How many of you have no "WAF", rather a wife encouraging factor?

[zildjian]

How many people here have wives that get into hometheater / AV gear enough to actually participate in your hobby? I've never been married. The couple ladies that I've been involved with before that wanted to marry me have tended to scare me away, so I've never experienced the "Wife approval factor". I saw my dad deal with it years ago with his hifi equipment & mom...
My experiences with the woman I've been dating for the last couple years seem pretty positive as far as AV gear goes. Hell she bought me my Denon AVR3806 for christmas last year. I won't go as far as saying she picks out things when she goes into the AV store with me, but she seems pretty cool with my primary hobby of A/V electronics (and even loves my glass art collecting, big plus for me).

So is this that rare of a find or do many of you have what I'll call WEF, wife encouraging factor???

 

[mytzen]

You should consider yourself lucky if she already bought you that Denon and has a positive attitude towards your hobby. You will probably have an easier time than most to convince her that you need to upgrade your components.

 

[ironlung]

She does not care.....yeah right!

My ex girlfriend never admitted to enjoying the HT rig. She told me it did not matter to her. I turned off the reciever and sent the sound to the TV, she called me at work to get me to "fix" the sound for her. I also did catch her a few times asking what's wrong with others setups because they looked/sounded much worse than mine. All the time maintaining how little she cared about that stuff.

Now that she's moving out she is getting an HDTV and dual tuner HD DVR for herself. Gotta have the OC and Gilmore girls in HD!

 

[BMXTRIX]

I have very little WAF to deal with. Just past the 10 year mark in May and I had zero interest in A/V when we got married. Here I am a decade later and as a Crestron programmer A/V has basically become my life.

But, my wife loves TV and enjoys all the toys in the house. Money is tight (new home/babies) so there are some money issues, but I recognize them as much (or more) than she does, which curtails my spending. On the other hand, when I do a side job and buy a new plasma or add XM radio to the mix she is the first to appreciate it.

No, she doesn't complain about the 48" tall Def-Tech speakers in the family room. She DOES complain about the 'plasma friendly' Sonance Silverscreen 50 center channel which sounds muddy and does not give proper clarity to voices... "When are you going to upgrade that!?!?!" she says.

Things like speakers in the room that are ugly, she doesn't like. But, in reality, neither do I. It would be better to build some nice wood cabinetry to house the large speakers and to hide the plasma and screen away in. But, my pockets aren't that deep - and she would rather have good sound and the plasma/projector setup w/Crestron than not have it!

I spent a couple of years with Myer-Emco in the DC area and of the 50 or so installs I programmed only ONE really had a woman at the helm. She was into it and was asking how they could add a projector/screen to the 3 TV setup they currently were using in the media room. Cool chick... but my wife rules all.

 

[Sleestack]

My wife is just great. Although she enjoys the things I put together, she doesn't really have an interest in the gear itself. Shen never questions why I buy the thnigs I do, although she did raise her eyebrows when I told her how much I spent on our HT components.

 

[jeffsg4mac]

To be honest I never understood the WAF factor. No woman would ever dictate to me what I could or could not have, or how I could decorate my room. I am not trying to start an argument but I think that any man that allows a woman tell him what he can or can not have or how his room is going to be decorated, well IMHO is a whipped sissy and needs to grow a pair. I don't tell my wife how or what makeup she wears, how she dresses or how to cut her hair, and she does not tell me what to do with my hobby.

 

[j_garcia]

No WAF here She enjoys music and movies just as much and she can see that it is something I enjoy, so she doesn't say anything about it.

Sorry, but I agree completely with jeffsg4mac.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

My wife and 6yr old daughter know how to operate the components, and always use the surround sound - even for cartoons. (Not hard when one remote turns on everything). I should do Ironlung's experiment and just have the TV kick on without the stereo... Nah, too much deprogramming and I don't even know where the tv remote is. They both even know how to record shows on the DVR, and bring them up to play. It's amazing. The only complaint I get is when the sub shakes everything in the house. I'm a little leary on my upgrade to that bigger sub - but it's going to happen this fall.

 

[Kai]

My wife would be satisfied using the speakers that come with my tv but appreciates the surround system when watching movies, etc.
While I too do not need a WAF factor she does "side eye" me from time to time and is not too keen about me wanting to buy a new tv when our current one is only 2 1/2 years old and works/looks great.

But she says little about my hobby overall.

 

[muncybob]

To be honest I never understood the WAF factor. No woman would ever dictate to me what I could or could not have, or how I could decorate my room. I am not trying to start an argument but I think that any man that allows a woman tell him what he can or can not have or how his room is going to be decorated, well IMHO is a whipped sissy and needs to grow a pair. I don't tell my wife how or what makeup she wears, how she dresses or how to cut her hair, and she does not tell me what to do with my hobby.

It's not always "your room"....we have a small house and the video room is essentially the living room...so her input and tastes are taken into consideration, but it's not always the final word...after some arm twisting I got acceptance for the new 12" subwoofer. It's a matter of give and take(at least for the last 28+ years)....now the newly constructed game room I'm working on will be MY room!

 

[billy p]

Ahhh..

tobe single then again maybe not?Just the other day she gave me crap about the remote issue (ie:tv,avr,dvd,cd,etc etc) she wants that 1 button do it all type.Mainly though if I'm buying something or thinking about it I don't tell her the cost and she's content

 

[Sheep]

WAF? WTF is WAF?

SheepStar

 

[zildjian]

WAF? WTF is WAF?

SheepStar

WAF is just like a WMD except it's a LOT closer to home and actually exists...

 

[agarwalro]

Sometimes I let my fiance be my consience when it comes to volume since I live in a rented apartment and dont want to be kicked out .

 

[gmichael]

The wifey doesn't understand most of the details. But she enjoys the sound. I can get whatever I want as long as it doesn't break the bank. She knows how much it means to me. The living room is mine, right down to the carpet, furniture & drapes.
Often I find myself trying to explain something to her and she just gets this glassy look in her eyes. She's trying to act like she's listening but she really doesn't care. Bless her little heart for trying.

 

[Sheep]

WAF is just like a WMD except it's a LOT closer to home and actually exists...

It was a joke.

I'm only 18 (soon 19) so WAF doesn't exist for me.

SheepStar

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

To be honest I never understood the WAF factor. No woman would ever dictate to me what I could or could not have, or how I could decorate my room. I am not trying to start an argument but I think that any man that allows a woman tell him what he can or can not have or how his room is going to be decorated, well IMHO is a whipped sissy and needs to grow a pair. I don't tell my wife how or what makeup she wears, how she dresses or how to cut her hair, and she does not tell me what to do with my hobby.

That's funny. Am I the only one who raised his hand and said, "yep, I need to grow a pair." Actually, my wife has has very little decorating sense. If I don't suggest paint, or decor, it won't happen. I try and keep the peace with her granite kithcen countertop, stainless everything appliances, top of the line laundry room (you know, all the crap we hate to do), etc... I also make sure we go on nice vacations, and do one large home project a year. (This year is two - landscaping and a composite 18'x33' deck).

Now that I think about it, I think it's time for that new subwoofer. Man, she's got me whipped like a rag doll.

 

[Tomorrow]

My wife is just great. Although she enjoys the things I put together, she doesn't really have an interest in the gear itself. Shen never questions why I buy the thnigs I do, although she did raise her eyebrows when I told her how much I spent on our HT components.

As did we all!

 

[xboxweasel]

[evil smirk]

I just get what I want when I want.

In 2 years I've purchased 20 speakers, 2 subs, 4 amps, 2 receivers, 3 DVD players (or 4), 2 HD TV's, 2 Xbox 360's, and 1 two channel mixer. Hehehehehe.



PS: What's WMD???

 

[j_garcia]

My main system is in the living room too, but the layout is driven by the sound system. I buy whatever I want for the system, and she can decorate as she likes - a bit of a team effort so that everyone is happy with the room.