The 5 stages of making a bad audio purchase

It sounds like you have had negative experiences upgrading you're Music Reproduction System this is a very common, frequent, recurring issue with those who prefer to evaluate such system components using what they believe to be objective, scientific, engineering data rather than first  just actually listening to the components being considered in the evaluation.

It sounds like perhaps you have had a negative experience with life rendering your inability to laugh even at yourself.

clearthink966 posts11-04-2019 12:15pmIt sounds like you have had negative experiences upgrading you're Music Reproduction System this is a very common, frequent, recurring issue with those who prefer to evaluate such system components using what they believe to be objective, scientific, engineering data rather than first just actually listening to the components being considered in the evaluation.

Stage 6--Rinse, repeat.

Some can eventually reach a Stage 7. That happens when the frustration is so overwhelming that you lose the ability to think clearly and start, begin, and need to use three words to describe, detail, and explain every single incoherent, rambling, disjointed thought.

Step 10;  realise all that detail, extension,  slam (add your own words), bang for buck was nonsense and all I really wanted was some tone control device that got my toes taping again. 

Step 11; Realise music is the goal not gear and buy what makes your hart move to the music not your brain to the equipment. 

Step 12; happily listening to music again not equipment. 

Now how to get to step 10 that's the hard part. 

glen 

I like Elizabeth's version to. ;-)  

For me personally, I find a really oakey full bodied Cab can get me to step 12 at least temporarily.

Here in Washington we have some sweet green bud that will get you there in one step: inhale. 

Never had that problem only made great purchases sorry about yours.

I’ve personally never experienced this sort of problem in the OP, and I’ve been doing this for...just over 40 years.

I try to help people teach themselves how to listen and how to slow it all down, so they can make decisions that don't backfire or have to be rolled back.

I'm with the wine guy (I'm partial to Burgundy and Bordeaux).

first rule...
1) audition

second rule...
2) audition

pretty simple to avoid the 5 stages with one or two steps

Get it home, plug it in, WHOA! amazing! Can hardly believe how great it is. The improvements are awesome. One goes online to blog the experience. And add posts to threads of fans of the product everywhere, both conforming one’s own purchase, but also urging others to buy this miracle of sound. Perhaps even engage in online battle for naysayers... damnable a holes.
Third step: Had it for a few weeks, Getting used to the sound. but just why am I not pleased??? Isn’t this the cat’s meow? What is bothering me? Time passes...
Fourth step: the irritation as listening to more music is growing. It was way better last week

These steps can be condensed down to one word: placebo. It's very common and the sooner one learns to carefully A/B their new purchase with their previous gear, preferably over multiple weeks, the more money that person will save during their time in this hobby. 

Step one My life has become unmanageable 
Step two I am powerless over audio gear 

I just bought another Dac and now I know when the drum stick hits the cymbal, if the drum stick is made of hickory or ash : )

Good Lord!
Am I the only one here who can see the OP for exactly what It is??
🤔🤔🤔

Could be. Likely, maybe even. Me, I see it as a joke. On who? That is the question.

I am big enough to admit in 30+ years of being an "audiophile" / music lover I have made purchases I have regretted even after having auditioned them.

All above true.

After 61 years on this earth and being a toy guy, my postulate is wanting is *almost* always better than having.  I have found this to be true for audio gear, cameras, boats, airplanes, motorcycles and women.

YMMV

Put me in with the “wine guy’s “ but more typically bourbon or scotch 🥃. As long as the music is good and well recorded I have found myself pretty happy even on a modest system. (ie < $2500). System matching is critical.  Cheers! 

*wry L*

@br3098 , how terribly true.  After 68 years on this ignoble coil, I finally learned to show some restraint....mostly. ;)

The bulk of what I own is 'previously owned'; some has been selected for what 'it' can do 'for me' in pursuit of my 'goals'.  Acceptance of my advancing age at an earlier point in time, I stopped pursuing the 'latest & greatest' new 'this 'n that'...

'Once upon a time', self and spouse enjoyed the '3rd member of the household', a pleasant batch of items that while not 'bleeding edge' was superior to *mmm* +/- 90% of what our peers owned.

It got left behind us, due to 'changes', self-imposed.  Some good; some not so much.  Such is life and what one does with it.

Since then, the equipment offered to us 'consumers' has evolved to perform beyond what we had then for a lot less $.  Meanwhile, we've devolved to some degree as well.  But, I couldn't hear a dog whistle then, either.

I don't pursue what I listen to with the intent of impressing Anyone with What it is, nor how 'advanced' it's touted to be by Anyone.

My spouse is happy when I am.  I'm lucky that way. *S*

(She prefers the Maggies'...but agrees that the amt's blow them away in some respects. *L*  Prefers 'simplicity' over 'absolute perfection', which I can relate to...).

At the end of the day:
Do what you like.
The pursuit of the 'diminishing number' (i.e., .0000...01 thd @  'X') will always exist and continue.
If it makes you smile, it can't be bad.
(Until you discern it don't...*L*)
Make it FUN.
Peace, y'all.

Nice riff on Elisabeth Kubler-Ross and the 5 stages of grief.

"Here in Washington we have some sweet green bud that will get you there in one step: inhale."

I'm with "Miller" on this one.  I find it quite humorous and extremely hypocritical that individuals who have a glass or two of wine or a couple of cocktails each evening "to relax and take the edge off", are the same people who call individuals that partake of a little Cannabis each evening druggies, potheads, or burnouts.  

The last research I read, there is no record of a single person who has ever died from Cannabis overdose, had cirrhosis of the liver due to Cannabis use, undergone crippling or deadly Delirium Tremens withdrawals after stopping Cannabis use, nor become physically addicted to Cannabis.  You could say the same about alcohol....oh wait, no you can't.  But when Forum Members commented on their favorite "musical enhancement" preferences, the only reply that gets a "snarky" response is the one that mentions Cannabis use.  It must be hard to breathe when your nose is that far up in the air.

To coin an old phrase, "Smoke 'em if you got 'em."

Much of the music I love comes from people who WERE high when they came up with it. Like them, I survived those years and now that I'm older and perhaps wiser, I've drifted away from that youthful, carefree life. Oh, I still have those moments, and if I could, that is all I would have, just moments, one after another. But that's part of growing older and having to take care of things, like bills and parents and people you love. That's responsibility. It's a double edged sword. I yearn for the days where life was so easy and carefree, when my dad was still around and my mom was always happy because he was there. Now, I try to fill that void the best I can for her. I tell my wife I love her every morning and dutifully go off to work. But deep down, I know in my soul that I will always be that carefree, independent seeker. I find solace in that and know my dad is laughing at my antics when I go to my little log cabin and live my life in peace. Yea, maybe I drink a few too many and if the mood is right, I'll take a hit or two before casting a line in the stream. And as the daylight begins to fade, I'll go in and leaf through my music like a kid again. Pick something out and just enjoy it. That's when I know I made the right decisions, not only with my music and equipment, but in life.   

I used to think my life was a tragedy. 😫 But now I realize it’s a comedy. 😃

@thamilton1
I believe you are closing in on Nirvana

The realization that different isnt always better. And, perhaps, that bad recordings should sound bad (worse?) when played on a good system.

allenf1963,
But there are many documented case of paranoia :-)

 Did someone say wine?

We are all addicts spending our money to get an ever-elusive high.  The fact that you are reading this (and possibly commenting) on this thread entitles you to membership in this exclusive club.

BTW, most of us (including myself) are spending enormous amounts of money on very simple electronics.   

Clearly we should toke or drink wine/scotch/bourbon/ale prior to evaluating potential purchases/improvements. 

Funny thing is, alcohol affects/reduces our hearing, which is why drinkers get progressively louder.  Then, ears hear frequencies differently at reduced volume.

Thus, the tone control comment is brilliant.

Tokers don't get louder, time shifts though. That must be why TT have speed/pitch controls. I just realized, we need remote speed controls, perhaps with syncronous low volume eq.

btw, to engineer and sell incredibly complex and expensive TT without dust covers indicates to me they are designed by drinkers not tokers.

I spit out my tea!   Quote from my wife, "For 100,000 dollars you think they could have figured out a dust cover."

Good Lord!
Am I the only one here who can see the OP for exactly what It is??
🤔🤔🤔

I see it the same way myself.

I read and see it as an overt attack, couched in terms of ’please excuse me, no harm is meant.’

When in fact, harm is definitely meant.

As all the other prior posts illustrate that harm is actually meant.

You are being gamed, people, by an obviously (and via their record of posts) -- problematic member.

I pop a couple CBD gummies right before a critical listening session. 🤪

I used to love smoking pot and listening to music. With the mean green that is so present now I dont really enjoy much of anything when I am high. We need to go back to the browns, golds and reds of yesteryear. If it aint grow outside it isnt worth a damn in my book. 

In the mid-2000's I met the dealer who was supplying Dylan with his smoke (he had a home-delivery business). At that time Bob liked Goofy Grape ;-) .

“The last research I read, there is no record of a single person who has ever died from Cannabis overdose, had cirrhosis of the liver due to Cannabis use, undergone crippling or deadly Delirium Tremens withdrawals after stopping Cannabis use, nor become physically addicted to Cannabis. You could say the same about alcohol....oh wait, no you can’t. But when Forum Members commented on their favorite "musical enhancement" preferences, the only reply that gets a "snarky" response is the one that mentions Cannabis use. It must be hard to breathe when your nose is that far up in the air.”


I am of the opinion that cannabis on occasion for fun with friends is ok and I have had the odd toke when offered in my younger years - but rarely. Its not my thing at all but each to his/her own. But I am doubtful that it does not cause serious health issues with regular long-term use use. Can’t be good for the lungs. And it can cause psychosis with long-term use.

I would have thought Dylan was an Appalachian Gold kind of guy.

Step 1 enjoy the music, there are no more steps.

Best answer yet!

Laughing at myself allows me to enjoy the music more and fret less :-)

tooblue1,112 posts11-05-2019 1:22pm

Step 1 enjoy the music, there are no more steps.

I see it the same way myself.

I read and see it as an overt attack, couched in terms of ’please excuse me, no harm is meant.’

When in fact, harm is definitely meant.

As all the other prior posts illustrate that harm is actually meant.

You are being gamed, people, by an obviously (and via their record of posts) -- problematic member

Well I am certainly glad I am not the only one here.
Thx Teo.

Yes, watch:

• Who makes personal attacks.
• Who does not address the contents of posts, but launches into tirades of a personal nature
• Who has no skin in the game, no matter the outcome
• Who is claiming to be a victim, and yet launches repeated personal attacks.

uberwaltz8,140 posts11-05-2019 2:13pm

I see it the same way myself.

I read and see it as an overt attack, couched in terms of ’please excuse me, no harm is meant.’

When in fact, harm is definitely meant.

As all the other prior posts illustrate that harm is actually meant.

You are being gamed, people, by an obviously (and via their record of posts) -- problematic member

Well I am certainly glad I am not the only one here.
Thx Teo.

You forgot a point I am sure.......

  
:Who relishes making threads that are toxic but tries to coat them in sugar and disguise them as jest.

Oh btw, you should be standing in front of a mirror when you read that.....

Question for the audience.

Does problematic mean that:

• I don't agree with you.
• I don't simply accept what you say as fact
• I am not afraid to say the above, nor stand up for myself when attacked (repeatedly)
  
• I have the education and experience to talk knowledgeably about why I don't agree with what you said or the facts you claim?

teo_audio1,203 posts11-05-2019 12:29pm
You are being gamed, people, by an obviously (and via their record of posts) -- problematic member.

Some people’s self irony are others overt attack !

If you find this thread so "toxic", why did you feel a need to reply to it? You could have simply ignored it. You could have assumed that people who are here are adults and can make a similar choice for themselves.

uberwaltz8,141 posts11-05-2019 2:25pmYou forgot a point I am sure.......

 
:Who relishes making threads that are toxic but tries to coat them in sugar and disguise them as jest.

atdavid

ou could have assumed that people who are here are adults ...

I’m not at all sure that’s a safe assumption. There seem to be several juveniles who regularly post here - based on their simplistic renderings - and their clamoring to be treated as "adults" suggests that they aren’t.

I maybe wrongly assumed this was still a free world where as long as I follow forum rules I can post what I choose and where I choose.

Maybe you consider nobody is allowed to post a view of your OP that contradicts it's purported purpose.

Would that not put you in the same boat as those who you repudiate here?

Just curious, no need to waste your precious time to reply.....