How do I go backwards?

I have not done this myself, nor do I know anyone who has.

However, logically, you are in a position of strength.

You have components that are well above entry level, which means that most people will be upgrading to your level. Therefore, these same people may have components that you wish to downgrade to.
I would place ads for the components that you wish to downgrade from, and state that trades as partial payment are not only welcomed, but highly encouraged.

Since you like the sounds of certain components, I suggest, that you stay with the same manufacturer, but just a lessor model.
(i.e. stay with Nordost cables, but just a cheaper versions, such as the SPM Reference or Quattro fil.)

Remember two things:
One, it is the music that matters. Keep listening, no matter what!
Two, you were at such a high level, that coming down even by half (dollarwise), will only mean a small loss of audiophile quality, due to the geometric relationship between cost of components and the sound quality.

My two cents worth anyway.

I wish you luck, both in regards to your system downgrade, as well as to your health. May you get better soon!

Downsizing seems to be a hot topic these days. You may end up pleasantly surprised.

just do it! really,just do it its that simple,the way we all covet our rigs & cringe at the thought replacing 10k worth of interconnects with off the shelf stuff from radio shack or replacing a highly modded cdp with an ecnomy cdp from best buy is silly,ITS ALL JUST STUFF!,do what you need to do to fix your finances then worry about the loss of your rig later.

ok dig this,im not tryin to be a smart ass or make light of your situation but i just went thru a major downsize myself & what i thought was going to be a big let down was in the end the best medicine.

i was in the middle of yet another riduclously big $$$$ upgrade when i fell 32 feet & shatterered my hip,so after selling off about 60% of my rig i was layin here with a smashed hip,over half of my rig allready sold & there was no way in hell i could lift 100 plus pound amps plus the morphine had me in lala land so i was bummed.

my current rig is just a small fraction of what it used to be & not even close to what i had planned for it & i truly couldnt be any happier,believe me there is life after nordost & you might just be amazed at how good a scaled down version of your rig can sound.

gone are most of the amps,high end cdp's,eq's,speakers,dac,high end interconnects,power cords & cabling,even the rack is gone & i couldnt be any happier!

keep your speakers & buy a decent high power amp,midfi preamp,ecno cd player,lamp cord speaker wires,rat shack cabling & put the cash from selling the rest of your gear to work where its needed the most,in your pocket.

give yourself a few weeks listening to your scaled back rig & i'll bet your nowhere as bummed out as you think your going to be.

good luck.

mike.

Your health and financial well being are the most important things to consider in this equation. Therefore, I would sell the whole packaage and go 180 degrees in the other direction. Wait a few months until the sonic memory of your current system has faded and then get a jolida 302b tube amp (or equivalent), a jolida JD 100 CDP, a pair of Solioquy 6.2's, and stick the rest of the cash in your pocket. You can get the these pieces used for less than $2500 and have a very musical system. Plus it would be so different from your current system it would be harder to draw comparisons to your current system.

Just my .02