Why are so many people spending so much money to build “perfect” streaming system?

@laoman 

On Qobuz, among the 29 available Ring recordings I cited above, some are indeed excerpts (~3 hrs or less).  Others appear to be full Ring versions (or presumably as "full" as the original physical medium offered), including:

James Levine, 1994 on DG, 14 ":discs", 15 hrs 20 mins.

Clemens Krauss,  Bayreuth 1953, 13 "discs", 14 hrs 12 mins

Hans Knappertsbusch,  Bayreuth 1956, 13 "discs", 14 hrs 34 mins

Wilhelm Furtwangler, 1953 Rome, 13 "discs", 15 hrs 2 mins

George Solti, 2014 Decca recording (MQA), 4 "discs", 14 hrs 36 mins

Herbert von Karajan, 1998 DG, 14 "discs", 14 hrs 57 mins

Karl Bohm,  1973 Decca, 14 "Discs", 13 hrs 38 mins

I suspect this is more Ring than you're likely to find on CDs at your local Best Buy. Now, you could get a vinyl box set on Amazon (Furtwangler 1950, 11 records) for $98.99.  Many streaming service subscribers do also own CD players or turntables.  Some of them may use streaming primarily for "discovery".  

I guess I am just out of touch

Pretty much, yes. 

@laoman First World Problems.  

Merry Christmas. 

Yes, and that is the problem. You do get exerpts and maybe one full Ring, but not 5 or more full Ring versions with different soloists, conductors etc.

For me this one is easy- I have been into hifi and music since the 1970's. between LPs, which I never gave up on, CD and cassettes, I have thousands of titles on hand. I started to table in streaming a little over a year ago and took the full plunge in early 2022, with the purchase of a very good dedicated streamer. I have been able to explore new to me music as never before.  For the true music enthusiast who is always interested in learned of and about new music, it is amazing. millions of titles at my fingertip, at a cost of under $11/month (yearly Qobuz subscription). Roon isn't a factor as I am more than pleased with the app my streamer works with. I'm approaching 500 new titles just this year alone. 

On the other hand, if you are a person that listens to a handful of albums and is not interested in exploring new to you music, it's unnecessary. But for the music lover who is looking to expand what they listen to, it is the ultimate (almost) FM. [free music]

Streaming has come of age, and IMO is also becoming affordable at HiFi quality. I am thrilled to see (and own) a Bluetooth receiver smaller than a box of kitchen matches that supports lossless codecs and sports a SABRE DAC chip whose dynamic range and THD is better than my beloved vintage analog amp…for under $200.