My curiosity was first piqued in the mid-1960s when a department store salesman told my parents that a Magnavox console was just fine and we should forget about a bunch of exotic looking "components" that were way expensive and only for hobbyists.
Later, in the late-1960s, a lot of guys in my college dorm had pretty fancy systems, and I really caught the bug. My ardor cooled in the 1980s and early 1990s.
Around 1996, I needed something to read during lunch, and I bought a copy of Stereo Review. Julian Hirsch wrote a column about how the highly praised Rectilinear IIIs of the late 1960s would stand up against mid-1990s speakers -- probably not that well. Since I was still listening to my Rectilinear IIIs, I suddenly felt completely obsolete. This started my most recent upgrade cycle.
Later, in the late-1960s, a lot of guys in my college dorm had pretty fancy systems, and I really caught the bug. My ardor cooled in the 1980s and early 1990s.
Around 1996, I needed something to read during lunch, and I bought a copy of Stereo Review. Julian Hirsch wrote a column about how the highly praised Rectilinear IIIs of the late 1960s would stand up against mid-1990s speakers -- probably not that well. Since I was still listening to my Rectilinear IIIs, I suddenly felt completely obsolete. This started my most recent upgrade cycle.