Maybe the Journey is Over?........Well......

You know it ain't over till it's over. It's always something.  If it's not one thing, it's something else. [Rosanne Rosanna Danna]

There’s more at play here (pun intended) than which format can beat up the other format. There are lifestyle changes that happen as well. This includes (but not limited to) how much aging knees appreciate the trips to the rack to manipulate physical media.

We also have to understand that physical media -> "unphysical" media has changed, too. In the early days of clunky first gen CD players, we got remote controls, skip buttons and a not-so-easy way to set up a playlist. Now those music services know us well enough to set up a playlist based on what we ate for breakfast.

Music at home is often social. It’s so much easier (and, less risk of catastrophic failure) to share your app with a friend and allow them to edit the night’s playlist. It’s not as reassuring to allow a friend to cue up a record on a turntable who’s stylus is not field replaceable and may cost more than the vehicle your guests drove to the event in, Consuming 1.4 glasses of <insert adult beverage of choice here> is a factor, too.

Emotional connections are difficult/impossible to evaluate objectively. My daily drivers have had a clutch and shift knob since 1983. But, when my wife and I are selecting wine at the store, one with a cork in it, and one with a twist top, we often look at each other for second and give a simultaneous nod to the twist top. As I said, things change. The "serenity?" Or, the "hit?"

I think there’s a strong correlation between how our body progresses and how we view the world. When our standard equipment "hardware" that performed impressively for a vast span of oue lifetimes, becomes "software", it has a effect downstream on how we view things in general. Maybe even our music systems? Just sayin’.

If that internal magnet that drew you to that which used to light up your musical world is pulling you in another direction, then so be it. You had the opportunity to enjoy superb analog in your home for many years. No regrets.

It's always fun and exciting to get new stuff but until a person decides that enough is enough, "upgrading"will continue. I've found that initially not reading anything about whatever hobbies you're into is helpful and then slowly transition back to perusing sites. 

@baclagg 

Congratulations on putting together a great system! I to have the H390 and I’m truly enjoying it!

@hilde45 

I also have the H390 and the Dac is good, I would in no way call it world class. It is far better than the Schiit Bifrost I have, but nowhere close to the Denifrips Pontus ll that I also have.