HiFi Audio Setup Thread

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by DownInFlames

Just don't get a case of upgraditis. Diminishing returns are extreme in hi fi.


Don't be like Ken Fritz whose son documented his project to create a "perfect" audio room that cost him a million dollars, to the detriment of his family, and then he died. His family sold it for a fraction of what he paid.

I guess it depends on how you look at it, I have done 3 upgrades over the years, new amps and speakers basically, it was all second hand though, not vastly expensive although the price went up as my income did, I spent more than most people would consider reasonable but I listen to music constantly, get an enourmas amount of pleasure out of my hifi, never saw it as an investment, if I had to sell it I might get back what I paid maybe wouldn't but that was never the point, I really really like listening to a nice stereo so for me the cost is worth it, I don't play golf or drive a porsche, I have a nice hifi that's my thing

[afc wimbledon]

I also had the advantage of working part time in the old A&B sound back in the 90's, it did two things, taught me what was good about hifi and what was stupid, the stupid is persuit of sound quality for its own sake, back in the day audiophiles would go on about 'jazz at the pawnshop' as the perfect album to listen to, the reps would come through and demo their gear with these dreadful albums of boring perfectly recorded jazz I would never bother to go listen to live, let alone home on my stereo, they would laugh at me as a wierdo when I'd put some early Louis Armstorng or Jelly Roll Morton on, I would point out in the end the guy playing the music is what makes it great, not the recording engineer

[DownInFlames]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

I guess it depends on how you look at it, I have done 3 upgrades over the years, new amps and speakers basically, it was all second hand though, not vastly expensive although the price went up as my income did, I spent more than most people would consider reasonable but I listen to music constantly, get an enourmas amount of pleasure out of my hifi, never saw it as an investment, if I had to sell it I might get back what I paid maybe wouldn't but that was never the point, I really really like listening to a nice stereo so for me the cost is worth it, I don't play golf or drive a porsche, I have a nice hifi that's my thing

Of course getting better components when you can is fine, but some people can't stop looking for a perfect reproduction of something they've heard or imagined they could hear.


I bought my living room speakers used as well. The guy who bought them new returned them after a week to get the next model up. And the kicker is he was using $2400 bookshelf speakers as rears in his home theatre.

The old adage applies: Music lovers use their equipment to listen to music; audiophiles use music to listen to their equipment.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by DownInFlames

Of course getting better components when you can is fine, but some people can't stop looking for a perfect reproduction of something they've heard or imagined they could hear.


I bought my living room speakers used as well. The guy who bought them new returned them after a week to get the next model up. And the kicker is he was using $2400 bookshelf speakers as rears in his home theatre.

The old adage applies: Music lovers use their equipment to listen to music; audiophiles use music to listen to their equipment.

the other thing people tend to forget is hi end systems tend to be lousy at playing most of the music that we grow up on, you can't listen to punk or most rock on expensive systems, it just sounds brutally bad, I have a low end bedroom system that I play most of the stuff I grew up loving, it has all the things audiophiles hate, tone controls and a loudness button!! but the Damned or MC5 sound kick arse on it