[skamp]

Is this a lot of money? IMO, no. Save up for about 5 years

5 years worth of savings is a lot in my book. And I think it could put to better use than spending it all on audio gear. Don't you have priorities?

A quality rig like this will last many many years and out live your car.

It might not outlive a serious case of upgraditis.

 

[Spareribs]

Quote:

5 years worth of savings is a lot in my book. And I think it could put to better use than spending it all on audio gear. Don't you have priorities?
It might not outlive a serious case of upgraditis.

That is a good question and I'll try to balance it out. Many people I know have expensive hobbies. There are guys who own very expensive motorcycles or own a nice motor boat. There are guys out there who spend thousands of dollars each year on golf trips. I can ask them "Do you have priorities?" And it is a valid question. 
 
If you have kids and have family needs and not financially secure, an expensive hobby is probably not a good idea. However, in my opinion, excellent audio gear can be cheaper than other hobbies as long as you do not have a case of upgraditis.
 
Also, IMO, upgraditis is not important for great sound. If you look at a 1959 Dynaco power amp, it is still well regarded today. I would be happy with one and never buy another amp again for the rest of my life. The old Grado headphones are still well regarded too and many headphone lovers still swear by them.
 
So compared to other hobbies, if you are thoughtful, audio gear is actually sensible with longevity and once you spend the money, that's it. You may have to spend on future repairs maybe, say if your amp needs a capacitor to be replaced or if a speaker driver goes bad and perhaps a new digital player every 10 years but other than that, audio gear is a sensible investment as long as you are not a shopaholic and not concerned with the latest flavor of the month gear.
 

 

[devouringone3]

 
 

Wow, you sure love your audio to spend all your money on that.

 
I do . I listen to music all the time when I'm near my computer, which means that I listen to it a lot . Not taking many pauses either. And I looove the HP-1000 drivers, both in a HP2 or in a SR100 (and soon in a SR325). They sound equally good to me, with minor minor differences.
 
I also cherish my really obscure Japanese music (some really hard to find), progressive rock and metal, and old video games chip tunes.
 
 
Quote:

If you have a decent job or real good job, it is possible to spend $10,000 on a very nice stereo system. Say $2000 on a headphone amp, $3000 on a speaker amp, $1500 on speakers, $2000 on a couple high end headphones and $1500 on a good DAC or digital player. This of course does not include a vinyl rig though.
 
Total: $10,000.
 
Is this a lot of money? IMO, no. Save up for about 5 years (assuming you have no major financial problems) and before you know it, you have the money without even putting it on a credit card. A quality rig like this will last many many years and out live your car. Yes hobbies are expensive but compared to other hobbies, if you shop smart, the audio hobby can be cheaper.
 

+1!
 
 
 

That is a good question and I'll try to balance it out. Many people I know have expensive hobbies. There are guys who own very expensive motorcycles or own a nice motor boat. There are guys out there who spend thousands of dollars each year on golf trips. I can ask them "Do you have priorities?" And it is a valid question. 
 
If you have kids and have family needs and not financially secure, an expensive hobby is probably not a good idea. However, in my opinion, excellent audio gear can be cheaper than other hobbies as long as you do not have a case of upgraditis.
 
Also, IMO, upgraditis is not important for great sound. If you look at a 1959 Dynaco power amp, it is still well regarded today. I would be happy with one and never buy another amp again for the rest of my life. The old Grado headphones are still well regarded too and many headphone lovers still swear by them.
 
So compared to other hobbies, if you are thoughtful, audio gear is actually sensible with longevity and once you spend the money, that's it. You may have to spend on future repairs maybe, say if your amp needs a capacitor to be replaced or if a speaker driver goes bad and perhaps a new digital player every 10 years but other than that, audio gear is a sensible investment as long as you are not a shopaholic and not concerned with the latest flavor of the month gear.
 

Another +10 to all this post and..

+ 1000! For the Grado sentence.
 
Sorry for repeating so much content that has just been posted.

 

[Maxvla]

It's all in the budgeting. I don't make a lot of money, but I have very few expenses so I can afford a $5k+ rig no problem. Being single, eating/drinking sensibly, and not smoking/drugs goes a long way in a hobby like this. When people talk about smoking a pack of cigarettes a day, for example, you are spending $6-10 every day. That's $2200-3650 a year on something that only deals damage to you. You can get a VERY nice complete rig for that kind of money.

 

[devouringone3]

Quote:

If you look at a 1959 Dynaco power amp, it is still well regarded today.

So amplifiers and the electronics in them do last long? even after 20 years? Lasts longer than the headphone that accompanies it?
 
Because I'm about to spend a huge sum on a Joseph Grado HPA-1... and I have ghosts of fear that it will die of age on me in the first week because of Murphy's law (! ):

 

[Maxvla]

You know a HPA-1 is a cmoy you can build yourself for less than $50 right?

This is the inside:

 

[devouringone3]

Hey Maxvla, this is a guts extraction of a RA-1, vaguely based off of the HPA.
 
The HPA-1 is close to being the same circuit, yes, but in my mind I'm paying for the direct design by Sidney Stockton Smith, Joseph Grado's selection of best ALPS pots and custom made condensers, Ultra-Wide Bandwidth cabling, and the ability to be both portable and nomad, all in this awesome casing: 
 

 
And with those internals:

the amp, Joseph's version, is said to be better and less grainy than the RA-1.
 
And I need a HPA-1 because I'm such a filthy purist. I'm close to owning four HP1000 driven headphones now, I want the synergy people have talked (little, because little have been said about the HPA) about.
 
Sad part is that my only source for it is selling it for 1 000. And 900 for me because I'm a friend. He doesn't want to sell it any lower because he remember having paid 795$ for it in the days. Grr. I would like to say no to him and take more time to find one (I've already placed many ads) but he has just put the HP1 on top of it, for 2000. And no my source isn't LFF on Head-Fi, who is offering almost the same deal (but a tad cheaper). 1100 for the HP1 is great though! but he will only sell the combo (2050 with shipping). I already have a HP2 so if I could find a cheaper HPA I would go for it and leave the other combo behind, but I might also accept the combo as well, if I can't find any other HPA.
 

 
Looks so much better than a RA-1..

 

[Maxvla]

I don't get it. Is that an RA-1 with exotic parts but the same basic layout? The picture I showed above is literally the inside of a Grado RA-1 pulled out of the wood casing. They used to sell used for about $150-200.

Again you could build your own with exotic parts and still end up MUCH cheaper than $850. It's an extremely simple circuit.

 

[devouringone3]

Nah there's got to be something about how they were assembled by Joseph. And also none of these parts are available anymore... except maybe a chop of the cable but Joseph would charge a lot for it too.
 
Think about it, it's like if you were asking me to go buy a Symphone Magnum and save myself the money-hassle of buying a HP1-2-3. I get the same basic scheme, all metal headphones and similar looking 40 mm drivers, just not the same parts used.
 
The quality of the parts and the workmanship is the subtle difference that is worth paying for... when you live in Grado's past since you've joined Head-Fi.
 
 
And really, I'm hardcore... if this is my last chance to get my hands on a HPA amplifier, considering only 200 units or so were made (because Grado were losing money doing it), I will take that chance .
 
I used to think I was a collector but unlike these guys me I plan on using the HPA-1 most of the time. So it makes me a purist?
 
I want this setup: 

 

[headphonatic]

I'm guessing I'm the youngest? Fourteen and in high school, for salary? Does the 10$ bill I found on the street count?

 

[Maxvla]

Oooooh... I was reading HPA-1 as RA-1 thinking they were the same thing.

Apparently the HPA-1 was assembled by a Marantz engineering according to this:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/120905/grado-hpa-1#post_1419623

More info:

I asked John Grado about the HPA-1 vs. the RA-1. Quote: "It's the same circuit." Whether or not that translates into similar sound, I couldn't tell you. I heard the HPA-1 briefly, but did not do a head-to-head with the RA-1. The thing that struck me about the HPA-1 was its size.......it's small! Much smaller than the pics had led me to believe.

 

[devouringone3]

 

Oooooh... I was reading HPA-1 as RA-1 thinking they were the same thing.

 
That's what John Grado said... and that's in his advantage to say that too. "Same circuit", but no one really knows actually.
 
Yes, Sidney Stockton Smith is the name of the famous audio engineer who worked for and was friend of (Saul) Marantz, and who designed the HPA.
 
Dude I have read three times everything that has been said on the internet about the HPA-1 and -2, sometimes translating my way through Japanese, Chinese and French texts. That link you gave me is in my favorites/ Chrome bookmarks. I also questioned owners of the HPA on Head-Fi.
 
I know how little so much of my money will be getting for me... but I am willing to give it all for this very little.
 
 
Joseph is still using this amp today so there's got to be a reason for that .
 

As of last March 29th.

 

[Maxvla]

Fair enough, just trying to protect your wallet, man.

 

[devouringone3]

Hehe, thank you for trying so!

 

[Xinze]

Quote:

 
 
That's what John Grado said... and that's in his advantage to say that too. "Same circuit", but no one really knows actually.
 
Yes, Sidney Stockton Smith is the name of the famous audio engineer who worked for and was friend of (Saul) Marantz, and who designed the HPA.
 
Dude I have read three times everything that has been said on the internet about the HPA-1 and -2, sometimes translating my way through Japanese, Chinese and French texts. That link you gave me is in my favorites/ Chrome bookmarks. I also questioned owners of the HPA on Head-Fi.
 
I know how little so much of my money will be getting for me... but I am willing to give it all for this very little.
 
 
Joseph is still using this amp today so there's got to be a reason for that .
 

As of last March 29th.

Just about the picture, what happened to the fact that people lose hearing as they age? If I can't consistently hear the difference between 320/FLAC surely they won't be able to hear the smaller and finer details of high end headphones?