Why Are People So Concerned About How Others Spend Their Money?

Agree 100% Russ. Some people have that puritanical streak that Mencken pointed out: people who live in terror that someone, somewhere, might be having a good time.

People who think a CCA through a cheap DS DAC and crummy class T amp makes them the moral superiors to those who invest in the companies and components that are really trying to advance the audio world, remind me of a mean old lady in town where I was trying to catch a train, who thought I was going too fast so she blocked both lanes of traffic diagonally on a busy road to slow me down. Literally stopped traffic dead. I bet she would be very critical of my stereo too 😂

It’s not the amount that people spend that I have any problem with.

Why should I?

It’s their money and their choice, and if it brings them happiness, then that can only be good.

However, what I do find disagreeable is the commonly propagated notion that spending more money always brings sonic improvements.

We’ve all repeatedly heard such terms as ’night and day’, ’jaw dropping’, ’beyond recognition’, ’gobsmacked’ (might be a British one) etc only to later discover for ourselves that no such differences ever existed.

Therefore it’s important that there are people who can point out such inconsistencies to at least give the inexperienced a fighting chance to get some value for money in an industry that often seems bedevilled by sharks, starry eyed cable enthusiasts and the dreaded snake oil purveyors.

It doesn’t matter how much money we may or may not have, we all want value for money, don’t we?

Thankfully, as reviewer Ken Kessler loves to point out, it’s never been as easy to get so much for so less.

https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/international/soundstage-uk/1639-ken-kesslers-new-stereo-system-part-seven

in an industry that often seems bedevilled by sharks, starry eyed cable enthusiasts and the dreaded snake oil purveyors.

You need to find a new place to buy gear. 

But isn't the majority of this forum about exchanging advice on how to wisely spend time and money to achieve better music reproduction quality?  For example, should I buy the Wilsons or the Magicos?  When someone asks what amp should they buy one of the first replies is always "what's your budget?"  If someone posts that they need a new phono preamp with 60dB gain for their newly purchased low output cartridge and state that they only have $500 to spend, then isn't any suggestion a concern about how that person spends their money?  There's helpful advice and there's also less than helpful advice, but they are nearly always about how to spend time and money.

@onhwy61 ,

To me there’s a very clear distinction between inquiry regarding budget so that one can tailor their response and be more specific (Helpful?) with recommdations of potential products. For example, it the speaker budget is 5K then you wouldn’t suggest Magico S5 speakers. That is not being judgemental, but rather it’s being considerate and respectful of stated monetary limits.

If  on the other hand someone says their preamplifier budget is 20K and someone responses with, only a fool would pay that kind of money. You can get a preamplifier just as good for 3K. That’s judgemental, arrogant and rude. This type of reponse is a person asserting their own person standard’s or limits onto another. Big difference.

Charles