Have you reached your end point with this addictive hobby?

Not quite but my desire to buy anything new is losing energy.  Kind of like a swinging pendulum.  It is still moving back and forth but the arc is becoming smaller every passing year.  

I agree there is no end point.   But if you want an end point, you'll have to live life as a hermit.  Stop audio subscriptions, stay away from audio forums like this one, don't listen to anyone else's system, and don't talk to other audiophiles.  Hard to do.

I think if you are an Audiophile there’s never going to be final end point. Audiophiles will always find a need to fix something. It’s an inherent gene that we all carry! 😂 

I've been done. Just like to read and look at it.  I enjoy Yamaha and it just bring joys hearing music.  This hobby has been costly but satisfying when you listen. Cheers

But Panera.....you have two of each. there'a reason.

I am done. Happy with my setup and sound I get from it. From here on, archiving noticeable improvement would really cost arms and legs for me and not worth the cost. 

 

I have money designated in my will that is only to be used for upgrades to my system.

Here I go again buying more cables. Just when I said no more I find a deal too good to pass up. 😂 

It ain't Over 'til the Fat Lady Sings.

 Though I will probably never stop purchasing audio related stuff moving forward it will be discretionary to say the least. Done are the days of piss…. away money on tweaks and unnecessary gimmick products especially isolating devices and other so called breakthrough products!

I have been through lots of used equipment but the search is over with separates made in the US by one of the direct to consumer folks who is well known. The sound and quality are excellent and I have no need or desire to upgrade. I have a small selection of quality speakers to rotate so if I can stay away from the want-ads I'm good.

Caught myself almost buying something new that I probably don’t need but like a lot of purchases was an act of want not need!

@prof

same thing your Fat Bob has:  TMD. And it has a dust cover  

 

@milpai there is a history of copyright litigation against the Internet Archive if you do an open web search. I’ll look up the record as an LP. Discogs will usually list legit CDs, so might be worth checking if you haven’t. 

Took a quick look- no CD listed on Discogs, Chad test pressing circa 2015, released 2024 on LP. Looks like a compilation of standards that was meant as a showcase for sounds back in the day, a/k/a a "demo record."

I particularly like side 2 of the 3rd Vol of Shelly and His Men at the Blackhawk. I don’t think Craft has reissued it, only Vol 1 (on vinyl, did not check CD). 

@whart ,

 I played a couple of discs from the Art Pepper Live at the Vanguard and Shelly Manne Live at the Blackhawk and reveled in what I was hearing. 

Talking about Shelly Mane, at 2015 AXPONA Chad Kassme played "Sounds Unheard Of!" at one demo and I have been searching for this recording ever since, on CD, since I am not into LP. My guess is that you might have this LP and it sounds fantastic on your system!

Just recently I came across internet archive where this LP has been ripped to FLAC. Since it is on archive.org, I believe it is legal?

@prof,

Feels awfully cruel to have gone all this way landed on my final dream system, and then I can’t appreciate it.   Hopefully that situation will change at some point.

While things are ok (for now) with me, I have been following researches related to hearing improvement. While we are still a few years away from experimental treatments, news such as THIS is encouraging. My father had major hearing issue and that turned him form a full scale extrovert to an introvert and his social life at the fag end of his life was practically 0, because he was embarrassed that he could not hear others properly, even with hearing aids.

I am hoping that the treatment to REVERSE the hearing loss is available within the next 5 years. With AI now, things should expedite. Man lives on hope!

I think it depends on how you define the "hobby"-- if it is the ongoing quest for improvements in sound through the acquisition/change of equipment, tweaking and room positioning, you could conceivably do that endlessly until you run out of funds or get frustrated and/or say "good enough." To me, gear acquisition and improving the performance of a system in a given room is but one part of the hobby- the other has to do with learning more about different music, its history and being exposed to different performances. 

I was very caught up in the "high end" at a young age- and had already built quite a good system by the time I was 20 years old- all ARC electronics, Quad Loudspeakers, SP-10 table, etc. I augmented that over the years with ribbon tweeters and subs, and migrated to Crosby Quads, with a continuous procession of ARC tube electronics. During that period, I was mostly listening to "audiophile" recordings, and focused more on what was wrong with the system than just enjoying it for what it was.

At some point during a hiatus from audio- I didn't even have a good system set up at the time, all was in crates, but had a roomful of records in boxes--I decided to go in a different direction, started to curate the records I had and search out better copies of all sorts of things. I had a substantial collection of classical and straight ahead jazz, along with a lot of rock warhorses, but dug pretty deeply to find the vaunted pressings, which led me into the collector's market and that exposed me to a whole other world of music, including deep prog and avant-garde jazz. I started building a new system from scratch in around 2006. I made running improvements through the time I moved full-time  from NY to Texas in 2017.

I'm at a point where I'm very happy with my main system (and set up a vintage system that replicates what I ran in 1975, using some of the exact same equipment I kept from more than 50 years ago). And though I was on a tear in buying up obscure and collectible records, I've slowed down considerably, due largely to grade and price inflation. I still buy, but I'm very selective, and there is very little I really "need" or want. 

I do not think of this as an "ending" but instead, a transition that was long in the making--being able to enjoy what I have. Yesterday, I played a couple of discs from the Art Pepper Live at the Vanguard and Shelly Manne Live at the Blackhawk and reveled in what I was hearing. To me, the end of the equipment quest was in some ways the beginning of my understanding of the music and the performers behind it. 

@markalarsen 

Wow, just looked that model up (They have so many).

Beautiful!

 

How did you settle on that particular model?

Looks like our vinyl rigs Are pretty similar.

How does your Vinyl sound? 

@prof 

Transrotor Bellini with Acoustic Sound TA-1000 tonearm and Cardas Myrtle Heart Cartridge (Micro Benz). 

”expensive unnecessary tweak's“

Agreed, how big is your box of formerly promising yet no longer used tweaks?

One area I know for sure I’ve reached my end point is expensive unnecessary tweak's that everyone seems to producing these days. 

There is two aspects in this hobby:

 

Money and budget...

Knowledge mainly acoustics...

 

I am done because i cannot go beyond my budget which is very low for audio...

I am done because anyway i know how to embed in his three working dimensions any system at any price... I had learned what to do then i am done.... I listen music and change a piece of gear if one do not work well ... Thats all...

(I added a few Helmholtz resonators to my room today.... but it is only fine tuning...)

 I am glad because my headphone system and speakers system gave astonishing result only because of my  optimization work then i am proud... And no one change his own painting creation for a Picasso copy on his wall ...

We are proud of what we do ourselves, not of what anybody can purchase if he had the money....

 

@audiodwebe

What level of equipment is it that you have so much? Maybe you could try to sell a lot of it and move up to the next level? LOL, that's not something a person who has reached the end point wants to hear!

I’ve reached the point where I’m bored with audio gear.  Have a room full of excesses, like 20 pairs of speakers, a few amps and preamps, etc. and the excitement I used to feel when I saw all my gear is pretty much gone. Trying to downsize, but the market seems slow, especially since I won’t ship any of the larger items.

I’ve gone through two cycles (I think) of stepping away from audio but I don’t recall them to be because the gear totally bored me. Other reasons were involved, as I recall.

This go-around feels different.

@mksun 

Read part of that article and it hits home. It’s a craving for something new, not necessarily better, that is behind the urge make a change.

I was catching up on my back issues of Stereophile when I came across this article.   I believe this sums it up. 

https://www.stereophile.com/content/audiophiles-dilemma

 

 

I think discovering good new music is where money should be spent. With that being said, I have wasted a lot of money on music that isn't that good. This can be said for poor vinyl pressings that seem to be common these days.

 

 

 

Not "rock bottom" (per author) in my journey, rather, mountain top for me. No desire for improvement to my rig as I’ve assembled gear over the years and have reached my goal. I am a lucky dog as I’ve run out of money anyway. I spend my pennies strictly on music now, and having a blast doing so. 

Totally legit question, one my wife has asked more than 100 times I would guess...most recently as yesterday when I was talking out loud wondering if the Marantz PM 10 integrated I saw online for a great deal was "so great it would be THE one".  She repeated....if you buy it just get rid of the boxes of other stuff in the closet and garage and under the bed. I actually had forgotten about under the bed...my original MA5100 from 50 years ago. BUT, I dont know that I am done...even at almost 70 with less than perfect hearing. I havent gotten anything new since 2016, partly cuz I live in the middle of nowhere but also because I truly like my main system right now. BUT, I think can I take it to the next level...Vandy Treos or similar...some great next level amp? So, I guess the addiction still burns...maybe not as bright but mostly because I cant hear anything in person here and recently our travel money has gone into home and car repairs and stock market declines as has the "stereo account".

Yep, done I think.  From many boxes to minimum.  Aavik, Borresen, Ansuz. See system.

Yes but only because money’s too tight to mention. I feel fortunate, however, because my system has never, ever been better. So the break from contemplating “what’s next” has been an eye (ear?) opener. I’ve been forced to deeply consider what I’m hearing and how I go to this point and what, if anything, I would have done differently. That’s opened up a lot of things for me. Weird how life works like that sometimes.

I'm right there with others on settling down and enjoying what I have. I think we place too much emphasis on the equipment not the recordings when something doesn't sound right. Most of the time we should lay blame on the recordings when we feel the need to fix something which seems to never end. 

 

@markalarsen 

 

Which transporter turntable did you buy?

I own a Transrotor Bob S turntable, With an acoustic solid 12 inch arm

And a Benz micro ebony L cartridge.

 

I couldn’t be happier…Truly, my endgame turntable, and a pride of my system

 

I just completed my last upgrade to my system with a new SACD player and consolidating my electronics into an integrated amplifer / pre amp as well as some cable changes and simplification.  I don't plan on any other changes unless something breaks where it's not fixable.  That being said it was also an improvement in the overall sound.

@prof 

Sorry to hear that. Hope it improves.

 

 

I’m done.

 

I am 61 and spent a very zealous 30 years in the hobby, obsessed as any other audiophile.

Life circumstances mean that I can no longer devote funds or more effort to this hobby.

But ultimately, the timing is good because I’d essentially finished anyway.  I had a bunch of fun money several years ago and I used it to go on a very wide and extensive search for new loudspeakers.  I’ve got a long thread on the many loudspeakers I auditioned.  In the end, I settled on my Joseph Audio Perspective 2 speakers, which size-wise make the most sense in my room room, and which are also incredibly high-quality in finish and materials - something I can spend the rest of my life being happy looking at.

Sonically it’s probably the most refined sound I have had in the room.  As well as fun.  It plays every type of music I love wonderfully.

Around the time I bought these speakers, I pruned away a bunch of other loudspeakers that I had collected over the years.  I was finally able to let go.  But I kept my Thiel 2.7s because I also love those loud speakers, and having around a second pair with different qualities also keeps the upgrade itch away.  

Around the same time, I also got into tube rolling with my CJ Premier 12 monoblocks, which have powered my system for about 24 years now and aren’t going anywhere.  I discovered new capabilities of those amplifiers in tube rolling, and I gathered quite a stash of tubes that I can happily play with for years.

I have the turntable, arm and cartridge of my dreams.

I have a friend who reviews “ ultra audio gear” for soundstage, and so I still get to hear all sorts of fun really expensive stuff at his place.

And yet I can come home from hearing eye bleeding expensive gear and still feel my system keeps up, while I love the sound far more than anything else I’ve heard.

So I don’t think I could ask for more.

Since I got back into records several years ago, I’ve accumulated almost 1000, and so my attention has been and will continue to be occupied with listening to those records and adding to my collection.

The only two issues are:

Affording a new cartridge once my current cartridge needs replacing.

(I’ve become used to very high-quality sound).

Also… I had an incident that horribly exacerbated my tinnitus, to the point, I’ve been unable to listen to music for over a year now :-(

Feels awfully cruel to have gone all this way landed on my final dream system, and then I can’t appreciate it.   Hopefully that situation will change at some point.

 

 

 

Years ago, I had.  
I had a wonderful JRDG preamp paired with a Cary CAD-280 tube power amp.  Wonderful remote controllability married to 2/3 triode and 1/3 ultralinear EL-34 sound. 

 
The sound from my ML CLS speakers was so musical, so seductive, and so beguiling. I wished for nothing.

 

Then when a tube (or tubes) would start to go bad, the expectant anxiety would begin.  Ruining my bliss. 

Then we moved. I put it all in storage, saved up my nickels.
When we finally settled, I had enough saved up to buy an endgame set of SS Pass monoblocks.  Warmish but no tube noise.  No anxiety. 
 

So now, I’m not really on the endless treadmill of upgrades.  Just doing some long-needed tweaking of power cords, etcetera. 

@hiendmmoe Yes I think you are right. 

I think the Tariffs are going to dictate whether a lot of people stop buying and brake the habit of constantly upgrading their equipment. Once people break the habit it will be hard to jump back on the upgrade path.

I actually think the areas where I haven’t hit the end point are things that can improve what I already have. Example: record flattening device for my LPs. 

It’s technology that keeps me edging forward. I’m not an early adopter but time marches on for all of us. So what started as just turntable, tuner, and reel-to-reel sources evolves to add CD, DVD, streamer, DAC ...

I've thought so, several times.....

Each time I must be getting a little closer to nirvana, the gains are getting smaller and costing more. Time to play some of the less often heard recordings and enjoy what I have.

Very close.

To answer the OP:

No, I'm not at the end yet, but I am part of the way there, and all of the gear that I have gone through has given me clarity about what kind of sound I like. 

Almost done. . . I just returned from AXPONA and had a fantastic time. It’s a tradition for my family to go each year and love every minute. We heard many amazing expensive systems and it was really exciting to hear the flagship Magicos along with gear well worth over $2M in total. I never thought I’d see a unicorn in real life, what a great experience.

I’ve walked away each year thinking about the system I heard that really surpasses mine and get home and play the same music and actually prefer my system because I have all the dynamics, staging, and musicality I critically listened to and more. For the first time I have no upgrade itch, except to add BACCH but even without it I’m thrilled with my system. I would challenge anyone to A/B my set up with anything I heard at AXPONA. Money doesn’t buy perfection; being thoughtful, deliberate, and informed can lead to exceptional results. I’ll keep the search on for great recordings and new artists to listen to :)

- Steve 

Yeah, I'm done.  I've gone as far as I care to.  I have a 7.2.4 system that works perfectly fine.  I've had brands such as Marantz, Rotel, Parasound, PSB, SVS, Elac, Outlaw Audio and Emotiva.  

I don't care to upgrade and spend more, that money can be spent elsewhere.

This is a hobby that people listen to equipment and not musiic. Or is a hoarder and want to collect every nice looking equipment out there. I fall in hoader category.  But love to listen to music with the different sound signatures equipment have to offer. Blessed to have the options.  For me, Yamaha equipment rocks as its so musical and it does not cost as much as one would think.

I believe I have my system right where I need to be now. After returning from Axpona over the weekend and listening to my system again I think I’m on par with 95% of what I heard there. Was thinking while I was listening to PS Audio Fr30 speakers at Axpona that I need to get these but listening to my Focal Maestro EVO’s tonight makes me realize I’d be downgrading if I did. I might just be at my end point!

 

If I’m unable to afford any further upgrades (am currently in the midst of acquiring new power cords), my modest system is good enough, as is. It draws me into the music. I could live with it just fine. 

If possible, I’d like to explore other speakers and after that, DACs. However, my recent, starkly-underwhelming experience with a highly regarded DAC has left me wondering whether I really want to go down that rabbit hole.