# Women into Home Theater, do you know any?



## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

I've had a segment idea for a while, and I want to do a call in, but I need your help...

I'm not a fan of terms like WAF, but they seem to exist for a reason. There seem to be very few women interested in Home Theater, and those that are interested aren't AS interested as your average guy. Is it genetic?

*Women*...please let me know who you are. I'd like to have you on the podcast in a future episode as part of a panel discussing this. At the very least, I'd like to be able to represent your views, so lay them out in this thread is podcasts aren't your thing.

*Guys*...if you know any women into HT, give them my email ([email protected]), or tell them to join the shack.

What does everyone think? Thanks in advance.


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## hyghwayman (Jan 15, 2008)

I know of only (1) one:scratchhead: and she is into gaming on XboxLive:T, I will forward your email to her today. I wish I could include my wife on the list but she could care less about HT:hissyfit:.

hyghwayman


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## Bent (May 24, 2006)

I helped a Swedish swimsuit model design and install her theater.

:rofl:

Kidding


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

hyghwayman said:


> I know of only (1) one:scratchhead: and she is into gaming on XboxLive
> 
> hyghwayman


Thank you much.


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## Bob_99 (May 8, 2006)

> I'm not a fan of terms like WAF,


For those of us who do not have dedicated HT rooms, we have to share common living space with a spouse/partner and perhaps there is a better term to reflect that the final results must be suitable to all who share the area.

In any case, the concept of women and HT is interesting and could probably be the topic of a long discussion.

Bob


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## Bent (May 24, 2006)

My wife is just the opposite of a HT fan, but I do include her in any topics w.r.t. decorating and furniture, she disliked my proposal to seperate our theater from the remainder of the room - but it was due to our computer being at the rear of the room. It would be sperated if we did this, and it would make it more difficult to see what our kids were doing on it when they are surfing. (a valid point).


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

Bob_99 said:


> For those of us who do not have dedicated HT rooms, we have to share common living space with a spouse/partner and perhaps there is a better term to reflect that the final results must be suitable to all who share the area.
> 
> In any case, the concept of women and HT is interesting and could probably be the topic of a long discussion.
> 
> Bob


I see SAF (spousal acceptance factor) used once in a while, but maybe SOAF (Significant Other Acceptance Factor) would be most appropriate. I wonder if the gender divide in HT is due to the pejorative nature of terms like "WAF".


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## DRB (Feb 18, 2008)

> I wonder if the gender divide in HT is due to the pejorative nature of terms like "WAF".


I don't think so, but feel free to use the more PC terms you've listed if you want. It is rare, in my experience, to find a woman who does her own oil changes and brake jobs, let alone one who talks endlessly about subwoofer design and placement. But guys do these things all of the time. I have only met ONE female member on any home theater forum I've ever been involved in. 

Sorry, but that's my experience.


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

I'd agree, but I wonder if the reason there aren't more women involved in Home Theater is that we make it less acceptable/comfortable for them to be involved. Which is less socially acceptable, a woman who changes her own oil, or a male ballerina?

How many of us would love to have our wives and significant others more involved in our hobby? If so, then why do we paint the "wife" as the enemy of big subwoofers, room treatments, and expensive purchases?

Or, is it true? Does it have nothing to do with the terms that we use, and that women, through choice or predisposition, really just do not care about Home Theater? I know women have been shown to have different hearing qualities than men (sorry, can't quote the study right now), maybe they really can't hear the difference?


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## justin.kerr (Jan 3, 2008)

My wife is very interested in Audio/Video. She is just getting into it, but she is having a blast!
The first time we auditioned some speakers together, KEF XQ five's, with matching center/rears, she asked me to turn off the center channel.... We were listening to them in 2 channel, and it was the first time she experienced imaging. lol. 

I think that females can hear just fine, but to know what to listen for, thats the issue.

She helped with my sub build, helped solder wires, etc.

When I come home, I can hear the house shaking, so I know she likes to listen at decent volumes, and has never asked to turn it down. :devil:

At her work she tries to explain 1080i vs 1080p to the guys at her work, stuff like that. 
:newspaper:


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

eugovector said:


> I know women have been shown to have different hearing qualities than men (sorry, can't quote the study right now), maybe they really can't hear the difference?


They may have different hearing qualities, but some can perceive the difference between two types of sound systems..
My sister (who is my greatest critic) commented that my new theatre sounded much better than my first and that it sounded cleaner and more powerful than before...even though it was the same gear in both theatres..

I think it comes down to whether they have any genuine interest in what their partner or otherwise is doing..
It's definitely more of a "Blokey" thing though in most cases, but there are some exceptions..

There is a women on AVS who is a grandmother!, and she is right into all this stuff and has setup her own Scope Theatre..Building it from scratch..and she constantly gives advice to guys on how to set up their theatres!!...One of the rare exceptions..


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## DRB (Feb 18, 2008)

> I know women have been shown to have different hearing qualities than men (sorry, can't quote the study right now), maybe they really can't hear the difference?


I don't think you can paint that broad a stroke. I'm certain that there are plenty of women that hear better than I do. But there are seemingly few who _care_ enough about that issue to pursue it with EQ, room treatments, feedback destroyers, and more. It is just not as big a priority (speaking generally). :blink:


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

The research I recall concluded that women actually have more sensitive hearing than men. If that's true, women should be more into HT (and would make excellent candidates for high-priced cable reviews).


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

My wife cares not a thing about our dedicated home theater. However, go from a 65" to a 61" big screen and she notices it and wants the larger size. She also noticed the speakers in the DLP were inferior to our former RPTV. She even asked for a speaker system for the great room. She likes surround sound, but she does not want the boom of the subwoofer... it makes her too nervous. She like respectable sound, but not loud. So I'd say she is into some form of home theater. I would have to tie her up and put a gun to her head to get her to do an interview though.


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## hyghwayman (Jan 15, 2008)

Sonnie said:


> My wife cares not a thing about our dedicated home theater.


My wife too:hissyfit:!



> I would have to tie her up and put a gun to her head to get her to do an interview though.


I felt that way when I asked her to go audition speakers with me:thud:.

hyghwayman


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## Bob_99 (May 8, 2006)

Can we infer from these comments that in general, good sound (at least in the home) means more to men than to women? If so, I think it would be a fascinating study to try to understand why this is the case (IMHO).

Bob

Let me correct this by saying the process involved in obtaining good sound since I'm sure everyone appreciates good sound.


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## southsound (Dec 7, 2007)

Reading this thread makes me feel truely blessed. About 18 years ago I bought a surround receiver at a Macy's clearance center for our bedroom. Within the week, my wife asked me why the bedroom sounded better than our living room. I explained what the extra speakers and channels did and she insisted that we upgrade the living room. It has been a joy to suggest new technology to her because as soon as she hears or sees the benefit, she insists I do the research and obtain the best value for us. 

Last summer we were considering adding a room to the house - kind of a bonus room for reading, listening to music, putting together folders for our jail ministry (we do Christian recovery programs in the county jail and work with the our state's receiving prison). I had just purchased a 15" powered sub for our great room and she insisted on a second for the new addition. When I suggested we might want to include use as a home theater, she wanted to see what the picture would be like. I borrowed an LCD we use at church and she was blown away. 

We are still doing trim out, but we started using the new theater just before Christmas. We watch an average of 3 or 4 movies a week on our 115" screen and joke about the way we used to watch TV. I'm not sure who enjoys the experience more - my bride of 25 years or me. I do know that I feel a smile coming on when she says, "Wow! Did you feel it when that door slammed open" or "when the explosion went off" or some other reference to the sub adding realism to a movie.:bigsmile:


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## drf (Oct 22, 2006)

eugovector said:


> I'd agree, but I wonder if the reason there aren't more women involved in Home Theater is that we make it less acceptable/comfortable for them to be involved. Which is less socially acceptable, a woman who changes her own oil, or a male ballerina?
> 
> How many of us would love to have our wives and significant others more involved in our hobby? If so, then why do we paint the "wife" as the enemy of big subwoofers, room treatments, and expensive purchases?
> 
> Or, is it true? Does it have nothing to do with the terms that we use, and that women, through choice or predisposition, really just do not care about Home Theater? I know women have been shown to have different hearing qualities than men (sorry, can't quote the study right now), maybe they really can't hear the difference?


Woman just aren't interesed in the technical side of things like HT, cars, music and industrial stuff. If you jump on a scapbooking forum you'll see that 99% of the members are sheila's. This is because blokes just aren't interested in that stuff, it has nothing to do with the tone of their abreviations or discussions.

Most woman will enjoy a good movie and most will enjoy it better on a decent system but in their disposition the value (either $'s or labour) of a decent system generally doesn't prioritise in comparisson to things like art/culture, food, babies and social stuff (entertaining without a HT).


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## Guest (Mar 2, 2008)

drf said:


> Woman just aren't interesed in the technical side of things like HT, cars, music and industrial stuff. If you jump on a scapbooking forum you'll see that 99% of the members are sheila's. This is because blokes just aren't interested in that stuff, it has nothing to do with the tone of their abreviations or discussions.


Has it occurred to you that some women may be interested in home theater but don't participate because of this kind of attitude? 

:boxer:


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

Firstly..Hi Theresa and welcome to The Shack...
It's great to have a women on board with us..A pity that more women don't join us..

From my experience of women on AV forums, they usually get treated like royalty!!...probably because they are few and far between..

If you are interested in Home Theatre, then I can assure you that you will get ALL the help you need..
Generally the hard nosed, done it all, Techno experts, fall over themselves when a lady asks for AV help..:bigsmile:

Have fun!!


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## drf (Oct 22, 2006)

capnsharpe said:


> Has it occurred to you that some women may be interested in home theater but don't participate because of this kind of attitude?
> 
> :boxer:


Yes, it just doesn't seem to be the underlying factor for why so many don't participate. I have yet to meet a woman who would let any mans remarks put her off what she really wants to do or say.


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## dieselpower1966 (Nov 26, 2007)

Hi Shackers,

Fortunately for me my wife is very much into hometheater. I always got her involved by asking her opinion on everything from room color to equipment. I gave her several choices on our last receiver purchase. She did all the discovery on the 3 receivers and decided upon our Onkyo 674.
It was a fine choice and it was actually the receiver that I wanted her to choose, just without her knowing that it was my choice.. She had also had a deciding factor on our most recent purchase of 2 Outlaw Audio LFM-2. After she went over all the specs, reading the same articles that I did, factor in the very low price of $583.89 for the pair delivered and of course the all important spousal factor, it was an agreeable decision. 
Somebody's quote said that he didn't know any women who can change oil, do brakes, etc. Well I gotta tell ya, my wife does those things as well. She can also sheetrock, mud, lay tile, paint, and do basic carpentry. If she cannot do something, we do it together. That to me is much more enjoyable than anything else that I can think of.

Dieselpower1966
John


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## jr1414 (Nov 28, 2007)

I think this is a question that really needs to be addressed on a case by case basis. My wife does happen to like good audio, and she probably has much better hearing than me. Being a former singer, she has perfect pitch and can pick out things in a vocal or music passage that I would never pick up.

That being said, she has a hard time accepting large boxes placed out in the middle of the room. She can definitely appreciate good sound, but doesn't value it more than space in our living room! I value the sound a little more, but I'm willing to make compromises where they make sense. My wife has also made compromises, especially with our PB12+/2. Although she's asked recently if we can find an alternative (read smaller) subwoofer. I'm working on a DIY solution with her now, I've explained how we get control over all of the design, and even the finishes of the sub when we're done. She's excited to design it with me! 

I've used the term WAF many times, but I don't look at it as a sexist comment. I run everything I do through my wife, as she does with me. If I don't get her approval, I don't do it.... It works the same the other way around. It's more of a mutual respect thing. The sexist thing would be to make a decision without first seeking her approval. She has to live and share the space as well.

Just some food for thought.


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## Guest (Mar 4, 2008)

I've been surfing the Digital Bits since circa 1997 and have been through various home theaters since 2000 (no wonder my wallet is so thin). I'm into it enough to be in mourning over the Pioneer Kuro announcement. Dunno what I'm going to replace the old Pioneer 533 with now when it goes. :no:


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

Woah, wait...what Kuro announcement? Did they discontinue the Kuro line?

NM: found the link...http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080304/ap_on_hi_te/japan_pioneer

My hope is that they can find a way to include some of the Kuro tech into LCD, or maybe they are planning to bring back SED? (Officially off-topic, anyone want to start a new thread?)


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## MatrixDweller (Jul 24, 2007)

My wife loves the HT we're building. She did pretty much all the painting down there even though I picked out the colours. She's not "in to" home theater and audio on a technical aspect though. She loves watching movies and can appreciate a great sounding system. 

When I upgraded from a Kenwood VR305 with Cerwin Vega speakers to a Denon 3805 with Klipsch speakers she said she couldn't tell the difference. Later though she commented after watching "The Incredibles" that the new speakers really did sound much better. Her words were "It sounds more life-like and more like when you're at the theater...maybe even better".


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## superchad (Mar 7, 2008)

A friend of mine has a sweet system with over $30k in speakers and probably around that or a bit less in all other gear and she is a single woman, and a great gal pal!
PS........... she really knows her stuff!


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