[Ritchiepurple]

The desire to upgrade our audio gear endlessly is a well know attribute many audiophiles share but why? When you first get a new or upgraded piece of gear there is that feeling of overwhelming happiness that forces a smile onto your face but with each listen that feeling slowly fades, not to say the enjoyment of gear diminishes but that feeling of hearing something you haven't quite heard before is addictive. I think we become used to the sound of our gear and the only way to achieve our 'fix' is to upgrade. Its almost as if our tolerance to high end sound increases pushing us to go further down the road of high end audio. Also a common feature is the harder  sorry higher end audio gear the more we cant do with out, I remember when upgrading from my ibuds so something marginally more expensive brought that smile to my face but i could still go back and listen to ibuds if necessary but now as i've gone further down the road of high end audio i feel i can never go back. Is'nt it interesting how the feeling we all get out of our audio gear shares starling similarities to other addictions?

 

[Rossinator]

It's just fun spending money and getting new toys.

 

[KimChee]

I think this applies to any hobby, it's human nature to always want more.  Ive definately found this to be true in my other hobbies as well.

 

[Xocnuc]

Perfectionism.

 

[Ritchiepurple]

Quote:

It's just fun spending money and getting new toys.

Definitely the case for me!

 

[Head Injury]

Hedonic treadmill.

 

[Mr.Sneis]

I think certain types of personalities have a harder time dealing with "good enough."  It can get pretty bad, better than a drug habit I guess!

 

[Digital-Pride]

Quote:

I think certain types of personalities have a harder time dealing with "good enough."  It can get pretty bad, better than a drug habit I guess!

That's right!  I can stop anytime.... just after the next purchase.

 

[hodgjy]

I'm not sure why it is addictive, but it is.  I'm a full out addict buying tubes for my amp.  I have to keep buying them!  Even though I have enough tubes to last many years, I compulsively find the need to buy more.

 

[gelocks]

Quote:

I'm not sure why it is addictive, but it is.  I'm a full out addict buying tubes for my amp.  I have to keep buying them!  Even though I have enough tubes to last many years, I compulsively find the need to buy more.

just think of it this way, if we are ever in a post apocalyptic setting and we need tubes to power up our electric plants due to a change in engineering because the scarce items left behind, you'll be our savior.
 
now as to why this is addictive, i'm not sure... but it sure is!!!!!!
 

 

[hodgjy]

With great power, comes great responsibility.
 
Quote:

just think of it this way, if we are ever in a post apocalyptic setting and we need tubes to power up our electric plants due to a change in engineering because the scarce items left behind, you'll be our savior.

 
 

 

[JadeEast]

 
 
Quote:

The desire to upgrade our audio gear endlessly is a well know attribute many audiophiles share but why? 

 

[LithoJazoSphere]

It's natural curiosity and the power of the unknown.  We are always left wondering, "things might be great now, but could they be even better?"  Many addictions take successively stronger and stronger doses to achieve the same "high" as before, and for many people here it's really no different, just healthier and not likely as dangerous.

 

[NamelessPFG]

I think it basically boils down to a deep-seated lust for new information and experiences. The more gear you get your hands on, the more experience you have overall, and that experience can come in handy when people start asking you for recommendations. That, and people want to make their own judgments on other people's judgments. (For instance, the usual debates of CMSS-3D Headphone vs. Dolby Headphone vs. plain stereo for gaming on this very forum...)
 
That, and when you've experienced something in a better way, it's hard to go back. Try going from a game that runs at less than 20 FPS on bare minimum settings to the same game, but running at over 60 FPS constantly while maxed out. Obviously, you won't want anything less afterward.

 

[skree]

It's a voyage of discovery for me.. I'm at the starting out stage where i've only just been introduced to decentish head/earphones.. but i've done the 'ophile thing with other things so i'm experienced with that.. And i've never experienced a dedicated headphone amp.
 
I tend to upgrade the whole lot at once so once i've got this current portable rig sorted (i use speakers exclusively at home) that'll probably be it for a couple of years for me although i do want a set of cans or two - the decent 'phones i have now are earbuds only.. different 'phones for different circumstances. I'm probably going to build myself a decent little DIY home speaker amp, possibly integrating a skeleton DAC or similar.. dual stereo, something like 5-15wpc (RMS constant) over 4 channels (i'm not a believer in 5.1/7.1) and some proper, sensitive speakers in nice cabs
 
i digress.. It's a voyage of discovery, sorting myself out a decent little portable rig, maybe a few different sets of 'phones.. but what i'm really interested in now is amplifiers.. I probably don't need one as i'm in the cheaper end of the market for my stuff but i'm wanting to see what a difference they make.. all knowledge is my goal.. i spend hours and hours on the internet learning new stuff
 
it's gadgets and technological toys and tweaks i'm addicted to.. like with my new portable source, which is a Nokia 101 mobile phone - it's the best MP3 player i've ever had by FAR, supposed to be pretty good even by 'ophile standards.. it's a $30 phone but i already spent $15 on a genuine nokia rubber cover for it - no 3rd party ones available yet - ordered 3 USB charging cables (5$), bought a pair of sennheiser mx-880s especially for it (the aforementioned decentish earphones) for about $40, $5 on a 3xAA portable charger for it.. and i'm looking at an amplifier and customisation of said amplifier to make it better for phone use.. could be anything up to another $40 or so.. oh yeah and i'm trying to get a higher capacity internal battery for it.. had taken it apart within a few days of getting it to see what, if anything, could be done
 
I'm not sure if it's a form of mental illness or not.. fortunately for me i'm from yorkshire, england, and have the yorkshire reputation for not spending any money on anything ever to protect and it protects my wallet (a little bit) from companies selling lovely lovely *SHINY STUFF*. I upgrade till i'm happy then leave it at that till something fails.. but i do like to have many many gadgets.. i'm just too cheap to get too far into the spending hehe
 
edit: once you've upgraded though it's hard to downgrade.. i can never again walk into a local store, come out with a set of $15 earbuds i'll be happy with.. or even less than disgusted by...