[JLM]

I've gone back and forth on several aspects of audio (stereo 40+ years ago) that parallel my life.  I blame the disease onset from being a want-to-be geek (back in the 60's audio was totally cool).  Maturity (mind and ears), marital status, apartments vs. houses, and income levels have all been reflected in my systems.  The biggest anomaly to that trend was my fascination with the purist approach that included SET's that never did fully pan out due to my life long speaker first slant and never being able to find a high efficiency speaker I liked.  I'm now a young retiree, with a nice dedicated room, and find that the system is gravitating towards a smaller and simpler theme while hopefully maintaining quality with the realization that my hearing (especially high frequencies) has/will suffer with age.

Everything is in the mind, eh?  As I understand pure music lovers, especially musicians, use more imagination and have less need for additional information to recreate the performance.  Audiophiles lean more on the crutch of technology.  I see it as a right side/left side brain issue.  Most audiophiles are analytically oriented (just look at our chosen professions), yet we still seek emotive satisfaction from music, so need more help (please don't take that last bit wrong).  Back in college a classical guitarist happened to drop in on our small engineering/business school and volunteered to perform (solo).  It was a fantastic experience and afterwards he wanted to meet engineering students to learn what would draw analytical types to music (evidently the whole purpose of his visit).  We agreed that the yearning for art is a basic human trait, regardless of our orientations.  And how that yearning is expressed, either in music, painting, or other media is very individualistic.

[Phil A]

I am not as much of a fanatic as I used to be with audio or even video.  My system has gotten to the point where I'll do something now and then (perhaps next year make a couple of new cables and perhaps tweak the room treatments) and I just enjoy what I have.  I do watch the digital end a bit more, probably a bit more for players than DACs.  I don't sell things as often as I used to.  I rotate things to secondary systems more often.  I have enough secondary systems so that part is not that difficult.  If something is not used for a bit, I'll either sell it if it is worthwhile or give it away.

[macrojack]

Phil - Resale is a consideration for me. I have found it much more difficult to sell off pieces I no longer use in recent years. This makes me much more circumspect about acquiring anything new (or used for that matter). My program is not built to absorb enormous losses from depreciation or loss of favor in the market place.

There are further problems associated with delving into any product that is not easily qualified by model number and review prowess. I've never been very inclined toward B&W, Krell, McIntosh, etc. type audio staples, so following my heart, instincts or gut usually takes me into areas of negligible resale despite how tremendous they might perform. If you don't have the permission of Robert Harley or John Atkinson, you should not consider any product, right?

For anyone who cares to hear it, this is my advice: Look toward pro products. They tend to have much higher resale and much longer shelf life. They are all business - no magic. And, best of all, they are more accurate as a rule. And they come from companies with traction and staying power so you are far less likely to wake up and find out you own an orphan.

Audiophile world is clownish. Grown ups aren't fooled by the goofiness that keeps audiophiles entertained --- and spending.

[barrows]

Yeah Scotty: I want it all, but I know I cannot afford that, as the realistic dynamics and levels part (while keeping everything else as well) is where we get into the $200K systems, as the demands on speakers and amps becomes enormous!

I really wear two hats:

1. the analytical guy who consults on product development for Sonore and does DIY, and who sits and critically listens to systems/components.
2. The audiophile/music lover guy who listens to be transported into the world of music and musicians.

1. is work, and 2. is listening for pleasure.  When I get really lucky, sometimes work can include pleasure...

[Phil A]

Phil - Resale is a consideration for me. I have found it much more difficult to sell off pieces I no longer use in recent years. This makes me much more circumspect about acquiring anything new (or used for that matter). My program is not built to absorb enormous losses from depreciation or loss of favor in the market place.

I concur totally.  That's why I when I buy something a little higher end, it is often used so that if I sell it it is not usually a horrible hit.  I view it as a cheap rental fee.  If it costs me a few or several dollars a month for a period of time I'm OK with.  I had an amp for 10 years that I sold probably 8 months back.  I got it used and the cost to me was less than $3/month and I'm fine with that.  If I buy something, I also will often consider rotation to another system as a factor.  I have owned and gotten burnt when it was time on expensive things to sell and I don't do that any longer.  If I end up rotating things to back-up system or system, if and when it reaches the end of its use to me, it is usually quite a while.