"Audiophile Grade...." - WTF?

[Mr_Sukebe]

I've heard the term audiophile since I've known about better quality kit (quite a while).
Always hated the term and avoided using it as it screamed "pretentious" to me.

My personal preference always falling under the "music lover" as something more meaningful.

Back to the title of this thread. I've started seeing the term "audiophile grade" being used more recently. Once I'd stopped vomiting at just how crass it was, I started thinking about it in more detail.
Surely a grade is something that is measurable? How can that be applied to audio kit to say that it's audiophile.

I did see one simplistic attempted definition suggesting that audiophile grade kit produced no distortion.
To quote a phrase "desu-ka", or translated into English, "is that so".

Is it just me turning into a miserable old git, or does anyone else share my distaste at what feels like another abuse of the English language?

 

[Del monaco]

It’s a macho term like ‘weapons grade’ employed to attract the blokes. Just a marketing tool really.

 

[canonman]

'reference' blah blah blah too.

 

[a.palfreyman]

Coz we are CONSIDERABLY richer than you.
(Price-wise, and in an audio sense)

 

[Ianp]

Years ago men in suits started trying to sell us stuff. The only thing that's changed is that it's no longer only men and the dress code has likely changed.
Actually, it started in victorian times when middle classes with disposable income were encouraged to present their homes in a certain way that reflected status.

 

[gints]

audio is not unique there,
military grade...
industrial grade..
consumer..

 

[ryder]

What about Studio Grade, Ultra Pure?

 

[gints]

Studio grade cable? Everyone knows studios use usually use cheap cables

 

[Salamander]

@Mr_Sukebe Well of course you're becoming a miserable old git, the same as me. I hate all these new fangled titles and words, bring back the days when a 'logistics' company was a plain old haulage contractor.

 

[canonman]

@Mr_Sukebe Well of course you're becoming a miserable old git, the same as me. I hate all these new fangled titles and words, bring back the days when a 'logistics' company was a plain old haulage contractor.

When bog cleaner became 'toilet solutions'

 

[Salamander]

@canonman I would have thought cleaner to sanitary technician would have been nearer the mark.

 

[Paul Hindle]

No one’s mentioned “Marine grade”!

“Audiophile grade” means absolutely nothing. It relates only to sound whereas I listen to music.

I totally get where you are coming from though. I guess like me you are over 50

 

[calorgas]

No one’s mentioned “Marine grade”!

And what about "Michael grade", whatever the hell that standard is.

Oops, that's a rather big picture lol

 

[stevec67]

No one’s mentioned “Marine grade”!

“Audiophile grade” means absolutely nothing. It relates only to sound whereas I listen to music.

I totally get where you are coming from though. I guess like me you are over 50

At least "marine grade" actually means something ! In stainless steel it means a particular type of alloy, iirc 316L as a minimum, and electrical fittings that are marine grade have to meet a particular level of water resistance.
Audiophile grade is meaningless and as others have said "studio grade" just means " cut as much as you need off that big reel that came from the electrical wholesaler at £1 a metre ".

 

[paulbysea]

An audiophile is much easier to part from their money on kit than a music lover.

I classify myself as a fortunate music lover who can afford a very good system that some might think is obscenely expensive but would likely not be considered audiophile-grade by people who use the term.

 

[Allan Probin]

“Machined from aircraft-grade aluminium”, in case you want to fly your DAC.

 

[Alex S]

I use some "conservation grade" materials in my work, ie ten times more expensive than any other grade.

 

[paulfromcamden]

"studio grade" just means " cut as much as you need off that big reel that came from the electrical wholesaler at £1 a metre ".

Whereas 'tour grade' means 'will survive the attentions of your average roadie and won't break when you roll a flight case over it'.

 

[nobeone]

audio is not unique there,
military grade...
industrial grade..
consumer..

Those generally mean something measureable in industry.

Military grade can be expected to meet e.g. US MIL specs that cover e.g. temperature ranges for storage and operation, reliability etc.
Industrial grade is not specified to MIL specifications, but will typically come with a wider temperature range for storage and operation than consumer grade etc.
Consumer grade will typically have narrower temperature range for storage and operation etc.
Other commonly used and meaningful grades are automotive and aerospace where, again, you can expect a component to meet the relevant specifications of that industry sector.
Here are some industrial takes on it from u-blox, and TI, there will be many others, but they do mean something ...

... unlike audiophile grade which typically has no measurable aspect other than perhaps how much people who like spending money on kit drool over it?

 

[chiily]

Let's build a spaceship, call it the B Ark, and fill it with all the audiphile grade stuff and all that foo....

Late edit...

And tell them that we are right behind them...