Has Your Hobby Changed?

Congrats on retirement @mikelavigne. If your experience is anything like mine, you'll find yourself just as busy, but hopefully spending more of that time on the things you care about. 

I started in this hobby as an audiophile with audiophile gear very early on, and listened to material that tended to sound good; I found that to be very confining-- everyone had the same records and you'd hear the same stuff at listening sessions (those I miss, the in person hang, which was the way we shared info about gear and records). 

A dozen or more years ago, I curated my record collection, got rid of a lot of stuff and spent more time concentrating on obscurities. That was fun, and I built up a knowledge base about post-bop jazz, early proto-metal (what used to be precursor heavy rock but off the radar) and a few other niches.

I discovered that my real fascination is the history of this stuff-- combining the stories behind the recordings with changes in technology and am considering going back to school for archival studies. 

I'm still a gear head, but am not avidly chasing down the latest and greatest. I'm fascinated by antiquarian gear. I would like one last big horn system if I can fit it into my room.

We are on the cusp of another generational change as the performers we knew and loved as young people start passing on. I guess most of the material I find enduring is older anyway, so other than nostalgia, it won't matter much to me personally. I do enjoy learning and find points of contact outside the traditional audiophile community to be a large source of "new to me" information. One young guy who is a hip-hop DJ turned me onto rare groove jazz; another, who is steeped in real country has turned me on to artists outside of the modern Nashville music machine.

There are also new artists that have similar interests in some of this stuff, ranging from folks signed to the Daptone label to Snarky Puppy to 1/2 a dozen bands here in Austin to an equal number abroad making interesting sounds. There's a funky old blues bar not far out of town that I've been meaning to visit and I'd like to have a guided trip to some of the temples of antiquarian sound in Japan. 

To me, the journey has always been the fun part. 

Retired. 6 Saturdays and 1 Sunday. I'm listening on every day that ends with day. Happy listening 🎶

I'm 4 years past retirement, so I already have made the switch. More than the retirement effect, the getting the house of stereo built and properly acoustically treated, followed by multiple equipment upgrades to best take full advantage of the listening room potential has kept me so busy along with all the other homeowner's chores that retirement has not quite sunk in yet. And I"m not sure it ever will even so the audio journey has reached its goal. Definitely able to purely dive into music anymore and no longer having to analyze sound. That right there is worth all the effort I have put in my endeavor.

It's too bad that I can no longer update my system on this site since I must have reached maximum input. No more "edit" showing lol. I am too lazy to start a new one plus since I got where I want to be, it somehow doesn't seem as important anymore. Thanks to all those who have helped me get there. 

Good discussion, nice way to end this special memorial weekend.

Not having to work enables a simple statement:

if the mood strikes you, every night is Saturday night.

@moonwatcher  luckily I still have my hearing. I was recently tested and I am still hearing everything I should, we’ll I do as long as I keep my left ear clear of wax. I am about the same as you as far as gear cost, but then I have another 5K in room treatments. The investment was well worth it. I have a great chair and it really is a great experience to be able to listen to the music now. There really are good and bad recordings and that is all I have to remind myself now. Better gear isn’t going to fix it! I’m 61 and still rocking!