Griffin Silver
Our relationship began in the car with my mother, listening to her sing along to The Beatles. I credit my ear for music largely to her, both in her musical taste as well as the way she interacted with it. She always seemed to prefer harmonizing with the vocals of songs we listened to, instead of just singing the main melody, and I became accustomed to hearing the way she processed it all at an early enough age that it was forever imprinted on all subsequent interactions with music: Listen, understand, react, and listen.
My experiences with music became more personal around 9-10 years old, through a pair of wired earbuds out of a pre-iPod MP3 player with room for about 30 or 40 songs. I loaded it up...and listened constantly. At home, on car trips, and on the bus to/from school, I was hooked on the feeling I got from being ensconced in the separated space-time bubble that music could always put me in regardless of where or when I actually was.
Fast forward to 11 years old, and my sister (whom I credit equally with my upbringing along with my mother and father) started to get into music, both as a serious listener and as a guitarist. Her being musical was a massive boon for me, and her enthusiasm for new music rubbed off on me just as the guitar did.
By age 13 or 14, I was a goner. Radiohead was now my favorite band, I was starting to write and record my own songs, and there was nothing in my world that was even close to as important as music was. Constantly being online looking for new music, guitars, amps, pedals, microphones, anything, led me to forums, publications, and imageboards wherein I was first exposed to, among other things, headphones other than those that came free with an MP3 player. At this time, my thoughts while listening began to change from “I like what I’m listening to!” to “Why do I like what I’m listening to?”
The answer was a resounding “I have no idea, but I wanna hear more.”
Along the quest to hear more, I happened upon InnerFidelity and Tyll Hertsens. We now collectively recognize Tyll as being the preliminary resource for headphone enthusiasts at the time, and he was my first legitimate contact point with this hobby (& I wager I’m not the only one). He’d reviewed ATH-M50, which I had already owned and enjoyed, and had even more recommendations further up in price, as well as for different form-factors. Having never tried IEMs before, I decided to try the Etymotic ER4p...
And this is when the reproduction of music itself became one of the foremost emotional, intellectual, and communal pursuits of my entire life. These earphones revealed a level of texture, micro-detail, and intimacy that I'd never been exposed to prior. This is when I became an audiophile.
In the time since, I’ve spent my life with almost equal time in carefully monitoring music’s creation, playing multiple instruments, and “listening, understanding, reacting, listening” to any piece of music I came across. I was doing so with a pair of earphones exceptionally capable of providing honesty, clarity, and nuance thanks to Tyll, as well as a few other headphones along the way too... until 2020, when I’d realized that I never even scratched the surface.
From 2020 onward has been a heck of a ride. I’ve learned and unlearned more things than I can name, I’ve tried more headphones than I ever thought I would, and I've written with both friends and personal heroes of mine. Here's to that journey continuing!
Latest posts from Griffin Silver
View all
Focal Lensys Professional: Better than Azurys?
Focal's Lensys Professional is a new closed back headphone that looks very similar to Focal's new Azurys—listener's Best Headphone of 2024—but is $150 more expensive. Which raises the question: which is actually better?
FiiO FT1 Pro: Is It REALLY That Good?
FiiO is back with their second hyped release of the year, their budget open-back planar FT1 Pro. Does it live up to the legacy already set forth by the incredibly well-received FT1? Join Resolve and DMS as they discuss!
Buying Guide: Best Over-Ear Headphones of 2024
Join listener as they go over what they believe to be the best options out there for buying over-ear headphones in 2024
Soundstage Is (Much) More Complicated Than You Think
Many listeners end up disappointed upon hearing the best headphone soundstage, realizing it's not as big a game-changer as they'd expected. Join listener as they discuss why soundstage is more complicated than we think, and how audiophiles can better manage their expectations and understand this elusive quality.
The craziest headphones you've ever seen! — CanJam SoCal 2024
The headphones.com team heads to CanJam SoCal for another year of headphone madness.
Behold! The GLORIOUS Kiwi Ears KE4
Kiwi Ears has been a player in the chi-fi IEM space for quite a while, and they've just released what might be their best IEM yet. Join Resolve and listener as they discuss why.
Kiwi Ears KE4: The Next Step Forward
Kiwi Ears' new KE4 might not be perfect, but it’s close enough that it's probably one of the easiest IEM recommendations I can give in 2024. Why? Let’s talk about it.
Noble announces the launch of its FoKus Apollo ANC headphones
Noble has announced the launch of their FoKus Apollo ANC headphones, with the world's first dynamic + planar hybrid driver arrangement.