[W0lfd0g]

I have a friend who likes to hunt, or at least he says he does.  All he seems to do is talk about it, work on making customized stocks for his rifles and researching ammunition.  I don't think he has been out hunting for over a year.
 
I think you can see where I am going with this.  Maybe not.  You see, I believe that the purpose of a hobby is enjoyment.  If it's gear and audio technology you're into, that's cool.  If it's music, no worries there either.  Which camp do you fall into?  Please take my survey. 

 

[eriktous]

I can find practically all the music I ever want for free, so if I had to choose my money would go to gear.
 

 

[Greyowl]

If you truly enjoy and appreciate music, whatever the genre, you will want it reproduced with a reasonable degree of audio fidelity. The level of fidelity that we achieve is determined by our ability to distinguish audio differences- (which become increasingly subtle as you move up the audiophile food chain) - and more significantly the amount of money that we are willing to spend to reach that point.
 
The great thing about digital audio today is that for most people, a satisfactory level of audio quality can be achieved for surprisingly little money.  Therefore with a thousand dollars you should be able to set-up a desk-top system (DAC-amp & headphones) that would satisfy most of us.

 

[tru blu]

Easy…both. I have shopping lists on both fronts. Also, music's cheaper and I already have tons of it, so some of that $1000 windfall would certainly help with a bigger ticket item.
 
Actually, I'm not sure the poll is set up in a way that makes it analogous with the hunting gear metaphor…just sayin'…

 

[Makiah S]

Quote:

I can find practically all the music I ever want for free, so if I had to choose my money would go to gear.
 

Yeapers, music is easy to get ahold of these days. And if your young... then there's about 20 years worth of FLAC rips to hunt for if your really want to have some nice stuff for free!
Quote:

If you truly enjoy and appreciate music, whatever the genre, you will want it reproduced with a reasonable degree of audio fidelity. The level of fidelity that we achieve is determined by our ability to distinguish audio differences- (which become increasingly subtle as you move up the audiophile food chain) - and more significantly the amount of money that we are willing to spend to reach that point.
 
The great thing about digital audio today is that for most people, a satisfactory level of audio quality can be achieved for surprisingly little money.  Therefore with a thousand dollars you should be able to set-up a desk-top system (DAC-amp & headphones) that would satisfy most of us.

Indeed, but what I like about the AudioPhile scene is the diversity! I'll end up with multiple set ups each for a different mastery. Plus it's enjoyable to be able to share with some one the difference in each headphone. It's almost like cooking, you love rice and there are hundreds of ways to cook rice [this would be your music] and that's fun, but the REAL fun is getting to know the different kinds of Rice Crops! Each has a distinct flavor and texture that works well with a few cooking methods, and that's what's so additive. Finding the perfect pair of Audio and Gear to get the full experince out of your music! Some people like the flavor of accuracy, some like the flavor of "live sound" some like the flavor or Tight Bass, were all different and there's all sorts of gear aimed to do different things. Although I think the real fun is getting close to perfect, but nevering finding perfection, if we all had the perfect set up there'd be no joy in exploreing the possibilities.

 

[Radioking59]

I love the logic of why buy something when you can steal it. What a wonderful world we live in. For me, I vote music.

 

[Radio_head]

Having already spent more money than I care to think of on music and with few new releases worth my while, I would spend the money on gear.

 

[rroseperry]

The catalog of music is so deep. I'd say buy music, especially once you've got gear that's fairly satisfactory.

But my bias is clear, read my sig.

 

[dysthanasiac]

Without the music, there's no need for the gear.  It's really that simple.
 
I disagree with the notion that a "true" appreciation of music requires the listener to go to great lengths to ensure that the sound one hears is reproduced as accurately as it was recorded.  While higher fidelity never hurts, good music, or even just music that has a tendency to stick to your ribs, transcends the medium through which it's conveyed.  In fact, if there's a sweeping generality to me made here, I think it's that a "true" appreciation of music is wholly independent of anything else at all.
 
I believe a lot of people find themselves climbing the audiophile ladder, so to speak, out of a desire to reproduce the initial excitement of falling in love with an artist or a record or a song for the very first time, to buff the shine of a diamond that's lost a bit of its luster due to the repeated listens spawned by that love.  It forces you to pay attention as closely as you used to.  But, by and large, I think it's just chasing a ghost.

 

[Brooko]

My gear is not top-end, yet I am completely satisfied with it.
 
I'd love to try a few other headphones (HD700, SRH1840) - but I'm really quite content with what I have at the moment.  So for me it would be music.  
 
I'd really be like a kid in a candy-store if someone gave me a grand to go spend on music.  I also think it would be a lot more fun (for me at my current situation) than getting more gear - and the anticipation would be greater too.  I used to download a lot of music when I was younger.  Over the last 5+ years, I've been buying the all of original music that I've downloaded.  Call me crazy, but it feels better.  I now own almost every bit of music in my collection - and very soon it will be the lot.
 
A grand on music would give me a lot more joy.

 

[TJ Elite]

I try to spend money on both music and gear; not necessarily evenly but I do try to keep the ratio pretty close not letting one or the other take a major lead. However for the poll I chose music, simply because I don't think there's that much gear available for $1000 that I'd want and none that I'd definitely need at the moment. The only thing I can think of would be a new pair of headphones (HD800 or T1), but I'd also want to get a new amp if I did that meaning I'd probably end up spending at least an additional grand. That's not something I'm actually even considering at the moment simply because I'm more of a speaker guy and since I got my 803 Diamonds I've had no real complaints about my primary sound system. Well, actually I think its resolution might be enough to reveal the limitations of red book audio to my ears on some albums (even great sounding ones), but that's something I've only noticed recently, so I'll have to take a more thorough look into the matter during the summer. Anyway, that's why I'd happily spend the $1000 on music and music alone. That would make my wishlist a whole lot shorter. Not that I don't already have a long queue of albums I seriously need to revisit...

 

[bigshot]

When I have to spend money on equipment, I'm usually pissed off because something broke. I love buying music.

 

[Fringe]

My vote is for gear. Before I had a decent setup I didn't fully listen to or apreciate the music so I never bothered to seek different types of music. Now with better gear I found my music tastes have changed and I'm listening to new genres and widening my music preferences. I never once would have listened to a OST from beginning to end 10 years ago but now It's a different story. Thanks to the gear I'm able to enjoy the music a lot more.

 

[Prog Rock Man]

I was going to vote music till I saw the question. With streaming services such as Spotify providing me with more music than I could have ever imagined for £10 a month, buying music is almost redundant. So I would spend the money on gear, specifically headphones. But, if I could suggest a third alternative of going to concerts, that is what I would really want to spend the £1k on!
 

 

[W0lfd0g]

Quote:

I was going to vote music till I saw the question. With streaming services such as Spotify providing me with more music than I could have ever imagined for £10 a month, buying music is almost redundant. So I would spend the money on gear, specifically headphones. But, if I could suggest a third alternative of going to concerts, that is what I would really want to spend the £1k on!
 

Would your primary interest in going to concerts be for the tickling of the ears that is unique to a live performance, or the overall experience (anticipation of the event, on stage banter, crowd dynamics and response etc)? If the former, I would suggest that your vote is for music.  In any case, what a great investment in experiences that would be.