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Am I Getting Soft Here?

I’ve just been loving my stereo lately, this despite the fact everything is far from bank-breakingly expensive and is, well, at least a few years old. Right now I’m streaming CD quality music from Idagio and the sound is just glorious. Timbres are lovely. Sure, I’m listening to a modest. perhaps a ten person Baroque chamber ensemble, but there’s a convincing sense of image, dynamics and space. I’m not in the first row of the venue but I’m far from the nosebleed section or hidden in a corner. Hoping I’m not cursing things with this post!

NOLA Boxer Speakers. Primaluna Integrated amp. Cambridge Audio streamer. Interconnects, etc., at a similar quality level. But yeah, I was able to build my listening room pretty much to audiophile precepts, and everything is painstakingly positioned.

edcyn
daledeee1's avatar
daledeee1
512 posts
 

HaHa!  See how long it lasted.  I have a proper rack coming. The other one just sat on the floor so this should help.  It is a Pangea Vulcan they were on sale for $169.  I have a bunch of Herbie's  stuff to put under components.  Is it advised to put Herbie's on each corner of the shelves as well? 

rvpiano's avatar
rvpiano
2,424 posts
 

So much of the nature of this hobby is not really based on the enjoyment of music but on the tiny increment of SQ we can get with the changing of equipment.

sns
3,003 posts
 

Sometimes changes result in much larger increments of SQ, my recent streamer upgrade has turned out to be one these. I only have one adjective to describe this change, and that is revelatory. This is the level of sq I've been desiring since hearing multi $100K vinyl setups in carefully controlled environments. Analytical listening no longer a concern, my conscious state goes into bliss mode without any effort, simply luxuriate into the music. So the question remains, how long will this state last, is this a permanent status or will I return to analytical states over time? Sound such that it brings a tear to the eye at present, will this last over time? Is there an end to this game, or does it go on to who knows when?

ghdprentice
6,381 posts
 

@sns

That happened to me as well.
 

After my last upgrade I didn’t touch anything for nearly a year I was so entranced with my system… even though I knew little was optimized. Then finally getting curious I did one little thing and the result was so important, it motivated me to do another… and another. After each I just drop back into the music as my system is even more seductive and just enjoy the music for another month.

 

When I was much younger I was constantly switched to the “analytical mode”… and spent way to much time there… work kept me away from my system so the small amount of time with it was spent in the analytical mode. I don’t do that anymore… not even after tweaks… if I don’t enjoy the music more, I undo the tweak.

chocaholic
189 posts
 

This sentence from MC stood out:

“Some weeks later we have them over. Listening room door, eyes bug out.”

It can be argued that upgrading equipment isn’t always for pure SQ improvement. His eyes bugged out not his ears. There’s a reason equipment is designed to look great. Hand rubbed wood, polished stainless, glasswork, etc.  Many can simply ignore the visual aspect, but many cannot. Add to it…it’s fun to get a new toy and spend days and weeks tweaking. 
 

The upgrade bug bites for many reasons. 

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