Well, you know that us sensible right-thinking people are just jealous, right?
It's kind of an on-going struggle I think. When we all start as clueless cheap ear-bud wearing teenagers, we never even thought about whether the headphones were reproducing the music accurately or even aesthetically satisfying--the conversations were about the music we listened to, the new bands we discovered, and being immersed in the soundtracks of our lives. But as we get older and as our financial prowess grow, we start seeking higher quality, and the conversation starts to shift, where we start talking about gear more and more. This isn't just among audiophiles, but also audio professionals too. Take a spin around gearslutz.com and you'll see it's the same there. KVRAudio is the only place I know where that attitude is much less prevalent, as the spirit of that community is all about ingenious plugins that are often freeware.
Time and time again, I've seen people at various music/audio production forums lamenting the loss of joy when they delve deeper and deeper into that abyss of gear acquisition. They were hung up on that 10% of quality increase that costs thousands of dollars, that elusive "magical" sounding mic pre, or how a DAC sounds minutely different from another DAC, which requires multiple double-blind tests to even be able to assess (and not always successfully), or how this pair of reference monitor sounds slightly smoother than that pair, and so on. Coupled with the choices and complexities of modern DAW/sequencer operation, they one day realize they were making a lot more music before all of this stuff became the focus, and many ended up selling off a bunch of stuff and just kept it as simple as possible, so they can actually get back to creating music instead of obsessing about gear. But I realize the motivation of musicians are different from music-lovers--they need to be productive, while music lovers only need to enjoy, and often having different sonic signatures of various gears IS an enjoyment because the differences between them is sort of like having different spices to add to your meal.
I think the fine line between a sensible audiophile and an audiofool is so thin that we're all probably constantly treading back and forth between the two. If someone is not doing well financially but chooses to buy that very expensive DAC or tube amp, when the DAC and amp he has now sounds perfectly fine, then perhaps priorities are a bit skewed at that point. But if he's just got big fat year-end bonus and he has no kids to raise and no wife to give him dirty looks, then sure, splurge and go hog wild. But too often I see people barely able to afford the toys but keep buying anyway, adding more stress to their lives, and then when the $hit hits the fan, they have to sell off a bunch of stuff just to survive. That's audiofool territory to me, simply because priorities in life are misplaced at that point, not because of anything to do with the gears themselves.
I think we all have different thresholds for diminishing returns, as well as for the collector's mentality. I look at the guys who have entire basements filled with antique synths and expensive monster modulars, where some of the models are just slight variants of the same make, I immediately recognize that the person is not collecting those synths because he needs all of them to make the kind of music he wants to make--his priorities has shifted, and collecting IS the point. I can't fault someone for that, because I can totally understand that mentality, especially when the objects of desire are complex and fascinating pieces of gear with infinite sonic possibilities. I suppose collecting headphones, amps, DAC's, expensive cables...etc are similar, but to a much lesser degree. Swapping them around can alter the sonic signature, and comparing the differences can be a lot of fun, but I don't think everyone who goes that far can actually hear the differences--so much of it is placebo. I always see double-blind tests where people fail to tell the difference between the DAC on a $50 soundcard and standalone DAC that costs more than a thousand dollars, or a regular cable vs. a ridiculously expensive cable, or well-ripped lossy files vs. non-lossy files, and so on. I've also had people tell me off the record that the difference they hear with expensive amps is so minor that they really regret buying something so expensive, and end up replacing them with much more modest models. I think if someone is to splurge on expensive stuff, they should be sure that they DO hear the difference very clearly, so that the money's well-spent, otherwise, that's audiofool territory. Then again, it's their money and no one can tell them how to spend it. Maybe the thrill of acquiring and owning and trying to hear the differences is the joy for them, but I think that joy is more meaningful if they really do hear the difference and those differences do translate into joy in their lives. Note that I never, ever, state whether I think a particular member can or can't hear the difference--I personally do not know, and I'm not talking about anyone in particular. I usually assume that people who own gears like that CAN hear the difference and the differences are meaningful to them in the context of bringing more joy to their lives. It's only when someone blatantly demonstrates to us that he doesn't know the difference anyway and all the money spent is meaningless, do I actually notice it.
I guess it's all about how well you are doing financially, and how well you balance priorities in life. If you are wealthy and the cost of the gear doesn't stress your bank account in any meaningful way, then you can be as extravagant as you want and no one has the right to judge. This kind of reminds me of a story I heard on a Chinese audiophile forum. There was this guy who had no education and worked hard labor, but he's always loved music very much. He'd save up money to buy concert tickets so he could listen to a symphonic orchestra live. He also saved up so he could buy CD's, and a high-quality audio system. He pretty much worked his ass off, holding down multiple jobs, and really destroyed his health along the way. He managed to acquire the system of his desire, and he got to listen to it for a brief period before he died--he worked himself to death.
So the meaning we give to the things we are passionate about varies. How many people are willing to die for their love for music or audio gear? It was worth it for this guy, but I wish he had been more sensible about it--he might still be alive today, leaning back with a smile on his face as he loses himself in the music.
Anyway, I just want to say that we find our own meanings in our passions and hobbies, and we all have different priorities in life. My personal stance is just one guy's opinion, and it's my own personal value and priorities. I don't want to force it on anyone, and I have no right to judge anyway--I'm only stating an opinion, which is what this thread is about--asking why we are addicted to this love affair with audio gear and what it means to us. I might see myself as being sensible, but to someone else, I would appear to be completely insane already, so it's all relative anyway.
