play for him? Sabbath isn’t the most dynamically recorded band, but I’ve heard a few options (like the 1986 Castle CDs) sound better than even the new reissues/Warner Bros.

Aside from the occasional buyer who has come to audition a piece of gear I’m selling, I have never had anyone to share the love of music with.

When family come, music is always on but for them I think it’s more background ambience as opposed to let’s just absorb the intricacies of the presentation.

Prior to their arrival I sometimes try to create the most compelling sonic playlist in hopes of at least one if them getting bit by the “oh shit” what is this but alas…

What a wonderful story. You changed someone’s life.