A good question with a complicated answer. The key determinant is desire. For various extraneous personal reasons some may curtail changing things in their system, but still have the desire to do so.
You know you’re done when the desire is gone.
How do you know when you are done?
- Thread starter Mike Lavigne
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A good question with a complicated answer. The key determinant is desire. For various extraneous personal reasons some may curtail changing things in their system, but still have the desire to do so.
You know you’re done when the desire is gone.
well, er.........huuummmmmm.......i guess i would say that, sure, i agree......but reality is more like we are done when our system development (upgrade-itis) desire get's back-burnered for extended periods of time, and then when it reemerges it is under control and semi-ignored. life priorities and maybe the need to just chill become dominant. the desire is just not heeded. the reasons can be varied, one of which is that system/media goals were met satisfactorily.
we might kid ourselves that the urge is gone.....but let's face it......it ain't gone. it's not a flame that goes out. it's part of us. and that is a good thing as it means we are are still ourselves. i'm not looking forward to being where i don't really honestly care any more.
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I’m curious if anyone thinks whether time/frequency of visiting various audio fora should be considered as part of the equation of being done and perhaps even be used as a barometer to measure how close (or far) away one is to reaching that goal.
Of course we know that it isn’t a good idea to be around alcohol if your goal is to stop drinking, whether or not it’s just for overall health reasons or if drinking is disruptive to other more important goals.
Do you think that one should force themselves to stop visiting audio fora if that person truly wants to “be done”?
Can you truly “be done” and still visit audio fora?
Of course we know that it isn’t a good idea to be around alcohol if your goal is to stop drinking, whether or not it’s just for overall health reasons or if drinking is disruptive to other more important goals.
Do you think that one should force themselves to stop visiting audio fora if that person truly wants to “be done”?
Can you truly “be done” and still visit audio fora?
I think it depends on why you visit. One could be done and still be interested in learning. One can visit to see what his friends are up to. One can visit to share his journey and learn about others.
One important I think left out is to help out others, although sharing your journey helps.
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As we mostly come here to brag about our systems, our listening skills or the last live classical concert we attended, you can obviously "be done" and still hang around here. A few guys don't even have systems and are "done" and still hang around here.
As we mostly come here to brag about our systems, our listening skills or the last live classical concert we attended, you can obviously "be done" and still hang around here. A few guys don't even have systems and are "done" and still hang around here.
I find system threads very interesting. I enjoy reading why people make their choices and what the results are. It’s a great way to learn. I’m sorry there are not more system threads around here.
some of us have separate threads about separate parts of our systems to make it easier to dive deep into those issues. if i amalgamated all my various system/room/gear development threads together it would be unwieldly and impossible to keep track of. and would greatly reduce how deep the conversations can go. easy now to search any of my components and review the information. if all together would not be very useful.
when i post about new additions to my system i try to put it in an existing thread if that is more relevant than starting a new one. just depends.
but everyone has to go with their own flow. no one right way.
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How do you know when you are done? When your bank account is empty, you no longer have credit, and your wife says so.
w
we call this the limp dick situation - no longer able to keep it up, but still having the itch. the worst place to be.
That's a big thing. Prices have gotten so out of hand. Its like poker. I have to fold.
At the moment I'm fiddling with DIY stuff I can afford. And they are big gains.
I'm modding my speakers.
I'm building a Battery/Inverter power solution. Although that gets pricey. I'm reworking my listening room.
I'm building a rack.
Mostly I'm tuning what I have.
But buying expensive components. Done. Like I said. Priced out.
I'm working on getting SS used SS amp that is $750. I may get a Merchand crossover to Biamp my speaker. More DIY experiment stuff.
Not sure if this has been mentioned yet - if you are using digital streaming you are probably never going to be done. Between different audio players, firmware updates, new DAC chips, better switches, LAN isolators/filters, USB isolators/filters, Qobuz/Roon/Tidal changes, Linear Power supplies, etc. you'll need some real fortitude to get out of that rabbit hole.
Not to say vinyl/tape/CD playback is set it and forget it, but there are just fewer moving variables in those domains.
Not to say vinyl/tape/CD playback is set it and forget it, but there are just fewer moving variables in those domains.
One of several reasons I stick with physical CD playback for the time being.
Great point. One of the reasons I have never gotten into streaming besides the sound quality. It’s a moving target.
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if you can post on WBF with your laptop in your home, streaming is the easiest thing to do and then it's a choice to try and improve network connectivity and performance or not. the cost of the network bits is trivial. in the category of hooking up a printer. and paying $20-$30 a month for a high rez streaming service. buying a Roon enabled dac or streamer is also simple and cheap; most laptops can do it.
avoiding streaming or avoiding digital is just a choice, not a matter of dollars in any way shape or form.
i'm not criticizing any choice, it's ok to think streaming is bad or a blight on humanity. or a belief it's cool to not stream. just calling out anyone who tries to make it about the cost in the context of our systems here. that's baloney. chasing better streaming is a choice. nothing anyone has to do.
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Going back to the original post, “being done” was never really established as an absolute.
Based on my experience though and from that of the many posts I’ve read over the years on related topics, the terms; merry-go-round/upgraditis/addiction/ etc. all come to mind.
They indicate a sense of despair and the desire to rid themselves of the distractions many have experienced over the course.
For me being done is more a mental thing than any physical activity.
Based on my experience though and from that of the many posts I’ve read over the years on related topics, the terms; merry-go-round/upgraditis/addiction/ etc. all come to mind.
They indicate a sense of despair and the desire to rid themselves of the distractions many have experienced over the course.
For me being done is more a mental thing than any physical activity.
I know I'll never be done. I spent 50 years developing what turned out to be the world first reliable OTL. I've still found ways to make it better.
And of course its nice to push things along with class D, something I thought I'd never take seriously 20 years ago.
But I've always had an obsession with smaller audio systems; in particular lower powered amps. I've been exploring how to make the best sounding tube amps that might not make over 20 Watts/channel. OTLs don't do that so well since they have economy of scale that works better if they are higher power- lower powered OTLs always need a higher impedance speaker.
The first idea was a 5 Watt/ch amplifier for my bedroom system. That introduced me to low power pentodes (EL95, EL84, 6AQ5) that are designed to be easy to drive. The most powerful of those is the EL84. So I've been playing with all sorts of EL84 amps: single-ended, traditional circuits like the Dynaco ST35 (which can challenge any SET made) and what happens if you try to push it as far as you can. The advantage these amps have is the size of the output transformer; its very easy to design and build one that has outstanding bandwidth. This is where PP amps can really strut their stuff and put SET technology to shame.
Recently I restored this odd bit of audio history:
The Nobles Manufacturing NS130 was made in St. Paul in the late 1950s. Its 15 Watts/channel (one 12AX7 driving a pair of EL84 power tubes in each module). The amplifier modules are removable as they sit in sockets. The chassis has welded and ground corners and is polished and chromed; the construction easily rivals Mac or Marantz of the era. Its safe to say this is one of the most elegant EL84 based amps ever produced and likely one of the rarest as well.
I've owned three of these but the other two were 45 years ago. I don't know what it is, but I have always liked audio products that have a cuteness factor or gem-like quality.
And of course its nice to push things along with class D, something I thought I'd never take seriously 20 years ago.
But I've always had an obsession with smaller audio systems; in particular lower powered amps. I've been exploring how to make the best sounding tube amps that might not make over 20 Watts/channel. OTLs don't do that so well since they have economy of scale that works better if they are higher power- lower powered OTLs always need a higher impedance speaker.
The first idea was a 5 Watt/ch amplifier for my bedroom system. That introduced me to low power pentodes (EL95, EL84, 6AQ5) that are designed to be easy to drive. The most powerful of those is the EL84. So I've been playing with all sorts of EL84 amps: single-ended, traditional circuits like the Dynaco ST35 (which can challenge any SET made) and what happens if you try to push it as far as you can. The advantage these amps have is the size of the output transformer; its very easy to design and build one that has outstanding bandwidth. This is where PP amps can really strut their stuff and put SET technology to shame.
Recently I restored this odd bit of audio history:
The Nobles Manufacturing NS130 was made in St. Paul in the late 1950s. Its 15 Watts/channel (one 12AX7 driving a pair of EL84 power tubes in each module). The amplifier modules are removable as they sit in sockets. The chassis has welded and ground corners and is polished and chromed; the construction easily rivals Mac or Marantz of the era. Its safe to say this is one of the most elegant EL84 based amps ever produced and likely one of the rarest as well.
I've owned three of these but the other two were 45 years ago. I don't know what it is, but I have always liked audio products that have a cuteness factor or gem-like quality.
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