Stephen Mejias

Chatting with Wojciech Pacula

Stephen Mejias  |  Jul 12, 2012

The Audiophile Tree of Life—a present from AudioStream's Michael Lavorgna. This guy watches over me while I listen to music.

In May, I exchanged a few e-mails with Wojciech Pacula, editor of the Polish online magazine, High Fidelity.

We discussed publishing, music, hi-fi, and life. (I can’t believe I didn’t mention Natalie, Nicole, the Mets, or beer.) You can read the interview here. There are also lots of pictures of my listening room and gear, which you might find interesting.

Pacula did a great job with the images and the translation. I don’t look or sound too painfully ridiculous. Whew!

COMMENTS
latinaudio's picture
Submitted by latinaudio on July 12, 2012 - 10:34am

Hi, Stephen.

Looking at your listening room in the interview, I saw you sitting on a couch just in front of your rear wall.

The reflections from the rear wall would be masking the sound you perceive.

Are you considering this when hearing / evaluating?

Stephen Mejias's picture
Submitted by Stephen Mejias on July 17, 2012 - 8:46am

Thanks for reading the interview.

Yes, I consider the placement of my couch, as well as every other aspect of my room's sonic character.  I've had the couch moved away from the back wall and the speakers moved closer to the front wall, but the sound is actually better as it is now, with the speakers moved further into the room and the couch up against the back wall.  There's also an old, thick-canvassed painting hanging on the wall behind the couch, which I think helps the sound (and the look and the feel and the spirit) of the room.  While evaluating speakers, I move forward and back, side to side, up and down, and all over the room.  

Ultimately, though, my room is set up for living first and listening second.  That said, it's a photo-finish sort of thing.  Living and listening are very closely tied in my life.

   

Glotz's picture
Submitted by Glotz on July 16, 2012 - 4:39pm

The Tree is pretty astonishing.  And so right.  This month's issue talks a bit about our selfish love of gear for the sake of it.  This shows that audiophiles aren't in audio just to wack off to gear.  (Okay, sometimes I do press my crotch against my Maggies.. but that's not the point.)  No audiophile that respects his purchase thinks that listening to, looking at, or touching gear is un-enjoyable. Balance within a system (cables to components) to the activities we enjoy, it is truly an intellectual endeavor. 

It also is an alignment of all the musical 'chakras'... (I also find it interesting that The Black Crowes also exist right at the midline between love and lust.) I want a print of that!

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