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avoiding component purchase mistakes: part 1

i have been thinking about buying and selling. there are a lot of items for sale, both on ebay and audiogon.

it would seem there is some dissatisfaction with component
selections.

the purpose of this essay is to present some ideas to minimize purchases of components that you dislike after a short period of ownership.

1) understand who you are--your personality. try to be objective. there is a relationship between personality and preference for sound. for example, the continuum stimulus avoidance--stimulus approaching can serve as an indication as to what characteristics of sound you might not like. see if there is a consistency between components you sell and where you see yourself as one who is stimulus avoiding and stimulus approaching. examine your personality to see if there are conflicts between your traits of personality and your equipment choices.

another example is the relationship between need for achievemnt and upgrading. there may be other examples.
introspection saves $$.

2) obtain facts about products you are considering for purchase, especially inrelationship to an interfacing component. some of this stuff is elementary, so forgive me if my examples are redundant.

buying a tube amp for an electrostatic speaker ? one of the concerns might be its ability to handle a 2 ohm load.

buying a super efficient loudspeaker, e.g., some horn designs, while own ing a 200 watt solid state class a amp ?
there may be a problem. too much power/current and you may have a problem with your preamp, depending upon its gain.
avoid component mismatches by calling manufacturers and get the facts,.

3) separate marketing, spin, hype and other attempts at persuasion from facts. watch for the use of words that contradict each other in the same sentence, or words which confuse a description of a recording with that of the sound of a component.

don't be influenced by the use of "best" or "better" than the competition.

don't have unrealistic expectations of component performance and don't be too influenced by reviews.
mrtennis

Showing 2 responses by mrtennis

mrtennis OP
3,295 posts
 
one out of 4 isn't bad. as far as getting advice from a virgin. perhaps the virgin is a virgin for a reason and evaluate the advice on its own merits, regardless of the source.

i will post part 2, but no one is twisting your arm to read it. that includes you 9rw.

a little psychology is good for the soul. psychobabble anyone ?
mrtennis OP
3,295 posts
 
consider the dimension, introversion extroversion, or stimulus seeking, stimulus avoiding.

the type of sound preferred by each would be different. i think it is obvious what the preferences would be for such individuals.

consider also, your category, that of being analytical.

if you are an analytical person, you would want to analyze.

a high resolution system would give such a person plenty to analyze. veiling would be boring for both stimulus seekers and those with an analytical bent.

i think these examples suggest that psychology is a useful basis for helping to explain sonic preferences.
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