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Gear / Technical Help => Playback Forum => Topic started by: carlbeck on February 07, 2007, 10:23:17 AM
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So, after a few years of having the system of a lifetime I have started to sell off all my stereo gear. My recording rig is staying but the stereo is moving on. I have some new priorities in my life. I might as well announce them here but after a bunch of years of fighting it, I am joining the rest of the world. We just found out the wife is pregnant, I guess it's about time as Nick would say.
So at first I did the most responsible thing & said I am selling the stereo to take a break from the hobby. Thankfully Nick talked me into at least building an office system, for once he made some sense! Everything is on the chopping block, the speakers of course were the first to go. Next the DAC, now I have to list the rest. It is sad to see it all go b/c it really was incredible but the new system won't be a slouch by any stretch of the imagination. So I decided the only fair thing to do is create a budget for the new system, $2600 seems fair, this is what I sold my speakers & half the DAC for. Seems fair enough, build an entire system from the sale of two items & pocket the rest (hopefully about 5-6k). So now, my mission has been to build a "budget" system with the proceeds of the two items. I don't think I am staying in budget but I am trying. I know it sounds ridiculous to call it a budget system but it is what it is, after all I am TRYING to be an adult for once ;D
So I have been shopping again for a new system to use in my office. Yes, I bought this stupid house for my dedicated audio room I never use but I spend way too much time downstairs talking to my fellow nerds. Might as well have good music while I am at it! Shopping has been fun. I did the worst thing possible & purchased my amp first, it of course blew my budget of $1500.00 total & forced me to move the budget up some but I think it will be worth it. It also scratched an itch I have had for some time to try some Mcintosh gear. I have read tons of pro's & con's about Mac but I wanted to see for myself. So, I ended up with a Mac 6450 integrated amp, yes pretty blue meters of course.
Now that the amp was set I need to find some speakers (yes, I know, BACKWARDS) So I went out & listened to some B&W, Thiel, Dalli & Paradigm. All were OK, but nothing jumped out at me. So, again back to the drawing board. After reading everything I could I just decided to take a risk, save some money & buy used. I love this part of the hobby actually, buy everything just to try it & sell what you don't want! In the end I bought a pair of Triangle Antal 202's for cheap money, supposedly excellent synergy with Mac. Lively, dynamic, maybe a bit bright or forward with the wrong gear. Ok, I like lively & dynamic, let's try them & see. Then of course, after I bought them I ended up finding a pair of B&W CDM1 SE monitors, damn. Yup, bought them too, couldn't resist 8) Now speaker cables, this is going to be tough. I have a pair of Acoustic Zen Satori shot guns, they are BAD ASS, the best cable I have ever heard but I can sell them for at least $600. So, I bought some cables to try, Zu Wax bi-wires, people like them so they are worth a shot. Honestly, I don't know if I will end up selling the Acoustic Zen's but the Zu's are half the money, I really should just sell the Zen's.
So now I need a source, again, I have two bad ass sources, can I find replacements that will sound good enough for at least half the money? I don't know but I am trying, I think the VPI will be traded for my old Thorens. Honestly, I can't go without vinyl, might as well just give up music. The Onkyo universal player/ECD Dac combo is probably going to be the hardest to replace. It is is tough to find a decent cheap universal player worth listening too but I am searching. Denon is of course the front runner but for $350 how much should I expect. I need to let it go & remember this is an office system but I will probably spend more time listening to this vs. the old system. Again, maybe I should just keep the player , since I already sold the DAC >:D
So in the end life does change but usually for the good. At first I was crying but now I think I am good. It is fun to experiment again. So, maybe by writing all this down it helps me get over the loss, no clue but what the hell. While I doubt I will ever have the liquid cash to build a better system then the one I had, who knows, maybe my kid won't go to college after all ;D
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We just found out the wife is pregnant, I guess it's about time as Nick would say.
Congrats! That's awesome news. So begins a new journey in your married life, and soon will come many new hobbies (mostly related to kids programming and made up games). +T
Sorry to see you let it go, but I think you'll realize it was the smart thing to do when the kid comes. Doesn't make it suck any less though.
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Congrats Carl! You have made a wise choice for now! In the long run, you will be fine! Take care...
Brad K.
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Congrats! With every ending comes the beginning of something new. Parenthood is the greatest thing I have ever done in my life! Welcome to the club.
oh and get as much knocked up nookie as you can. that's good shit... ;)
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Congrats! With every ending comes the beginning of something new. Parenthood is the greatest thing I have ever done in my life! Welcome to the club.
oh and get as much knocked up nookie as you can. that's good shit... ;)
Excellent advice!
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Carl,
Great news! Ryder has just hit 2 months and he is the best thing that has ever happened to me and the wife. I guess I went the other way though....buying more shit! I figure he and I will have some quality time down there. He already likes it loud.
I'll give you some more advice, get as much sleep as you can.
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Can I borrow his hat? That looks sweet!
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Not my child, but a band member's wife had their 4mo baby wearing those yellow protective ear muffs. Now that little girl looked so cute. I wish I had a picture of that. The funny thing is that at a previous show I asked the woman if her baby would be OK in a noisy room.
Richard
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i still think you could have stayed within your budget and done A-OK.
:)
a nice office system will kick ass Carl. You'll be happy spinnin' tunes down in your lair.
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Congrats! It is the most life changing event ever (getting married is *nothing* compared to this!).
However.......having kids and a good hi-fi system need not be mutually exclusive! In fact, sell your recording rig and keep the hi-fi so you can stay home with the wife and baby and not run off to gigs!
(Of course, I have 6 kids and have only just recently moved up to what could be called a "good" hi-fi system, but that's just because I have been ignorant as to what constitutes "good" for most of my adult life!)
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Honestly at this point in my life I can't imagine selling my rig, I don't quite think I am ready for that just yet.
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I know..you'd be lost on those 4 times a year you run it.
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I know..you'd be lost on those 4 times a year you run it.
Yup, it totally sucks making a good tape every time I run it ;D
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Carl,
First off, congrats on the future new little one. I, too, three years back had our first child (now we have our 2nd) remember telling my taper compadre (darrin) the rig needs to go, and it did!
Trust me...WITH kids i've found that I now have MUCH more time listening to music. I'm glad you're keeping your old Thorens. I could not live without mine.
Good luck!
C Evans
PS: the rig snuck it's way back after the first year. >:D
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I am going through the same thing now...with a baby due March 23rd, I am fast realizing I am going to have very little time to get out to shows with the regularity that i do today...and am beginning to think that I would be much better served to sell and replace with quality playback, as I can see myself getting more opportunity to sit back and listen for a couple hours, than to go out to a show 5-6 hours at a time...just havent been able to bring myself to sell the rig yet...
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Well, regardless of selling the rig or not, you can not beat a quality playback rig. It is the best money any music lover can spend. I have just spent the past three hours in my office listening to the new system & it is pretty sweet for the money, I am impressed. It's engaging, has tons of prat & while it doesn't pressurize the room like I am used too it certainly brings some of the show home if just in a smaller scale then I am used too. Overall, money spent on a good playback rig is money well spent IMO.
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I sold all my taping and playback gear. Don't miss it one bit. Youll be too busy with the kiddos to have serious fun with it anyway. My spouse thought something was wrong when with me when i told her i was selling it. I had a little remorse- but now i can get to shows at the last minute or after they start, and leave early if either of us is tired.
Coop
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congrats man!
You'll have more fun with the baby in the long run, so you made a good call - dont ever let anyone tell you otherwise! :)
Good luck on the office playback - you know what your looking for and know the budget, so you'll have no probs finding the right setup... on the downside, you wont be able to crank it up and rock out for a long time.. teehee. :)
-Jim
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Well, the reality of what happened is starting to hit me & everytime I see this thread it is only going to continue to hurt but we lost the baby. I know it is natural & the body has a reason for what it does but it doesn't hurt any less. We'll try again & life will go on though.
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Dont let it get you guys down...., it happens all the time. might even happen again..you never know.
the stork WILL come though.
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Thanks Nick, I have been locked in the basement spinning vinyl like a madman trying to take my mind off things, thank god for music.
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you should pick up some Barry White albums. might help out.
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Wow, sorry to hear about the loss.
Our first pregnancy ended in miscarriage.....totally unexpected, no way did we think that would happen. Then when my wife got pregnant again we thought, well, we had the miscarriage, that's behind us....and it happened again. *Then* when she got pregnant again, we were afraid to tell anyone, and tried to pretend that nothing was happening.
That was 16 years ago:
(http://home.grandecom.net/~myersfamily/Pictures/Sarah.JPG)
All in all we had 5 miscarriages. Always a tough thing to go through, and something that seems totally out of the realm of possibility when expecting a first child, but a totally natural and common thing (I bet you've had a bunch of people share their stories since hearing this).
Hang in there.
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Yes, your exactly right, it seems more common then completing the term sometimes. We are getting through it though, thanks for everyone support. It's a great community we have here, I hope everyone is as thankful for it as I am.
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One of my oldest and closest friends (27 years) had a placental abruption on the day of delivery - very tragic and devastating for me (for her I can not imagine)...
Time heals and life continues, and a beautiful child will come...
I do not know you at all but wanted to post because your loss for some reason really made me think of my friend - it hurts terribly - stay strong and push forward - your time will come.
Everyone out there - spend as much time with family/loved ones/friends as possible - when the time is gone it is gone forever and you can't get it back....
We are all thinking of you...
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I'm sorry to hear that Carl.
:'(
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Same here. our first pregnancy ended in miscarriage. these things happen for a reason. an other chance will come and when it is right it will happen. good things happen to good people!
+T
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I can't thank everyone enough for their support, it is much appreciated.