Taking time (and time outs) to enjoy the ride...

In the late 70's, early 80's I was a salesman at two high-end audio dealers in the DC area and though I was somewhat of a "junkie" for the high-end equipment, I learned that you could not make a living catering to customers who were also "equipment junkies", as they rarely made purchases and when they did, the time it took to make that sale relative to the commission I earned was hardly worth it, from a financial perspective.

This is what makes it so hard. The whole point is to be lost, carried away, and enjoying the music. But no one ever was wrapt and swept away by the glorious music pouring forth from their flip-phone. So a certain level of fidelity is called for. 

But in order to find something better it helps to set aside time to listen and evaluate- listen to the system. Which in order to do this well is not just listening to the system but to each component part of the system as well. Pretty much the exact opposite of listening to the music. 

For a long time in the 90's it seemed I was almost always listening to the system. Was deep in audiophilia nervosa. Then one day auditioning a McCormack DNA1 amp I found myself lost in the music, literally foot-tapping, and it suddenly dawned on me this is it! This is what it's all about! Not the glossary of terms. This feeling! 

It is possible, once you get the hang of it, to have this zen-like ability to flip back and forth, enjoying, evaluating, at will. Holy Grail. 

@millercarbon EXACTLY! It is truly a "feeling". Best possible way to describe it and you just know it when it happens. This is exactly what happened to me when I first brought home my Dynaudio Audience 82's 20+ years ago. Soon as I sat for that first critical listen with them in my home I "felt" it. I was done and my search was over. From then on it was all about the music :)

Again thank you for sharing, brilliant in its simplicity yet so very powerful:)

Great points to all. One of my favorite 'feelings' when listening to my music/system is when I get actual goosebumps. It doesn't happen all the time---but when it does, it's truly moving.