Your dilemmas or alternatives expose the problem with us audiophiles...
Because i consider being one if i dream about good sound all my life but never succeeded to create it till i seriously begun 12 years ago...
I only succeeded in the last few years...
First with speakers /acoustic room and second after selling my house a smaller headphone rig...+ smaller speakers...
I succeeded to reach audiophile level 2 times then ...
Then i learned enough to know that your opposition make no sense because i am also a music lover... Money invested in music exceed by much the money invested in rig in my case...
My total cost for my 2 system was ALWAYS under 1,000 bucks...
700 dollars now... I tried to upgrade 2 weeks ago with an investment of 1000 bucks for an a tube amp of great recognition and value but i returned it after 1 hour of trial for a refund...It was evident that one of the best tube amp was worst than my vintage S.S. Synergy matter yes, and the fact that some vintage S.S. are tube like is evident for me now..
This means how my actual system is already very hard to upgrade because it is already a top one with no EVIDENT disturbing faults in the acoustic perceived factors... I was being able to tune my acoustic room by myself and tuning my 100 resonators then i am not deaf and with a hearing of a very healthy man for his age...
Audio is based on basic knowledge and not at all on price tag... Those who think otherwise had forgottent long time ago by obsessive behaviour what are the basic of acoustic and how to use them and they are oblivious of the Ratio S.Q./ price of past high end top products...
My actual amplifier i failed to upgrade it and i cannot upgrade my headphone anyway even if i would have the money without many, many trials and frustration , because they are a unique exceptional design in all headphone history never done anywhere in the last 45 years ...
Then what ?
Any man with a working mind will pick a low cost system which he will wisely choose for a low money cost and keep most of his money for music...
The reverse is preposterous...😁
My situation is exactly what you describes:
700 bucks audio rig+ 10,000 musical albums..
i will die instead of picking the ridiculous reverse choice...
Then your alternatives reflect misunderstandings, not the audiophiles nor the music lovers situation which are the same person in most of us..
😊
Dont take it personal...I know you know already all of what i spoke about...
I know you were half joking and making a sarcastic proposition... Then i take your post to describe my experience...Because some act exactly in the preposterous way you described in your alternatives...
I wish you the best with my heart...
If the genie gave us the choice of a $10,000 system and 1,000 albums versus a $1,000 system and 10,000 albums, which would each of us choose? That would really separate the audiophiles from the music lovers. 😉