[Mink]

It has been almost three years ago since I visited this forum with a question concering upgrading Audio Technica ATH-A500's for some ATH-A900's or Denon AH-D2000's.
I didn't upgrade, instead I bought a side pair of Audio Technica AT-M40's which I use for pop and rock (and are absolutely fabulous for it)

The main reason I asked the question at the time was because whenever I read about audio, whether it is about CD players, amps or headphones I am tempted to buy something new and better.
I deliberatley mention "tempted", because fortunately (or maybe not) I almost never actually get to the point of upgrading, because in the end I alway find myself to be perfectly satisfied with the stuff I have.
For hours listening to Mahler symphonies and wondering if something better could excist.

I can easily adjust to and find pleasure in listening to any gear and set it has a new reference, eventually forgetting the (better) gear I previously listened to.
To give an example: my side pair headphones the M40's have a narrower soundstage than my A500's and listening to some classical music with them, right after I listened to the A500's sets me back a few steps.
But after a few minutes my ears and mind have set to the new acoustics and I can enjoy a true 3D soundstage.
And honestly, at that moment I cannot imagine something that will sound better, I have to plug in the A500's again to convince myself that soundstage I am enjoying is in fact much narrower than that of the A500's.

The point I am trying to make is that I probably would be satisfied with any headphones out there.
My mind can colour the experience, fill in the gaps and even finds a soundstage when there barely isn't one.
It is reading about Audio that gives me the idea I am missing something and that I need something better.

This brings me to the following question.
What is driving you guys to upgrade and buy more and better all the time?
Is it for music sake? Searching the holy grail in music?
Is it mainly a hobby?

(BTW, visiting this forum again had made me look for the Denon AH-D2000's again, checking prices, reading reviews hahaha)

 

[Lou Erickson]

I can agree with that experience. Every time I spend much time here, I wind up reading all these amazing reviews and wondering, "Could it be BETTER?" and thinking of spending money.

I rarely do.

I've also discovered that reading over and over about other people's great new toys encourages me to buy more of my own... and I have other things I want to and should be spending time and money on.

As it works out, I rarely come by, unless I have a specific need or question. This time: How do I hook up the Stax? Got that, am happy, can go away and enjoy my new equipment.

And why did I buy some Stax? Why, it's because I read about them here and heard them at a meet. I liked them A LOT at the meet! I'm way too cheap to buy new ones, but the vintage set fits the rest of my quality, well-aged equipment. It took me years to find a pair going for a price I was willing to pay.

This time through, I read about vinyl again... Temptation! I'm saved from most of it by the vinyl guys being so used to saying, "Oh, a nice basic system is $1,500..." That' about five times what I want to pay. I'll hunt used till I get some quality old gear and upgrade it slowly...

I guess I'll see y'all in two more years.

Until then I'll be happily listening to my current rig, happy to know I've got what I want, regardless of what other things might be out there.

 

[radiohlite]

rightly said. while I enjoy reading about HD800/R10/Stax/K1000/etc (for FAR INTO the future reference at least!) I'm extremely content with my CMoy and woodied SR-60. Now, if I could just win the lotery...

 

[Uncle Erik]

For me, it's not so much upgrading as it is trying new experiences. I'm mote interested i different than better.

But even that seems to be coming to an end. I've heard most of what's out there and bought what I enjoyed listening to. When new gear comes out, I'm interested in hearing it. Newer does not equal better, after all.

Believe it or not, I'm actually lusting after music right now. I've been trolling for hi-rez digital on eBay (the supply is drying up

) and scheming to buy all of the SACD titles offered by Chesky and MoFi.

I love vinyl, but the black discs are becoming easier to come by than DVD-As and SACDs.

 

[Stitch]

The OP's point sounds very familiar.

I got here in december for a decent pair of cans, got the DT880, with future upgrades on the horizon.
The current setup i got completed in july. Then there comes more reading and the urge to buy new stuff grows. Grado was always on my list and got them like 11 days ago.
Now im sometimes wondering of i could improve it all with a new amp. Then i i'm thinking, my rig sounds f@cking incredible compared to what i was used to listen 1 year ago. Hell, i wasn't even listening to music this much before i got into head-fi.
Ofcourse i wanna try out new and more expensive amps/dacs/cans. but thats more for the lust for new experiences.
Especially since some events in the last week made me see, more than ever before, how temporary and fragile live is i'm more than happy with my rig as it is now

 

[pdupiano]

Like a lot of things in life you just have to experience it. Your mind can color your perceptions, but to be honest if I have to work at making my sr60's sound like my rs1's... its effort and energy taken away from me enjoying the music. At the end of the day go for experience rather than upgrades as uncle erik says.

An example I can use is steak.

I love steak. Love it. If you cut me open you'd find 99% of my stomach is steak. For the longest time I only touched well done steak, the idea of blood and everything just made me turn away from medium let alone rare steak. But one day, I tried it. Never turned back. And now, the thing I loved (well done steak) is unappealing to me, to the point that I find it difficult to chew on it knowing that a perfectly cooked steak is actually very moist and soft. Now, I can certainly imagine that welldone steak is rare or medium cooked, but my jaw hurts from chewing, and it just ruins the whole eating experience.

 

[boomana]

My situation is very similar to Uncle Erik's. I'll admit that reading on this forum I get curious about everything, but I'm at the point that I really won't buy anything without hearing it first. I'm also at the point that although I enjoy hearing and can appreciate quite a lot of gear, even if not to my preferences, and I can also hear gear that gets me wanting, I'm very content with what I have, and am spending more time with music.

I'll also admit to upgrading a few times. Along the upgrade path I took:

I upgraded because I was curious (sometimes from just reading things here and elsewhere)
I upgraded because I heard gear that let me experience music in a more involving way than before
I upgraded because I'm sometimes impulsive
I upgraded because this is a hobby for me
I upgraded because I'm spoiled

 

[Sherwood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by boomana /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm very content with what I have

At the risk of stating the obvious, Vicki, who wouldn't be content with what you have?

One surefire way to stop upgraditis is to reach the top

 

[Mink]

"Reading is buying, listening is saving money"
First post I made in three years and today my Denon D5000's have arrived LOL
Yes, reading is buying.

First impression out of the box:
A rather closed sound, a heavy bass with little texture.
(bass intro of Joy Division's Shadow play is more boom than grunt)
Although the impedance is low at 25 Ohm, I have to turn up the volume more than my two Audio Technica's.
Right now the sound of my A500's and M40's appear to be better with some cd's, the M40's beating the Denons in texture (especially the bass) and wideness of the stereo image and the A500's at the soundstage front, more airy more easy flowing.

A few cd's later I find classical music and other natural recorded cd's sound better with the D5000's
Although the treble is definitely more extended on the D5000's, it is less sibilant than the A500's and even the M40's which treble actually is rounded.
Well in fact I don't mind sibilance at all, as long as it isn't shrill and edgy sounding.

The sound is quieter on the Denon's
As if it is just there, it isn't amped at all.

I have to play a lot of bass heavy music to decide if I can live with the big bass.

 

[Dogbane]

I totally agree with the OP. I have been satisfied with phones much less sophisticated than my current HD650s, and probably still would be if it weren't for this forum.
There is one thing I learned from experience that contradicts much of what I have read here, though. A high-end headphone amp (LD MKV) offered vitrually no improvement over the headphone output of my stereo receiver.

 

[Mink]

Quote:

First impression out of the box: A rather closed sound, a heavy bass with little texture.

About the bass.
It definitely is far from neutral, its blooming nature is responsible for some serious slowness and lack of detail and texture in some recordings, it works like some heavy cloth over the enitire low frequencies.

When I set the bass on my Marantz amp three stripes back the dark heavy blanket is completely gone and the bass details and texture are all there, while keeping the overall warmth, so practically it isn't a big issue.

But I find it pretty ridiculous for $500 headphones...only buy them if you have got some sort of tone control or when you love big and heavy bass

 

[Mink]

I am amazed how quick these headphones burn in or how quick I get used to them.
(I am not sure if I believe in burn-in periods)

The heavy bass is only an issue in some recordings, so most of the time I don't use the tone controls.
The soundstage is very 3D, a stage sound.
The M40's have a very wide stero image, but also flat, with very little depth.
Exaggerated I can say with the m40's everything is even, every instrument is treated equally, nothing gets the spotlight.
With some recordings I love this and at the moment I still favor these for mp3's and rock.

The D5000's puts instruments in the spotlight when the recordings asks for it and there's so much more space and instrument separation
I am really starting to like them better and better.
Oh, and they sound pretty good with MP3's as well, not brash and tinny at all.

I guess I have to write a review soon, well first let them (or my ears) burn-in a little longer