is it an upgrade or just fun?

hi dave,i wish i had been on a GM plant,if i had i never woulda fell,GM has some of the strictes saftey policies around & they enforce them,actually i fell thru a skylight while doing an inspection,go figure,23 years on the same job & i make a rookie mistake,the worst part was having to lay around the house while the sun's shining,thats all over now though,i had the bikes out over the last few days & damm is it nice to be outside.

simon,damm! you sound as bad as me,over the years ive broken just about every bone in my body including my back not to mention being burned with 600 degree hot tar over 7% of my body & cutting a finger completely off but 3 years on crutches! god that had to suck.

its nice to know that other guys try new gear just for the fun of it,i thought i was perfectly happy with my rig the way it was & i am happy with the sound but to me having the exact same rig for too long kinda makes it feel like its furniture & not a hobby.

ive allready took delevery of a new cd player & i cant wait for the new preamp & another cd player to get here next week,thanks for the well wishes.

mike.

Ouch!

Yes, the desire to upgrade is in our genes. I found that the only thing that can temporarily cure it is unemployment and personal or family tragedy. I can't speech for those that have children because I have none.

Hope the hip mends well,

Hi Joe,

I too had a fall, broke my femur,ankle etc, etc.
While recuperating, the wife narked me once too often about a system I had loved for 20 years. Bought new stuff more appealing to her - it was naff. 3 years on crutches meant I had LOTS of time to upgrade !
3 years & 6 operations later, a change from an ariel rigger to a manager (talk about out of the frying pan) I just buy what the hell I fancy and thank the lord I'm still here to enjoy 'my toys' as she calls them.
Redundancy has meant that moving some 'toys' is the only thing that pays the bills.
I now tend to think that tweaking/isolation/ getting the power right etc is a must - I've had the time and if all our rigs were given the conditions to sound their best, there would be a lot less upgrading & a lot of unhappy dealers.
Just getting into the joys of tube rolling - if she thought I was anal before, she now just thinks I'm plain crazy!
Si

Geez Mike, hell of a fall. Was it one of the auto plants? I know you said you were on the roof of my old plant (Pontiac East, Truck&Bus) at one time.

I've found that I'm not only a music lover but just as much an audiophile...all audiophiles are tweakers in one form or another.

Upgrade/downgrade/sidegrade...it's in our blood brother!

Dave

maybe morphine is the key to keeping us off the upgrade path...hahahaha...kidding

It's fun to try new stuff, for sure, but for myself I find it too nervewracking to change my main system frequently. My system has been stable for some time. I've heard better speakers, I know my cart could use a better arm, but even so I'm hesitating to change things. Right now I'm into acoustics, setup and room treatment. Maybe I'll get the bug later, but right now I'm happily occupied.

I don't know about you,but I sure wish I had a few of the pieces that I let go when I"upgraded" back

Kthomas and I share the same situation. My wife gives me a look every time a new piece of gear arrives. I try to get home before she does if delivery is expected.
After settling into my current system the purchases have slowed down considerably.

This seems to be one of the biggest mental blocks about my hobby for my wife - that I actually enjoy the process of trying out new stuff. It's definitely fun to try different things even if you're not expecting them to bring an improvement.

What was your rig doing on the roof where you work!?!

But seriously, I think its all part of the fun. Seeing what else is out there, looking for ways to improve. Possibly finding the perfect combination!

Good question, Joe. I know for me, I enjoy trying different stuff out and I do not get too analytical about it. If there is a consensus that a certain piece may be a good fit with what I have, Audiogon makes it relatively easy and affordable to try it out. Of course, the losers go back on the block. But since I am fortunate to be able to tie up some $$ in a few extra components, I indulge myself.

You fell 32 feet and lived to tell about it? Wow! The music is fun and the hardware is fun. Enjoy.