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How often to Audiophiles upgrade their equipment?

I am eternally confused as to how and when I should spend my money. I started into this hobby a little more seriously about 3 years ago and have the bug in full now. I do very much enjoy listening to music. However, there is always confustion on how to spend my money. I am not being very clear. Let me start again.

Currently I have a home theater setup in the family room with a Rotel RSX-972 reciever, B&W 603S3 mains, LCR600 CC, ASW1000 SW, 602S2 surrounds, Sony 999ES DVD/SACD and Sony KP51WS500 TV. I have started a second budget system in the main living room for music only and it has Monitor Audio Bronze B2 speakers, Rotel 1060 Amp, and Rotel 961 CD player.

I am generally quite happy with this setup and enjoy them very much. But off course I am always thinking what can I do better and if I should at all. Having a young family, I doubt I will ever buy some of the very high end euipment or if I would want to. But I have an opportunity to uprgade my speakers now with a very small loss. I was thinking of the 604S3, but having looked at them, they are just too big and frightened me off. The next step up to the B&W CDM series is quite a bit more. But to go to that line, I should probably also upgrade my amplification first.

I guess what I am getting at is, how long do "real" audiophiles stay happy with their equipment and when do they decide it is time to upgrade. For example, I was thinking of always sticking with a budget, and stick with my equipment for say 5 years (unless their is something terribly wrong) and then get new equipment/newer models different brands but using the same amount of money as in the original budget five years earlier.

If this question makes any sense, please relate your thoughts and experiences.
schugh
Post removed 
sugarbrie
3,854 posts
 
My system(s) are always a work-in-progress. I have no plan or timetable; it just usually happens in small stages. It may be as simple as better isolation here, a new power cord there, etc. A major purchase is usually initiated by some new product or technology. If it out classes something else in the system, then there might be more changes coming. Some gear gets passed down to other lesser system I have.
kinsekd
252 posts
 
It depends.

Some components, like my Linn turntable, I've had for several years. And have no plans to upgrade. Other components, like cd players, I upgrade more frequently.

A lot depewnds on how much improvement I can make for how little $'s.
rcprince
3,079 posts
 
Like the others, it sort of depends. When I first started I upgraded often because (1) I started to make enough money to afford where I wanted to be heading (for example, I bought an Acoustat preamp to tide me over till I got my Audio Research SP11, my Thiel CS3's till I could afford 3.5s-which suddenly changed to Duntech Princesses when I heard those), (2) that couldn't happen soon enough for me and, (3) as I realize in hindsight, I really didn't know exactly what it was that I wanted. Once I finally realized what it was I wanted and got it, though, I've tended to hold onto it for quite a while, pretty much about 10 years on average, until reliability becomes an issue. Now I confine most of my changes to tweaks and performance modification upgrades to existing components, although recently I've changed my main amps and preamp because my older units were getting to be in the shop more often than in the system. I expect their replacements to be around for a while as well.
budrew
467 posts
 
Over the past year I've upgraded quite often because it had been about 20 years since I upgraded before that (high school). It wasnt so much upgrading as it was exploring how things sound differently. Some were upgrades, some were side-grades. Right now I feel like I'm just fine tuning, but unfortunately it's the fine tuning that can get expensive and become the proverbial search for the grail.

I think the trick is to find a sound you like and play within that realm. For example, if you like the "tube" sound, as if there was one, you can experiment/upgrade with different types of tubes or brands. Once you find a sound you like -- dynamic, romantic, warm, detailed, whatever -- don't try to upgrade too much beyond that because you may lose it. Some components just click into place like the wheels in a slot machine and you'll keep them for a long time, or at least you should try to resist the urge to replace them.

Also, if you think you might upgrade fairly soon you should consider stretching your budget and going the next step up. This can sometimes save you worry and money.

And don't forget tweaks and room placement. These can really make or break how you like your system, whatever it is at the time.
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