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If you had to pay full retail, would you...???

I recently got the Music Direct catalog in the mail. Lots of cool gear, interesting tweaks, awesome LPs. Looking over the catalog several times, I said to myself, "man, there are a lot of expensive tweaks which the un-initiated must think is simply crazy". What also struck me is that all the stuff I want, is ultra expensive and the stuff at "real-world prices" are nothing really spectacular. Even at the low end side of "high-end" gear, I would be laying out considerably more than if I went to Best Buy and bought an All in one system.

So, here is where I am headed. I have put together a pretty nice system, almost entirely found here on Audiogon, over back in the day at Audiomart. I scored my amps which retail for $13,000 for $4000. My speakers retailed for $7500 and I got em for $1500. My turntable was $500, which retail was $2500. If, I bought a new $500 turntable, I would get like a Music Fidelity MF, entry level one.

if you bought most of your system used, if you had to start from square one and had to buy Full retail, would you still be into this hobby?

Entry level high end gear really does not interest me. it lacks pizzaz, like the Avid Reference has. For what I paid for my AudioLogic tube DAC, I could only afford a Mid-level Marantz. I beleive I would still be a Music lover, but if forced to spend Full retail for high end gear, I think I would opt for mass market mid-fi, or simply do a laptop based digital system through a mass market company.
justlisten

Showing 4 responses by onhwy61

onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,328 posts
 
Agreeing with Eldartford, I have no problem paying whatever for what I see as fairly priced products.

In the long run you get what you pay for. After-all, who's better off, the person who paid full price at a dealer and is so satisfied that he keeps the system unchanged for 10 years, or the person who buys and sells 20+ different components on Audiogon trying to put together a system that sounds good?
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,328 posts
 
Tvad, in the real world, people buy stereos and keep them until they break. It's only in the highly specialized minority audiophile world that people constantly trade items in a quest for sonic improvements. Some people can just sit back and enjoy the music. It's hard to believe, isn't it?
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,328 posts
 
It ironic how the hobby of listening to music has morphed for some people into trading hi-fi equipment. It's a little like those people who ride motorcycles versus those who chrome, customize and end up building machines that are unsuitable to ride more than 50 miles at a time. On cost per mile basis the motorcyclist can pay full retail and still have the better deal versus the customizer who may have got a great deal on something, but doesn't really ride much. These comments may apply to audiophile, or may be they may not.
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,328 posts
 
Of course not! But I will say that riding is more fun than custpmizing. The sun, the road and the scenery versus the garage, the catalog and waiting for the UPS man. It's no contest.
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