Have I Hit The Point Of Diminishing Returns?

Joecasey - it appears to me that Stringreen was addressing the originator of the thread, not you. Perhaps if you read the whole thread and allowed for the possibility that it was not all about you, the same opinion would have kept you from embarrassing yourself.
As for this elusive point of diminishing returns that has a number of you stumbling all over yourselves with absolution and compensatory illogic, here is the hard to swallow truth:

Once you have purchased and installed a basic system that conveys the sounds to you intelligibly, you have reached the point of diminishing returns. If you choose to follow the audiophile nonsense beyond that point, you have voluntarily entered a place where your further investment is rewarded at a lower rate. This puts you on a curve whereon you receive ever less for your dollar as you progress. Whether you feel justly rewarded by your outlay or not, does not alter the economic reality of what you have done from an investment standpoint. Philosophical renderings aside, you have not invested well. Now, of course, the option to pay more money for less improvement is an option afforded the hobbyist and it could be argued that act defines the word " hobby". Who could argue that point?
So, I would submit that what I said earlier stands. We all passed the point of diminishing returns long ago. The question now is: Do you care? And each of us will have to answer that one for ourselves. It would seem that none of us cares enough to stop - so that means do whatever the hell floats your boat now and keep a bucket handy for bailing.
Personally, I have an eye toward downsizing. Reading online audio threads has me believing I am not alone in that thinking. In other words, I am interested in moving backwards toward the original diminishing returns threshold. Anyone else? O.P.?

08-08-14: Macrojack
Joecasey - it appears to me that Stringreen was addressing the originator of the thread, not you. Perhaps if you read the whole thread and allowed for the possibility that it was not all about you, the same opinion would have kept you from embarrassing yourself.

Macrojack, Perhaps you should allow the possibility it was addressed to me and not embarrass yourself? I can't ask Stringreen to clarify? As you can see, I have an insecurity problem.

I was pretty sure I was at the point of diminishing returns until I plugged in a pair High Fidelity interconnects. Those cables are the real deal.

Macrojack, I agree with you on your position concerning diminishing return in audio. If one wants to make improvements on a current system, the desired outcome need to be defined and addressed.

Once you have purchased and installed a basic system that conveys the sounds to you intelligibly, you have reached the point of diminishing returns. If you choose to follow the audiophile nonsense beyond that point, you have voluntarily entered a place where your further investment is rewarded at a lower rate. This puts you on a curve whereon you receive ever less for your dollar as you progress. Whether you feel justly rewarded by your outlay or not, does not alter the economic reality of what you have done from an investment standpoint. Philosophical renderings aside, you have not invested well. Now, of course, the option to pay more money for less improvement is an option afforded the hobbyist and it could be argued that act defines the word " hobby". Who could argue that point?

Excellent post Macrojack. I also agree with your first paragraph. No way Stringreen was addressing Joecasey. I'd bet one of my four "brokerage accounts" on it. Sheesh.