Many of us want to Changegrade instead of Upgrading

I do that with the 3 set of speakers and a couple of integrated amps I have. I get the itch I swap things around, mix and match, or change grade as you say.

I have been satisfied at every level. Then after a time (saving money and enjoying my current system), would begin planning my next upgrade. Each upgrade and upgrade cycle has resulted in very substantial increases in sound quality and in my satisfaction of my system. I have never planned or unexpectedly received a sideway movement… OK, 45 years ago, I think I fooled areound for a year getting my first set of high end components right. 

I think my change grade is having a system in my office with a nice vintage Technics turntable and bookshelf speakers and dual subs with a pretty decent sound but quite different than with my main system. Not nearly a good as the main system but a nice change from time to time. 

@erik_squires Thank you for this thoughtful post. I relate to it greatly. I was on both upgraditis and changitis paths for over a decade. I ended up having three systems designed around three speaker designs - 3-way, electrostats, and horns, and then I started upgrading each system. This past year, I finally started getting content with just one system, which is now the system I have left. I decided to sell all of my spare gear. Once in a while I still upgrade something small to tweak, but it’s been fairly stable the last six months to a year.

Instead, I started a hifi company so I could help others through their journey! While the business has been moving slower than I’d like, I am rewarded in ways I never thought I would have - I get to meet lots of local audiophiles, and as people like the way I set up systems and treat rooms, customers ask me to come over and give them my perspective. So in the last few months since I kicked off the business, I’ve heard some incredible systems and incredible components in private settings, and I’ve gotten to play with them regarding positioning and tweaking. While I’ve heard hundreds of systems through the combination of my existing audiophile friends and family, dealers, and shows, the business has exposed me to even more systems that each present music a little bit differently, and it’s given me a lot of exposure to understanding the performance of different gear. And I’ve come to the conclusion that after a certain level of performance, it truly is worth appreciating “different” and not continuing to chase “better”.

How many of us go through phases where we listen to more jazz than rock or more classical than jazz etc for awhile? As each of those genres has a somewhat signature sound that's a bit different than the others, a related listening preference might find one enjoying more acoustic instrument than electric instrument music, resulting in a system component change or two that more accurately/pleasantly reproduces the sounds. I've made cartridge changes for that reason before.