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
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
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
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
Topic: Life changes......... (Read 7405 times)