I recently jumped off the merry-go-round due to a business setback so the experience is fresh in my mind. I went from a new Class A system to Class B components played through some borrowed 15 year old speakers from a friend (I was happy to have anything).
It was a bit of a shock, but once I licked my wounds, I adjusted by shifting my focus from the equipment to the music. I no longer sit in the "sweet spot" and critique every note that is played and the inevitable shortcomings of the $25K worth of equipment that reproduced it. Rather, I now put on some music and go about my business as I move around the house. So while I'm not critically listening to the music, I am actually LISTENING to much more music and much less equipment.
This is not the standard audiophile approach (and it wasn't mine either), but it has changed my priorities. I've bought about 200 jazz discs, so now I actually have something to listen to, rather than a dozen or so discs that were hand selected because of the quality of the recording and their ability to show the strength or weakness of my system. So while I no longer sit and obsess over which part of my system is holding me back, I just play music and enjoy it.
I'm sure I'll upgrade again in the future, but I think this has been a good lesson for me. I didn't want or chose the cure, but it found me and now I've seen how much effort I spent pursuing equipment rather than enjoying music. Like wine lovers or any other passionate, perfectionist group of people, it's easy to lose focus and find yourself enjoying your hobby less. I now try to get my pleasure from the performance, and the emotional connection with the music. These are the things I was missing when I was listening to my equipment, and not my music.
But you know what's really sad- right now someone is probably reading this post and thinking "You can't build a Class A system for $25K, what is he talking about." I rest my case.
It was a bit of a shock, but once I licked my wounds, I adjusted by shifting my focus from the equipment to the music. I no longer sit in the "sweet spot" and critique every note that is played and the inevitable shortcomings of the $25K worth of equipment that reproduced it. Rather, I now put on some music and go about my business as I move around the house. So while I'm not critically listening to the music, I am actually LISTENING to much more music and much less equipment.
This is not the standard audiophile approach (and it wasn't mine either), but it has changed my priorities. I've bought about 200 jazz discs, so now I actually have something to listen to, rather than a dozen or so discs that were hand selected because of the quality of the recording and their ability to show the strength or weakness of my system. So while I no longer sit and obsess over which part of my system is holding me back, I just play music and enjoy it.
I'm sure I'll upgrade again in the future, but I think this has been a good lesson for me. I didn't want or chose the cure, but it found me and now I've seen how much effort I spent pursuing equipment rather than enjoying music. Like wine lovers or any other passionate, perfectionist group of people, it's easy to lose focus and find yourself enjoying your hobby less. I now try to get my pleasure from the performance, and the emotional connection with the music. These are the things I was missing when I was listening to my equipment, and not my music.
But you know what's really sad- right now someone is probably reading this post and thinking "You can't build a Class A system for $25K, what is he talking about." I rest my case.