How do you rationalize audio upgrades?

+1, celtic66

I’m not terribly surprised at some of the responses since many audiophiles seem to be under the impression they only have 5-10% of the way to go before they achieve full Audio Nirvana.

First mountain climber: Wow! Isn’t the view spectacular from on the top of the world!

Second mountain climber: Save your strength. We’re only at Base Camp.

Correct a known well understood deficiency or a broken component, in past when something fails I consider replacing it, or upgrade ( I have done both )

on tweaks, some are so low cost that the only thing one need to do is rationalize the time you spend implementing, convincing yourself it is better, and then defending them as real... not imagined, or just crazy

there is of course the best answer, “ I have seen the future, I can afford it “

enjoy the music

For ~ 95% of the audiophiles I have met, the upgrade justification is to achieve some new level of audio nirvana that said upgrade (or tweak) is going to achieve for them. Then when they upgrade X ... well now I am going to have to upgrade Y. It’s a never ending cycle akin to many who complain about their lot in life saying well if I just had "this", or if only "this" happened :-)

The similarities are shockingly similar because in both cases, a simple change or fix is identified as the path to nirvana, when in most cases, what is really needed is hard work.

In the case of audiophiles, that hard work is learning about room acoustics, learning how to take measurements to determine deficiencies in room acoustics, and learning how to fix them. Unlike a simple equipment upgrade, it takes a serious time investment, it is not glitzy, and you can’t brag about your new purchase to your audiophile buddies.


My turntable ... I wanted that exact brand and model type since I was 20, love the look of it, and when I could not only "afford" it, but justify the disposable financial outlay, I bought it. It does not get much use ... for me it is art and that was my justification.