Bar81 said it well, our point of diminishing returns will always be personal.
I will add that the point of diminishing returns changes with circumstances for many of us. I, for instance, went for decades with a $10,000 system, that was very stable and satisfying. A big part of the reality of that system was that I wasn't otherwise comfortable financially. I was not saving as much as I wanted and I went through several severe financial stessors, so it didn't make sense to spend more, to me. (I rationed my available budget toward software).
Since, moving to my current employment, my savings has been growing at an exponential rate, as has my compensation. In 2007 I started upgrading, finally getting the "full range" speakers that I'd desired for decades. That was followed by a first class TT system. My compensation continued to grow, so the amp, ICs and CDP all got upgraded.
My investment is now triple where I started, but it represents no threat at all to my family or retirement comfort. I'll be buying a larger home in 2009, moving out of an apartment, so there will be an upgrade to a larger speaker system, probably, but I really think that I'll keep the other equipment static. We'll see,...of course.
Some people will put a hirer priority on their system sooner than I did mine. That's ligitimate. The only fear is to avoid obsession that can lead to spending money that needs to be spent elsewhere for the family and security. If your audio spending eats seriously into your food, housing and retirement budgets, then you need to make some changes, IMHO.
Dave
I will add that the point of diminishing returns changes with circumstances for many of us. I, for instance, went for decades with a $10,000 system, that was very stable and satisfying. A big part of the reality of that system was that I wasn't otherwise comfortable financially. I was not saving as much as I wanted and I went through several severe financial stessors, so it didn't make sense to spend more, to me. (I rationed my available budget toward software).
Since, moving to my current employment, my savings has been growing at an exponential rate, as has my compensation. In 2007 I started upgrading, finally getting the "full range" speakers that I'd desired for decades. That was followed by a first class TT system. My compensation continued to grow, so the amp, ICs and CDP all got upgraded.
My investment is now triple where I started, but it represents no threat at all to my family or retirement comfort. I'll be buying a larger home in 2009, moving out of an apartment, so there will be an upgrade to a larger speaker system, probably, but I really think that I'll keep the other equipment static. We'll see,...of course.
Some people will put a hirer priority on their system sooner than I did mine. That's ligitimate. The only fear is to avoid obsession that can lead to spending money that needs to be spent elsewhere for the family and security. If your audio spending eats seriously into your food, housing and retirement budgets, then you need to make some changes, IMHO.
Dave