for the short time I have been on here, I see that members will start a thread asking about a certain piece of equipment or speakers.. they will then buy that piece of equipment / speakers, start a thread about it saying how good it is and then next thing you know, they are starting another thread asking about another piece of gear as they are looking for something different. what happened to that piece of gear that was so great ? i get the whole buying thing....but where are members getting the money to do all of this stuff ? do they not have other bills such as rent / mortgage payment, car payment, other bills to pay for also ?
For the long time I have been on here I see that some members will start a thread that goes haywire at warp speed: Start with a headline that sounds like one subject, like members and their systems. Then switch to a completely different subject, like people who flip components. Then raise a point that could be useful, like how to prioritize your purchases. But switch it up again to something completely unrelated and frankly no one’s business, like where do you get the money? Finally, this not being good enough, the true haywire post bait and switches completely to what no one can ever answer, which is how "members" do it. Because "members" is imaginary, an aggregate, it makes no sense. Any answer will do. We rob trains. If some "members" do then the answer is correct. We deal drugs. We rob everyone left and right. We work in banking.
But I repeat myself.
I was in Leavenworth one time and the Ferrari club was there on a tour. Friendly folk, real enthusiasts and happy to talk about their cars. One of them made a point of letting me know virtually all of them were just normal people making normal money. Plenty of examples.
So I have a hunch it is just normal people, only with maybe a different set of priorities. I pack my own lunch, hardly ever eat out, haven’t had a cell phone or the monthly bill that goes with it - ever. No Starbucks habit. Worked weekend doubles, OT, took call, paid off my 15 year mortgage in 8 years.
Not that it’s any of your business. Where do you get the time to ask nosy questions? What even makes you feel entitled to ask? Don’t answer. Rather not know. Wouldn’t do any good anyway.
Now then, is there anything you would like to know about members and their systems?
No I don’t everything is paid for. PAYMENTS? Heck kiddo that's what's wrong. The only reason I have bills is so I have something to do.. Besides anything else I want to do.. I love being retired.
I should had done it the other way around though.. Retire first then go to work AFTER I’m all wore out.. 49 years of retirement, and what ever is left for work.. Makes sense to me, NOW...
Not that it’s any of your business. Where do you get the time to ask nosy questions? What even makes you feel entitled to ask? Don’t answer. Rather not know. Wouldn’t do any good anyway.
WFT......all I did was ask a simple question as this is not a cheap hobby....and I wasnt being all " nosy " as you put it. I didnt ask you where you got the money for your system did I ? dont believe I did.
next time I will make sure that I ask for your permission on what I should ask on these forums....
You're getting the hang of this place. Admin had someone start a thread to see what crawled out from under the rocks and it went something like this thread. Maybe they'll have a solution.
WFT......all I did was ask a simple question as this is not a cheap hobby....and I wasnt being all " nosy " as you put it. I didnt ask you where you got the money for your system did I ? dont believe I did.
next time I will make sure that I ask for your permission on what I should ask on these forums....
what an ass.
Of course you didn't. Instead, he told you a lot of stuff about his personal economic situation (which may or may not be true, and which neither you nor I nor anyone else cares about), then blamed you for asking.
The gist of your question does appear to have an particular spin—namely a sense of incredulity about how folks spend their money and where they get it from. Someone will always have more money than you just as you have more than others. In a way, you've answered your own question about getting the whole buying thing.
"Retire first then go to work AFTER I’m all wore out.. 49 years of retirement, and what ever is left for work.."
A friend of mine said exactly that to his mother while he was in high school, except that he put it at 50 and not 49. He added "What is the point of suffering when I have energy to enjoy and having time to enjoy when I have less and less energy for that?"
Mother looked at him with sad face and said "Where did I go wrong?"
i drive around my neighborhood late at night 5 nights a week. steal catalytic converters off of parked cars - every month i can buy a new set of audio note silver interconnects
Well when I use to look in the mirror and see this trim fit, unbroke fella most everything worked. Now I put on my trifocals to see if I have TITS. Talk about WTF.. LOL
Wheelchair race anyone.. :-)
OP don't get so upset with MC, just read every other line.. It helps a lot of folks.. Bigger :-)
I sell my body. Yep, I’m a streetwalker. Not worth much at my age anymore, but hey, at ten bucks a throw, I can have that new cartridge in no time flat.
Frank
PS: I pay cash for my audio adventures. I put nothing on a credit card. Plus, I never pay retail for hardly anything audio-related. After working in the industry, I know what the markup is for most of the equipment we buy. Dealers are willing to "deal" almost always. If they don’t, then I go elsewhere. In addition, once one has good equipment, using the proper tweaks, there’s really no need to continue upgrading equipment.
There are a few noisy intolerant mental cases here these days as one quickly finds out. Also a lot of very fine people.
Many have been at this for a long time ie a lot of old geezers like myself near or at retirement. Things get old and you sell them or just change to try something new. Or keep multiple systems around just for kicks. It’s a hobby. Love of music and a career interest in technology keeps me at it. I look forward every day to hearing something new and different. Or the same old thing done well or even better if possible.
When she gets overwhelmed by my constant buying and selling of audio, my wife says that being a teacher (like me) is not conducive to being in hi-end audio. And no, I can never and would never drop five figures on a piece of equipment, but I do spend more on audio than I should.
However, it's really the only hobby I have that costs money. And I occasionally take too much advantage of credit.
A few years ago I was at another audiophile's house for a listening session. His CD player cost more than my entire system at the time. And like you, I was incredulous but not jealous or judgmental. In these conversations, my wife often points out that none of our friends have any high end audio equipment - to which my rejoinder is that very few people care enough to do so.
Oh, and OP, ignore anything MC says not related to audio. He gets paid by the snarkiness factor of his posts, so its in his economic interests to be as abrasive as possible without contributing much.
I have zero car payments. Home is paid for, 1 kid graduating college this year then he is off to Norte Dame to earn his PHD and he is working there teaching also (only suckers pay for grad school), 2 more in college and they both work so they are off my payroll. I work part time as a SICARRIO for the Sinaloa Cartel and business is good.
I learn the most about audio from posts where people are figuring out how to get good sound on a budget. They are ingenious and thrifty and find ways to make things.
Necessity is the mother of invention, and good sound can be had with a little sweat. Everyone else is making up for their personal inadequacies.
I'm so rich I fry up Hundred Dollar Bills and eat 'em for breakfast. Sometimes, if I'm feeling thrifty I'll lather maple syrup over them instead of my usual hundred year old cognac.
The problem is that the gear you have is only as good as the next piece you hear that outperforms it and when you hear that next level in your system that old piece goes by the wayside but you do not want to get rid of a really good piece because it will work better in some instances than the new(better) one in some circumstances it is all so system dependent.
Buy used. People will think you’re rich. I wouldn’t even tell my friends how much my used gear is. They would think I’m nuts. My family and I don’t eat out. I quit golf. Have a house below my means and I quit yayo when I was 21. Now, I’ve got my youngest who plays hockey( money suck) and oldest in college. I might sell it all and I won’t care. I’ll still love music and will always appreciate great systems.
Two thoughts here. A system that is plain enjoyable to listen to and an all out assault on an audio system. My friend goes to estate sales and picks up great older gear for very cheap. For example, Harmon Kardon XX series preamp and matching power amp with original boxes, etc. $200. That amp is one of the best SS amps I have ever heard. Plenty of speakers also - B&Ws, Kef, Infinite Slope, IMF the big suckers. He also build a system around an old tube integrated amp that was so beautiful sounding. Audiophile - no but so enjoyable well YES.
My way was to learn how to improve the sound of any component with better parts. Capacitors, resistors, AC filter chokes, etc. You can purchase older components that were at one time considered state of the art and upgrade them if you want to learn how to do that. Then you need to learn how to build your own components. You cannot buy the sound from a component that you can learn to build on your own.
Even though I have the money to purchase anything I want, I cannot buy what I can build. You can also learn to build your own net worth through various investment strategies and become financially independent. It can be done!
what happened to that piece of gear that was so great ? —- i still have it, maybe i moved it to a second system, perhaps i sold it.
i get the whole buying thing....but where are members getting the money to do all of this stuff ? — i own NewYorkSubHP.com a sandwich shop in dallas Texas. We are a New York style deli that uses all local texas meats that are cured/smoked/roasted in house. Its a true mom and pop and we work our butts off every day. do they not have other bills such as rent / mortgage payment, car payment, other bills to pay for also ?
Birdsdontrow- Don’t think Einstein is right in the head. He’s in the Doghouse a lot!
I have a Credit Union credit card that has a great rate; my only debt. I know I won’t spend money out of my savings so I put it on the card and pay it off by selling Tools and older Audio Equipment. I Try buying used when I can. I’m feeling a new set of Speaker in a month or two. I know it might be a little silly, but it’s the only way I’ll buy a 5-7k piece of equipment. Divorced, son lives by the Gulf, partially retired. With COVID, what the hell else are we going to do?
@birdscantrow: I get your question and I think it is a common one. When I came to this forum a year ago, I was totally unfamiliar with the audiophile-level equipment and brands, and I too thought, “Who can spend $100,000 on stereo equipment?” I certainly couldn’t. But you learn that a number of the members on sites like this one are/were professional people with high incomes, and some can and do build or tweak their own equipment, thus getting better equipment and sound at lower cost, which was mentioned above.
Also, some of these folks have been at this hobby for 20, 30 or more years, so they have had a lot of time to sample equipment and trade up to what they have now. They didn’t start out with the Ferrari system; they worked up to it.
I also have seen that some members appear sensitive to questions like, “Why did you even want to put so much money into something like stereo equipment?” I figured it’s probably a judgment that they heard expressed by family or friends, or acquaintances, over years and it irked them then as it irks them now. It would be like someone here saying to me, “If you are going to settle for mediocre equipment, why bother?” We each have our own priorities and our own spending limits. I still enjoy hearing how other members are sampling new equipment that I will probably never hear. Some things are still to be enjoyed vicariously. 😁
I concur. I have been in this Hobby since 1985. Most of us have had the (very) good fortune in working up to a Reference system. Tip: buy demo/used as much as possible.
Of course you didn't. Instead, he told you a lot of stuff about his personal economic situation (which may or may not be true, and which neither you nor I nor anyone else cares about), then blamed you for asking.
Its called debt! However, it is smart managed debt. Meaning that the remaining debt i do have, used to establish my system of today, is financed at "zero" percent. It is gradually paid off, usually no more than 24-36 months. Also, some things are sold either on here or on ebay to finance a new purchase, if say that something just was not doing it for me. The only thing left to pay off is my latest turntable acquisition ....I’ll most likely use part of the stimulus check to wipe that out. In the end I’m left with Tannoy legacy eatons $5500 (not counting stands or material to fill them), sugden a21 se $3250, a Marantz pm14s1, six turntables, four tuners, three cd players and a transport, two dacs, two extra pairs of speakers (wharefdales), three cassettes decks, two headphone amps, ten pairs of headphones, countless interconnects and power chords, ten cartridges...on and on and on...and all mine, all paid for!!...except the aforementioned turntable. You ask how is most of this debt paid off? Through lots and lots of hard work and OT. Was it all worth it? Hell yeah! I do not regret anything. Yes, got a mortgage, car payment, kids, utilities, CC debt, etc etc....however, its all getting paid and I still save money in bank. I will tell you that we as a family do not spend a fortune on trips or eat in the fanciest restaurants.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with borrowing money for toys, otherwise known as a credit card, as long as you have the ability to pay it back. It is also important that you buy something that you know you will keep for years to come. There is "No" damage done by using a credit card with "zero" percent say for 18 months....the bank makes "zero" additional money. You pay back exactly what you spent, no more no less! Keep it all within reason without going nuts and it is easily manageable and you have your stuff before your dead and buried.
OPM is fine for a house. Cash is king for everything else. Started working at 13. I didn't stop until my body was broke and my account was flush. :-)
I took 3 vacations in that time.. I made sure my family was well taken care of. Every year they went and enjoyed what they deserved. I was proud to do it to. Still am.. I got a great family. God, Family, Country. What else is there?
Still collection on the broken body part, ba$tards. Bone fragment in my neck.. Yup broken neck.. BUT the ears work just fine..
Hands not so much.. we're workin' on it.. oldhvymec 1, them ZERO. I won.. MY MARBLES, NOW... Just no heavy bag work anymore, so what, I wasn't lookin' for a Title shot anyways.. I'll leave that to Rocky 13 or 14, where ever that's at now..
Started working at 16. We had no kids. Wife made me us save a lot each year. Let it just ride and now retired with no debt high net worth so I tell her what did we save for all those years if we cannot enjoy it now...! So I got back into high end stereo a couple of years ago....!
I bought and sold some audio gear between 1983 and 85 in the process of putting together a system I lived with for 26 years. During that time I continued my education, worked full time, raised 3 kids and put them through college. Over the last 10 years of retirement I have been buying and selling many components in the process of gaining a personal education towards a hobby I enjoy and a system to enjoy it through.
I thank many on this forum for their help in this endeavor. Truly miss AL.
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