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I find myself "tuning out" anymore.....is the magic fading?

I think I might have hit a plateau in my audiophile/hi-fi journey.

I'm not saying that I don't enjoy listening to my system and music, I certainly do.

However, (and not trying to turn this into a b*tch session), I am REALLY tired of a lot of things that go along with this hobby.

It dawned on me when I received (unsolicited, mind you) a copy of Stereophile and a MusicDirect catalog the other day in the mail.

I can't find a single thing in either magazine that I actually want. Nothing. Even the pretty ad pictures just don't do it for me.

I used to subscribe to several YouTube audio influencer channels. I can't hardly sit through any of them anymore without grimacing. Everything is the "latest/greatest/gotta have it" product. Not only do I just not really trust you any more, but I find myself simply not interested in what you are peddling. 

How many different speakers are you going to audition? Jeez.....buy a set and enjoy them. They can't ALL be the speakers you've ever heard.

Even on here, I find discussions of whether or not some tweak works or doesn't work (cables/fuses/magic rocks, whatever....) to be boring and not worth the time to respond. They might work for you, might not work, I don't care.

Any discussions using the term "Snake Oil" will be summarily dismissed from any future consideration of thought.

Which DAC is the best? How come I still listen to CDs when you can rip all your music to a HD? You NEED a turntable! Your amp is old and sucks. Buy some new speaker cables. Double blind test your interconnects and you'll see.... The Pink Panther brigade says if I measure it, it must be true. (Your ears be d*mned!) You NEED to do this/that or the other thing....because I said so.

Maybe some day I'll get the "upgrade-itis" bug again, but at this point, I'm just not interested. Jaded might be a good word, I don't know....burnt out? Overload?

Anyway, rant over. Was just wondering if anyone else ever got to this point.

 

 

 

 

128x128coralkong
ghdprentice
7,272 posts
 

I go through upgrade cycles. Frenetic activity... research, testing, purchasing, burning in, tweaking... then bliss. Bliss is listening without yearning for a new piece of equipment... knowledge that I have a fully optimized system on the forefront of best possible system at the state of technology / financial ability.

In the old days, I just could not wait for the new album, or coffee in the morning with a couple hours of music. Evenings, similar. No thought other than enjoyment of the music.

While I would continue to monitor Stereophile, and The Absolute Sound... but with casual interest. Years would pass. My financial condition would improve and slowly my interest in the next upgrade cycle would slowly emerge. For a year before, I would scan the magazines at a greater depth and interest. The I would begin the upgrade cycle.

Over time I have found the urge ceases me about every seven to ten years. They cycles take about two years.  In between, musical bliss.

freediver
1,236 posts
 

Sounds to me like you've simply gotten off the merry go round that is CONSTANTLY being pushed in our hobby...Now instead of focusing on gear,it's time to seek out new & exciting music..At 65 y/o I am amazed at the world of new music my Pandora subscription has opened up to me..

dlevi67
44 posts
 

Yep. I "finished" in 1996. Restarted now because one component decided it was no longer playing nice with the rest (50 Hz humming on one channel - only when connected to a specific pre-amp), so needed a new DAC. And now, the anxiety over 'do I need a subwoofer'? Or 'are my amp/pre/speakers/transport still good enough?' 'What about streaming?'

Enough already. I'm enjoying reading (some of) the posts on the forum, and some of the conversations, but I'm not willing to relapse into upgraditis.

gdaddy1
149 posts
 

I don't even think about getting new stuff. The music is the main source of enjoyment. Specifically new music discovery I find entertaining. Like hunting.

Sometimes a week or two will pass without turning on the stereo. No guilt and the desire returns in time. It happens naturally. Like having a girlfriend. "Absense makes the heart grow fonder" and sometimes tweaking is fun and can be an important part of the realtionship to prevent boredom.

mapman's avatar
mapman
22,454 posts
 

Tuning out things in your life that don't matter or make things better somehow is a very healthy thing to do.  Congrats on that!

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