Who cares.
Mega dollar systems. 200k on up. What are their professions?
Acoustical Systems Apolyt Turntable ($349,000), 1190.5lbs (540kg) for example. I will try to upload a picture.
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Back when I worked for a top specialist dealer in the near north of Chicago near Northwestern Medical center and medical school, my top customers ranged from some of the top execs at financial institutions, managing law partners, CEOs, the kind of people on the cover of Crain's Business, Chief and attending physicians, and even a union electrical linesman who loved blues and jazz. Even today, a person I've known for years who works at a local hardware store has a system to die for that I new nothing about until he was asking me questions of his interest in the Gryphon CD player. You just never know. But one thing I know they are never young anymore |
Having moved from Tennessee to Boca Raton for college tennis, I was often invited to the Boca Hotel and Club to play. It did not take very long to realize that asking the club members, especilly our northern Palm Beach friends, what they did was futile. Yes, one was on the board of Chrysler, one had sold a chain of drug stores in Kentucky, etc , but several had made their money the old fashioned way: By sheer will: Yes, as in probate. Most were from families that had not really worked for any needed wages for generations, having ancestors who founded, for example a big thee auto company, a giant auto parts chain, a huge insurance company, a giant bank, which founder still has his statue in front of a Jacksonville bank. Other families had been wealthy for so long that they barely knew where their wealth originally came from. Interestingly, the were not audiophiles. One Sear exec was. He still brags about his giant 12" (double woofer) Fisher speaker hanging from his ceiling at one of his homes. These folks had nothing to prove to others, at least nothing as mundane as stereos. My boss did win the best for the yacht interior at the Monaco Gran Prix, but lost it the next year, requiring a multi-million dollar upgrade. These people's girls really liked me, but as they found out, I was on a different team. Too Bad! I could have worried about how good my boat was, instead of how good I can make actual musicians' music sound. Now where can I get new trestles for my speaker wires!?! |
First of all everyone is assuming someone actually buys this stuff. Acoustical Systems will be lucky to sell 5 of these turntables. Wealthy people did not get wealthy by being stupid. The question I always ask myself in trying to remain impartial is, if I had the money would I buy this? For the Apolite the answer is a resounding no. Most of the megabuck systems I have heard over the years did not sound near worth the money spent on them. Only a few of the owners were really into audio and for many of them the system was just a trophy to impress their friends, just like a Rolex. The most ridiculous thing I would buy would be Atma-sphere MA 3 amplifiers. I think they are the coolest amps on the planet. At any rate it is very possible to build a first class SOTA system for $100K to $150K dollars. And, there is the art in it. Anyone can throw money at a system but regardless of what you buy you still have to make it work well. The highest levels of performance require hard work and thoughtfulness. |
@polkalover you are correct. But it is well known in this hobby that once your system gets to a certain level there are diminishing returns or another way to phrase it is that for those that want those extra bits of real or perceived improvement the costs of those improvements go up and the amount of those improvements become small. Some find that acceptable to “top off” their systems. Others will say it doesn’t make economic sense. But we aren’t in this hobby for economic sense. |
Why do people care so much of what people spend on this hobby. I work a normal job make a decent salary. Wife does not work. I was not given any money, put 3 kids through college. I spend a good amount on my stuff over the years. Not as much as many here but probably too much than I should have. But I enjoy it. Raises many eyebrows of friends and I get the "why" and "how come" questions. But then I ask how much do you spend on "X"... golf memberships etc. I have one co-worker who makes less than me but his wife works so probably in the end more. But he spends over $1300/mo in car leases. Plus hundreds more a month on insurance and taxes on those cars. So in my head I go it would only be 3-4 years to save the money to buy my stuff with those costs..so there you go. People do "waste" their money, but YOLO. My brother died suddenly at 49 years old. Stop worrying about what others do and spend. Live within your means and if it makes you happy you win. |
Look it is a lot healthier for the individual and society at large to aspire to be successful as that other “successful” person. It does no one any good to resent someone for their success. It drags you down and is bad for society. We should all want to aspire to be better. When someone seems to achieve that goal and we try to tear them down, we are being counterproductive. Also even if someone seems to have a lot of capital they make be deficient in their lives in other ways in which you are wealthy. Plus there a lots and lots of worse ways to spend money than on audio gear. Audio gear to my knowledge never killed anyone or an animal. Also have you tried to be angry or were angry when listening to music? It is very hard to do. Plus spending money in the audio economy is a good thing for everyone, including us who are wealthy in ways that may or may not include dollars. |
Leaving CA was a whole thread. We had a slew of absolutely reprehensible "discussions" around that time, a veritable paroxysm of libtard angst acting out against common sense. Invariably these things are started by leftists intent on virtue signaling. These things always go awry. Well they have no arguments in support of their indefensible positions, and being unable to admit defeat (or even just quietly go away) the discussion devolves into mindless insults, innuendo, and worse. That in a nutshell was the CA thread. But no, that's not what I was referring to. It was a post not a discussion. That's why it reads, "Do like I said, report HIM." Around that same time frame we also had a couple people coming back again and again, getting banned for the same abuse again and again, one of them even bragging about it. "You think this is my first rodeo?" he said, "You think you can stop me?" Brazenly taunting like that. That's what I was referring to. We got rid of a few of them, and it sure seems to me the level of discourse has improved the last several weeks as a result. |
"csmgolf, you make a good case. Do like I said, report him. We got one post removed." -- @millercarbonChuck, I got behind looking at the daily posts last week because I was under the weather, and there was a post that was removed by the Admin -- the title of the post was something along the lines of "Leaving California". Is this the post that you are referring to in the quote above? What was the gist of the post, why was it removed? The topic was popular (it had over 50 responses when it was removed), and I was trying to figure out why it was deemed controversial or why it required censorship. Thanks! Allen |
My entire system (with the exception of my speaker stands) is ALL second-hand and/or restored by me. My system has been built by playing the "restore device, sell device, use proceeds to fund higher-level replacement device" game for a long time.... Is a solid path to excellent sound on a budget.....PLUS, I'm keeping vintage devices alive and out of the landfill. I have worked my ass off for all I have and continue to do so.....If I somehow end up with a system worth $500K, I think I would feel VERY proud of the accomplishment...... :-) |
@ssmaudio "- I told my kids (who are in their early 20s now) that the inheritance they’ll get is the 20k I put into each of their IRAs when they were 14. " Curious how you did this? IRAs require a person to have taxable compensation to contribute , and IRA contribution limits have never been anywhere near $20K per person per year; the limit for 2021 is $6,000 |
You could be surprised how people getting to buying expensive stuff. It often happens with easy money. My daughters friend’s family is good example. The girl’s grandma at her seventies married nationwide company owner at his eighties. The guy died after five years of successful marriage, left grandma a couple of hundreds of millions. After seven years grandma died and guess who got the money. Dumb salesman and his never worked wife ended with free millions. New, huge house right away, Maserati and yacht later... they just don’t have imagination for text purchase.... should I give them a tip ? |
So you’re telling us all how great you are for giving each of your kids half a mill. And telling us all what to do with our money. Gee thanks, I was waiting for someone with impeccable morals to lecture me on that. But what are you doing for the needy person who needs a leg up? It’s all sanctimonious virtue-signaling, as far as I can see. |
I don’t judge or begrudge anyone a single bit for a 500k system (or even a 340k turntable) if for every dollar he gives X dollars to a needy person for a leg up. What I have a problem with are people who were fortunate enough to have made it to spend on “frivolous” habits like ours and claim that no one needs help—“if I did it by pulling up my bootstraps then anyone can do it.” As if they owe nothing to society, without which they would never have made it in the first place. Anyway my two cents. Please no debate. It’s meant in the best of ways. Regarding compound interest. I told my kids (who are in their early 20s now) that the inheritance they’ll get is the 20k I put into each of their IRAs when they were 14. Using rule of 72, a moderately conservative 7% after inflation and say 50 years to retirement, that’s $640k each in 2014 dollars. Not bad. |
You dont have to have a great paying job. Im living proof. You most LIKELY have to be a good disciplined investor in the stock market. I retired at 44/45. Think I made 800K in a 20+ year career in I/T as a computer operator. Always maxed out my 401K and Roth IRA's. Stock market is up about 450-500% since March 2009. Not hard to become a Millionaire/Multi-Millionaire in that scenario and be able to buy 200K worth of gear or anything else your little heart desires. Try to teach my nieces/nephews but of course THEY KNOW BETTER!! LOL |
My system value is for all 3 pieces 500 bucks... It will remain so.... We can go a long way with the ratio S.Q. / price.... Especially with the help of acoustic and other embeddings controls... Dont feel frustrated by costly system... Go in your basement and create one..,.. It will not be the best in the world but you creativity can give to you one of the best in the world in the scale ratio S.Q. /price... And with 500K surplus invest in your family needs.... «It is better to be than to boast »-Groucho Marx 🤓 |
I love the way we can muse about "1st World Problems/issues" like this. The money we spend on treats and hobbies can only be viewed as gluttony buy the less fortunate. Those of us who have the ability to pursue our hobbies are so very lucky. If you can afford it, no one else ever needs to questions your choices or how much you spend. Ain't Individual Freedom great? 🇺🇲 |
I think there is probably a distinction that can be drawn between someone spending >$200k system and someone spending that same amount on a single component (such as the TT mentioned by the OP). Still, though, it’s tough to apply logic (financial, time or otherwise) to things you are passionate about (e.g., music, travel, cars, watches, sports, etc) Case in point, I went to a big box home store on Friday to buy some new lawn equipment. Spent $250 and felt ill afterwards. If someone told me a $250 bag of magic powder improved bass response if sprinkled in each corner of my listening room, I’d buy 4 bags and not even blink. Queue the responses offering said magic powder... |
I have hit/won over 60 times playing State lottery and scratch offs. I think, as of last year I was up over $362k. I reinvest it in Audio, music, sports cars and travel. So what I spend is of no consequence to me. I am also professionally trained in stocks, options and crypto. Playing with the "houses $$" makes it all seem like an exciting game/hobby of leisure. What do care with what others do with their funds? I grew up in a very low middle class neighborhood. Only a few of us that I know of became successful and financially independent through hard work and education. Many of my friends from childhood would likely cringe to see the stuff I spend money on. America offers EVERYONE the greatest opportunity for financial freedom and success that the world has ever known. It doesn't just land in your lap, you have to apply yourself and take advantage of the vast opportunities that are just waiting for you to snatch them up. No excuses needed. |
csmgolf, you make a good case. Do like I said, report him. We got one post removed. Next is to keep bugging the mods until they wake up to what you posted above. So it is good you make us all aware, but mostly we need to make the mods aware. As I just pointed out to them, there are only so many IP addresses the guy can use. Meantime: 1. Ignore 2. Report |
@chicagoblue1977 The pattern is the same for each one of them. One gets banned, the next pops up (i.e. Sugabooger went away a couple of days ago, and this one shows up). Prolific posting for each alternate personality (10-20 posts per day) for the extent of the stay. Posting style is the same. This one came in yesterday and has 14 posts. The vast majority of posts are argumentative and condescending. Every one of these characters are hardline objectivist. It is really not that hard to figure out. |
+1@oldhvymec +1@kingbarbuda When I first saw the title of this post I was going to ignore it because I interpreted the meaning as "they" vs the "OP" based on "$" - a case of envy. But curiosity got the better of me. @oldhvymec reminded me to tighten up my finances and to teach my kids to save for their future including teaching them the power of compound interest - thank you @kingbarbuda reminded me to not judge @blueranger as being right or wrong, but to uplift each other - thank you |
@blueranger what is great about our hobby is that at its core it’s about facilitation and optimization of one’s discovery and enjoyment of music. You can be an audiophile IMO without spending a cent on gear if you are a frequent attender of live music. You can also have a good pair of headphones, a AQ Dragonfly, adaptor and Phone with a subscription to a good streaming service and be an audiophile. But you can also acquire a lot of gear, have a Roon lifetime subscription, have a dedicated listening space and be an audiophile. To take it even further, one could make an argument that you can be an audiophile by sitting in woods and listening carefully to the wind, leaves and the birds singing and appreciating the sound. Where it’s coming from and where you are in relation to it. There is something for anyone and everyone here *almost* regardless of budget. So I wouldn’t be concerned about some crazy expensive turntable. Do what you want and what you can afford. Discover and listen to the music that makes your life better. It’s about the music. Not as much about the gear. Sometimes we forget that. |
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No, you are not John. You are dletch2, adio2design, hotdogbob, sugabooger, atdavid, roberttdid dannad, and I am not sure how many others. The remedy is a two step process: 1. Ignore 2. Report Thanks! |
No, you are not John. You are dletch2, adio2design, hotdogbob, sugabooger, atdavid, roberttdid dannad, and I am not sure how many others. Truly, you are lower than even geoffkaitt was. He was here about 20 years and had more than 20,000 posts. When he was finally banned for abusive behavior, he went away like a man. He hasn't created a new user name and come back. That is far more than can be said about you. You have been banned 10 times give or take and you still come back. Be a man and go away. You already have the record for most times being banned. |
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They go by many names but ultimately it all comes down to the same thing. https://youtu.be/LXhRoY-Utxo?t=8 Seriously though, oldhvymec is right. |
