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I only get nervous when the beautiful Michelle is house-sitting our dogs while we're out of town. Hard to say what goes on when we're away.

Uh, of course? I can't imagine having a cool toy (whether it's the telescope, the Subaru SVX, the stereo, whatever) without dragging people over to it and encouraging them to try it out and let me know what they think. Non-audiophile friends sometimes have to be pushed a bit to experiment with volume levels and such, but usually once people get other the nervousness about "doing something wrong" they wind up having a blast playing stuff. I seriously cannot imagine someone having a neat system and not wanting everyone else to try it out.

I once had a chick look at my 'table and ask, "What is that wierd thing?" She was completly serious. Another time I had a DJ test the scratch performance of my table (very briefly) just after he tried it on my Rega CD player. Probably a good thing that I didn't own any guns at the time and my sword was in the other room— but not for long.

My two-year-old son lets me use "his" system. I point out which buttons need to be pressed, and he lets me help him select the CDs that he loads into the CD player. Again, I point out the buttons that need to be pressed, and then there is music. We usually have a discussion that goes something like this:
"What this song, dad?"
"This is John Coltrane's 'My Favorite Things.'"
"No like, dad."Go figure.

alternative available all over our home but the "main" system is exclusive !

Yes, there's a couple of people who I trust not to bust anything. Also, they let me fiddle with theirs

Others may use the remote. :)

My wife and Son are allowed to use my HI FI anytime they want, but they never bother! Any visitors who dare to touch I watch with an Eagle eye to make sure that they know what they are doing.

Whenever I am away my wife fiddles with my system, so what the hell, volens nolens. I pretend to let her. Usually I don't show how upset I am about it.

They can listen and look but absolutely no touching :-)

Nobody in my family has any interest in Hifi other than myself. They would rather listen to their boomboxes.

No,No,No, But I did tell my dog and cat they can use my system, but they can't read well and I did not show them where the power switch is.

Rather than scream at the kids to stay away from the stereo—and the turntable in particular—I taught them how to use it properly. It worked great, they have never caused any trouble with it and, best of all, they can flip the record for daddy when he doesn't want to get off the couch. Better than a remote! Seriously, if you teach them to be careful, they can be trusted. And what better way to get kids interested in hi-fi than to let them use the damn thing and find out what good sound means.

No!!!!!!! ABSOLUTELY not!!!

Only of couple of bonafide audiophiles who know what they are doing.

I share an apartment with my brother, and he listens to his music all the time on my stereo, even if I don't like the music. I let my fiancee play what she wants too.

I am not as anal about it as I once was.

My 13 year old son and my 11 year old daughter often listen with their friends to my system in the rec. room. Even though it is of modest price ($12,000 U.S.)it means alot to me. That having been said, can anyone think of a better way to engender a love of music as well as a love for the high-end than a hands-on approach? so my 2 oldest children play the tunes, while the two little ones (5 and 3)shake their naked little butts. If they damage it, hey we'll just get it fixed.

Yes- get a life.

I live alone. If I ever get married, I'll train my SO on the system, and if kids follow, they'll train too once their old enough to understand.. My father trained my brother and I on the mysteries of the manual parastat and the AR turntable. Today it's even simpler. What better way to pass along the love of music.

My wife uses it. She has learned the fine art of vinyl handling/cleaning. The only caveat is I ask her not to clean the stylus.

HELL NO! not until my wife learns how to cook and listen to music and not leave chicken grease and flour on MY system like she did the other three systems I've had.

Rarely only because I am currently single and when I have visitors they tend to let me play DJ. But when I last had a "significant other" I encouraged her to use the system. She was afraid of "breaking it" but I told her it was pretty bombproof and she eventually got comfortable using it. Took her awhile to get comfortable with vinyl but that came, too.

What do you mean MY audo system? I get to use the least!

i have a system in my own room that kept closed most of the day, no one cleans in my room except for me, and i think most people are just to afraid to touch my system and that is why most people dont use my system

On those rare occasions when I'm out of town without my wife, AND she's entertaining in my absense, I have to leave everything in a condition where open/close and play are the only efforts required to make music. If she also wants to play a movie, it's torture!

Hell no!

Sharing music with each other is a wonderful way to spend a Saturday night. Me, my wife and my stepsons take turns selecting single cuts to play for each other. It allows us to hear what music is moving the people in our house. The benefits are many and the risk is minor. I'd gladly replace a cooked transistor or two or tolerate a new 'pop' on an LP for the time well spent.

Wow, you've gotta' be kidding! Let someone mess with my system—unthinkable! On a somewhat more realistic note I used to be continually amused, well maybe horrified is a better descriptor, at how my daughter was able to blow my power amp's speaker fuses without ever driving the amp very hard, "Gee Dad, I was listening to my music and it really wasn't very loud when..." As for friends they get to listen but not touch. And when it comes to my prized vinyl collection, family members aren't allowed to even wash the platters never mind cue them up. We got strict rules here!

Nobody touches my system. This is not due to any limitations or rules that I place on friends or loved ones. It's that they are too darned scared to touch it. I purchased a Rega P25 turntable recently, and my family gets nervous when I go through the ritual of carefully removing the record, give it a vacuum cleaning, and one sweep of the brush, and after cleaning the stylus, commence with placing needle to groove. You can see the blood drain from their face when I tell them to put a CD in the player! Most likely the system will outlive me, but I have no idea who I can trust to care for it after I leave this world.