After fifty years… amazing. What high end audio can be.

I can relate gh .  Be 70 Dec. 30.  and  couldn’t be happier with the system at this point.   All the best and MERRY CHRISTMAS 🎄.

Yep, ditto. A relative newcomer to the high end game but definitely very happy with what I’ve been able to put together! Not saying there may be some future plans, but for now, very, very happy. A bit of Elton playing currently as I type! Merry Christmas!

ghdPrentice,

you have a wonderful system the only thing holding it back is those awful transparent wires they use junkie ofc, you should really try the new rectangular OCC single Crystal wire from Neotech, it is far superior to anything ofc on the market at any price and lot of companies like Transparent rip people off for cheap ofc wire, I have the Sahara which is the rectangular copper OCC wire and it totally blew away my round OCC, it's not cheap but boy is it worth it, my speaker wire was 4300 US and the only thing that will beat it is the Amazon which is the rectangular silver OCC wire and that's double the price.

Congratulations! You have a terrific system that brings you daily musical joy. Mission accomplished, and no easy feat!!  BHBH

I bet what counts equally is the route to get here, and the real value is pride.

Marry Xmas and enjoy every drop of it..

ghd your posts always convey your love of your system and music. You sir are a lucky man and I wish you many happy and healthy years enjoying that. 

Tim

ghdprentice

You are one of my favorite voices to chime in on Audiogon message boards.  Like stated above, your true interest and passion in music are always a delight to read.  Thank you!  I am reaching retirement age soon and have been working on my end system so that I will be able to enjoy more time focused on the music.  I wish you many many happy and healthy years to enjoy!  

70+ here and the journey as much fun as the rewards...glad you are happy with everything, as am I ...I think the trick is to enjoy the journey and pursuit without losing the joy of what you already have...

This is a real good/fun topic here… if you have cable issues please just start your own cables thread…

@ghdprentice your post is what this hobby/passion/obsession is all about. The journey, traveling the winding roads the people we meet, the music we discover, the equipment we buy, and the day we find that inner peace where it all comes together. I am with you my friend and I am almost in that place, just not at the same scale as you. 

This is a very selfish thing our hobby, we are doing it for ourselves but it the passion for music and perfection that drives us.

 

I hear ya!  I'm only 41 years into the endeavor, but the system has been better than it needs to be for quite a while, and continues to improve in incremental steps.  I love listening to it, and am proud of how it all came to be.  😍

every now and then I say Enough to myself, I only want fun gear I can actually lift myself...then a song will come on and sound so good, I'll say Never downsizing !!!

@jl35 I hear you though I did go the Tube integrated route with the Qualiton X200 (54Lbs) and can still lift it at 60 years young. 

Deleted my posts that mentioned that Square Wire guy. 

Congratulations on your system and enjoyment of it! I too passed a certain threshold a few years ago where engagement with the music far surpassed my analysis of sound quality. Sometimes I think to myself this level of sound quality is one of the major achievements of life, seems silly but I can't help myself.

 

But it isn't silly when we get to engage with music with this level of sound quality, experiencing a sense of these artists performing in our listening room is the payoff. These close encounters with great musicians brings about emotional experiences that must be important for our well being.

I'm 74,

I changed a lot the last few years while staying home avoiding covid. Back to my vintage Horn speakers, tube preamp and tube amp. New to me Vintage TT with 3 arms, existing Teac R2R, and it took me quite a while, but found a CD player that has me re-discovering my many CDs.

I too couldn't be happier.

I am delighted to read about your happiness and satisfaction with your system and your enjoyment of music. Like elliottbnewcombjr, I also just turned 74, and like both you and him, I’m lucky enough to enjoy what I have.

May we have many more happy and healthy years of listening and enjoying.

 

Jim

Great to hear all you guys in your 70s still enjoying your systems! Just turned 53 and loving the sound I get and hope to for many years to come.

Yeah.  My 2022 system is pretty good.

But I didn''t mind my 1972 system and the music was much better then.

So were my ears!

Glad we're both still loving it @ghdprentice 

Only 68 here but same realization. Amazed at my system everyday. Retirement life is pretty rewarding in my case, but I'm not 70 yet lol.

Not yet 70 (but close), been into hifi and music since 1969. Many aspects have led to massive improvements. Of course design and technology but also quality control. God some 1970's stuff was abject rubbish? Current system built around Cayin tube amp and Audio Physic speakers is quite incredible compared to system costing many times more even 20 years ago. Of course real cost has decreased but in my case the internet means each of these items were purchased at 40+% off retail. So even supply chains, retail and media have played a part in the  transformation. Anyway guys merry Christmas and a happy new year and enjoy what you have, it's never been a better time to be an audiophile.

@clearthinker +1

What’s cool is than I have less than 30% [12% in mid 80’s dollars] invested today.

Back then

"On well recorded material, this system could raise the hair on the back of your neck. One felt as though one could walk up and join the band playing in the room, be it a Ben Webster trio, Queen or the London Phil... some said it sounded too good..."

Ditto today

I’m 79 (but only look 78) and I’ve been interested in hi end audio since 1969.  I have progressed in spurts, however, not as a steady pursuit but as I head into retirement I went and splurged big time (for me). I now have my “forever system” with which I’m totally happy. The challenge now is to continue to get The Absolute Sound, attend Axpona  and check in with this forum and still resist the temptation to buy anything more.

Thank you all for your great comments. I am also happy to hear how many other folks are enjoying there system and living over 70.

The process has been incredibly enjoyable… one of discovery and ongoing enjoyment, what I like most in life.

I was privileged to be an exploration geologist for ten years. People actually paid me to, “go find x (mostly gold)… and said come back when you find it. Stay in the country.” That was pretty much my entire instructions. Stuff like that makes me come alive. Where to start, how, where to go…etc. High end audio is like that. You got to figure out where you want to go, where to start, how to get there. Unfortunately no one pays you to do it. Oh well.

 

For those of you nearing retirement or nearing 70… well, blink and you will be there. But you guys know that already. With age comes wisdom.

@ghdprentice Nice post, as always. My only next step is to get a better space such as yours.

Now at 75, having the best system I've had in 50 years, I couldn't be happier. All it took in the end was a few dollars spent for a quality line stage and that made all the difference.

Music is still such a joy to listen to, even at this age I'm getting more enjoyment  than I was a few short years ago.

Like the old saying goes, "don't worry, be happy".

Happy holidays,

Dan

@noromance

Thanks.

Yes, I was so lucky when relocating twenty years ago and running through this house. I noticed this was the perfect place to put my stereo. I wasn’t thinking about acoustics, just the space… so, quite by accident I stumbled on one of the best possible acoustical spaces… well, actually that my dealer has ever heard (he installs many +$200 K systems), so has more experience than I. Just luck. Over the years I figured out why it is so good… but I never would have known.

@islandmandan

Fantastic! When you retire and take your emphasis off of work / achievement it is great to reap the rewards of all the effort.

 

I am really glad to hear so many similar experiences. One of the reasons I enjoy posting is to help folks start off right and that high end audio can be really rewarding. But there is a steep learning curve and it is easy to get off on the wrong foot and head down a dead end. You can see them all over this site, denying the sound quality of great designs, high quality components, high end wires, or thinking that measurements are everything. etc.

GDH,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GDH,

Myy listening room is the same situation as yours is. When I moved in here (29 years ago, now), My system was on the long wall of the house, due to a large and heavy woodstove on the end wall.

After a few years, I decided that was no good, so I had the stove moved to a side wall, and located the speakers out into the room, about five feet from the front wall. The difference was instantly much, much better, and it's been that way ever since. Even three subwoofers work well, though they are not at all close in proximity to each other. Bass is nice not at all overpowering, just the way I like it.

I  was looking at your system, your speakers are very beautiful!

Regards,

Dan

 

 

 

gdh

@ghdprentice -- almost 62 here and I still own the first LP I played on my first "stereo" in 1973!  I am off to audition some speakers tomorrow and I will be bringing along one or two of my favorite Bill Evans recordings!  There is something about him that forges a personal connection to each song and it is wonderful to hear you writing something quite similar. 

I still have work to do on my "room" but I do have a plan, so more to come on this subject!

Thanks for a wonderful reflection and for the advice you have offered as a fellow ARC convert. 

 

 

@ghdprentice , once you reach this point it is more about acquiring content than components because changes might actually degrade the enjoyment you have right now, congrats!

Congratulations on your happy landing after what was no doubt, a long and interesting journey. That you achieved all of this, despite the handicap of using round copper is truly amazing.

Ghdprentice, you’re one of my favorite contributors on site too. You consistently provide well thought out and practical advice. Glad to hear how much satisfaction you derive from your current system, which you’ve obviously taken great pains to put together.

As a fellow 70 year old, my only concern is that youngsters like Baylinor and Henry58 feel entitled to chime in here at their tender age. Grow up you two. And Happy New Year to you and everyone else here, youngsters included.

Mike

Yes, I can relate as well. I have been pursuing hi-fi for over 50 years. I built my first stereo speakers (Bozak) in 7th grade woodshop.  My woodshop teacher didn't understand why I needed two speakers!  I saved all my money from cutting lawns to buy a Fisher 202 Receiver and thought I was in heaven.  I convinced my father to take me downtown (Cleveland, OH) to Audio Craft were they holding a McIntosh Amplifier Clinic.  We waiting for over 2 hours whist some of the most beautiful equipment I had ever seen was placed on the test bench.  I listened to same gear in the showroom and I was smitten. When it was my turn on the bench, the harmonic distortion graph for my lowly Fisher looked like a hockey stick.  The technician grinned suggested I upgrade to a McIntosh.  Little did I know at the time, he was the infamous Dave O'Brien of McIntosh Labs. 

Fast forward to the present, my father passed away two years and I cherish our time together and sacrifices he made to nourish my hobbies. So for the past two years I have been researching, networking, searching and building my McIntosh system and 50 years later - it is bliss. (I know that this forum is not necessarily fond of MC, but this is my story and I am sticking to it).

quite by accident I stumbled on one of the best possible acoustical spaces… well, actually that my dealer has ever heard (he installs many +$200 K systems), so has more experience than I. Just luck.

it is easy to get off on the wrong foot and head down a dead end. You can see them all over this site, denying the sound quality of great designs, high quality components, high end wires, or thinking that measurements are everything.

Those who are not quite so fortunate as your good self often do some quite substantial research and not rely on luck.

I think that there is a non sequitur somewhere in that sermon.  As a scientist, you'd know that.

Congratulations @ghdprentice 

You have a system that inspires me and I’m sure many others!

I’m 62 and am beginning my high-end audio journey.  After 7yr of intense research, I almost completed my analog+digital systems- regular, flea watt, and desktop.  Only a few cables purchase.  Unfortunately, my house remodel is keeping me from assembling.  Wife not enthusiastic about my large spending with only components in boxes to show.

I use only triangle wire in my system. In side by side tests it bested round, rectangular and square wire. The equilateral sides create a synergy that.....Oh for cripes sake, someone always has to rain on the parade don’t they? Congratulations ghd, glad you’re enjoying your system. Have a wonderful new year.

ghdprentice congrats:-)I'm almost there at 68 and enjoying the music so much I don't have the desire to try any new shiny stuff. Enjoy!