Hi-Fi can be less expensive than anything


My modest by audiophile and outrageous by other standards set-up cost me about $7000, would've cost $15000 had everything been bought new. Not counting records, blank tapes and cds of which I don't have too many. Spread it over 15 years and it is less than $40 per month. That's nothing. Even if you triple this figure it will still be almost nothing.
inna
Inna, your music being available to others is one of the best comments ever made on here!
Nonoise, thank you. I get all my knives from one dealer - Nordic Knives in California - and almost always select blades made by mastersmiths. My preferences are Jim Crowell, John Fitch and Harvey Dean. Take a look at the Dean's website - great pieces, top quality and true artistry.
Schubert, thank you. Having said that, I also understand the need to sometimes escape into a dreamland and dedicated listening room can help. So maybe the best solution is to have two set-ups in totally different rooms.
When I did not live alone, none cared about my music or equipment till it played to ask to lower the volume or to shut down no matter how loud/quiet it was. Therefore got headphones and completely understand those with dedicated listening room so that none will tell to lower volume or to shut it down.

It should be available to those who desire I believe. To me it was a battle to grab a few square feet of listening area to place equipment that could only be used when none's home except me.
The whole point of a dedicated room is that it can be optimized for sound quality. As far as being a "man cave", take a look at some of the pictures in the virtual systems section where any number of people have aesthetically wonderful looking rooms. For me I don't readily allow people access to use my primary system, but my music collection is playable in six different rooms of the house. Wireless tech does make this convenient. In the end loudspeaker based systems need physical space to perform their best and whether you rent or own the cost attributable to this requirement can be substantial.
Czarivey, I sympathize. I never found myself in a situation like that, but I always have to self-regulate. I can't play loud music after certain hour, not only because it is an apartment building but because others want to have some quiet. I could have a dedicated room, the second room is not really used and it's not small, but this wouldn't change much. But sometimes I just say that I am going to play this record now and I am going to play it loud. Yeah, but one record not five in a row. I use headphones too, mostly at night, but you can't compare. Besides, with the phones on my head I am asleep in fifteen minutes at just about any volume.