Qualities Of An End-game System

How about this. End game is a label some folks use as an attempt to put an end to (cap) on upgraditis. The false belief that there is a point when one will finally not be inclined to upgrade.

The fact that there is no end game possible in gear design improvement and no end game either in acoustics and psychoacoustics related improvement a priori, is a common place fact and evidently true...

There is an end game possible for a pre-established limited budget choices and there is an end game with a specific system once chosen for his synergy and a specific room once chosen and an end game here means a balanced ratio or an optimal balanced set of parameters of all acoustics factors resulting from gear and room and specific ears canals and HTRF measures...

Then there exist for us mortals with a chosen system an end game which makes us happy with no frustration even at a relatively low cost...

This does not means that i am an ignorant thinking nothing beat my actual sound experience...

Acoustics with an "s" rule audiophile experience not upgrade races nor price tags ...

An "end game" is only an expression meaning for me that i am more in the search of new music than for a new piece of gear...

Changing now  ONLY one piece of gear is even if it is possible  no more so attractive because of my acquired  minimal satisfying acoustics balance ..The real upgrade i needed if i want; i need 15,000 bucks ( compared to 1000 bucks for my actual system )  and a new room i did not have in my small house...😊

Anyway i am in sound ectasy now and i know why because it is me who created it not the gear i picked , i created it by my own  speakers and headphone modifications , homemade tweaks and acoustics knowledge ...My two main components speakers and headphone are modified according to acoustics basics ...

Then yes i can upgrade going from 1000 bucks to 15,000 but even if it will be way better i can live happy with what i have which is not a stopgap at all in my room conditions and nearfield listenings...

There exist an endgame which is not a frustrated state created by basic knowledge😊

i upgrade my list of musicians with 50 albums of Tete Montoliu which i added to my 100 Bill Evans albums and to my 100 Keith Jarrett  ... The best money audiophile investment for me now ....😉

i say all that for beginners ... They must learn by studying and experimenting  more than by mere buying ...

.....and I certainly agree. *VBS*👍+10 to the tenth...

But....I'm still stuck trying to define What might our OP might consider in 

Sex, drugs, etc can't come even remotely close to such an experience of pure audio nirvana.

Lets' see:  We could agree that one doesn't last as long (unless 'unusually inspired' or indulging in the second) which can outlast the third in some ways..

What stops my prop is:

What does ''etc." Really Entail....? Hmm... @deep_333  ?

I'm all eyes... *L* ;)

When your system causes you to lose interest in changing anything with it ever again, it's end game.  You'll never know. But others may know after you die, if they bother to think about it. 

What does ''etc." Really Entail....?

Scintillating interaction on A'gon?

How about this. End game is a label some folks use as an attempt to put an end to (cap) on upgraditis. The false belief that there is a point when one will finally not be inclined to upgrade.

This 👆

@immatthewj music can get so good it will float in the air.  Lol.  For some of us music does get us high!    Time to tap that EAR VEIN! lol 

@calvinj  , with certain discs (in my system mostly SACDs) I can get that.  But I am assuming from most of the content of this thread that the OP considers "end game" to be beyond that.

@immatthewj im there and happy. I could listen to this as my last. 

For many myself included, it is not the qualities, but the lack of quantity in the cash department that will dictate what is our endgame system. Oh I could spend more and do have cash resources I could tap into, however I am not willing to. More golf to be played and hunting and fishing trips to be made. 

@ericgale sometimes. You have to just listen and enjoy.  My main system is done. I’m just searching for more music at this point. 

For many myself included, it is not the qualities, but the lack of quantity in the cash department that will dictate what is our endgame system.

I'd go along with that.  I'd like some different/better speakers.  And I guess I'd also like to try the SET route. But I may be done.  Until I am not done.

@ghdprentice you speak truth my friend. I’m tired of chasing and I’m happy.  I understand just like the saying in the old mob movies.  EVERYTIME I TRY TO GET OUT THEY KEEP PULLING ME BACK IN! 

I’m tired of chasing

That sort of brougt to mind something Steve Earle was quoted as saying, something to the effect of,  "Cocaine is like golf, it's white, you hit it, and then you chase it all day."

However, better sound isn't white and you can chase it for way more than a day.  It can cost a lot of money though.

On another thread I spoke about Welcome To the Pleasuredome, which is 40 years young this year. Listening to this, cranked, hearing Mark O'Toole's bass line in all of it's glory, and the rest of the band's instrumentals, vocals, and sounds, has me enjoying a system that " never stops ". When I hear the musicians do their thing, and I am " involved " with the listening experience, well, that's all folks. Enjoy ! MrD.

But....I’m still stuck trying to define What might our OP might consider in

Sex, drugs, etc can’t come even remotely close to such an experience of pure audio nirvana.

Lets’ see: We could agree that one doesn’t last as long (unless ’unusually inspired’ or indulging in the second) which can outlast the third in some ways..

What stops my prop is:

What does ’’etc." Really Entail....? Hmm... @deep_333 ?

I’m all eyes... *L* ;)

There are other "etcs" besides sex and drugs.

Sex - Once you have enough of it, it is not all that much of a thrill even when it is the most attractive partner. Maybe, guys who haven’t gotten laid all that much exalt it a bit too much.

Drugs, liqor - For many a habitual user out there, it is no longer some god sent euphoria. It is just managing to get the bare fix for the day..

The other "etcs" could vary from person to person, of course.

I wonder if folks have become too insensitized to just everything... For example, i could be riding my motorcycle on rural roads enveloped with the wind i could feel really good. I could fast for a day, visit my fav thai restaurant and i could feel really really good. I could practice certain forms of meditation for a certain period and it could produce varying forms of ecstasy.

Audio nirvana stands on its own for me, unmatched. The emotions, minds of all kinds of different artists...the melodies, etc all pour into my room and we just dissolve together in an ecstatic fashion.

I concur  with the OP😊 +2

Audio nirvana stands on its own for me, unmatched. The emotions, minds of all kinds of different artists...the melodies, etc all pour into my room and we just dissolve together in an ecstatic fashion.

Bank accounts drained? Hopefully not too much in debt?

That can easily be the end game for many if you let that little audiophile demon talking to you on your shoulder have his way.

Bank accounts drained? Hopefully not too much in debt?

Yes, that is a definite game ender.

@mrdecibel 

Thanks for the reminder. One kick-ass song.

A lot of us, it is the journey, not the final destination 

@hilde45 

New experiences changed my feelings. They alerted me to richer experiences I could strive for. 

I suppose the statement is still true, but I made the mistake of thinking I felt something capable of ending my search and I was wrong.

The above might be said describing many types  of "journeys" -- not just audio.

You answered your own question.  You don't need this bunch to obfuscate, confuse your judgment!   You done did good.

Qualities of an end game system:

- Speakers disappear

- The room disappears

- The listener disappears, his mind is shut down/gone.

- There is nothing left but the perception of falling into an abyss filled with music.

- The listener doesn’t know where any of the music came from, but, it is all inside of him. Sex, drugs, etc can’t come even remotely close to such an experience of pure audio nirvana.

If your system can’t do that (whatever it may be), you have no end game.

... And what do you do once you’ve reached this point? Where do you go from here?

For some, the hobby is in enjoying the trip, not in reaching the final destination.

Thus sayeth the mighty OP. Beware to those who dare to play the End Game.