[baskingshark]

Hi friends! Hope everyone is staying safe during this period, wishing you and family good health!

I know we are all here in Headfi due to our love for music, but in the big scheme of things, I would consider audio gear to be "discretionary" spending, YMMV. Worldwide, most economies ain't doing well cause of lockdowns or lesser footfall (due to fears of the virus) and also consumers are spending less due to the uncertainty and job losses.

As such, I think some boutique and more expensive audio gear might take a hit during this period, not so sure about the cheaper CHIFI companies, but they might still be affected by logistics, transport and supplies issues.

So as per the poll, will you guys/girls be spending less during this coronavirus period on audio gear?

 

[Spareribs]

No. I plan on buying more audio gear. I have more money now since I stopped going out to expensive restaurants and bars and not going on any trips or vacations.

I’m also not buying any new clothes too. No trips to museums, no $100 concert tickets. No going out and randomly buying pizza lunches. Only eating at home. Saving lots of money and I feel richer. I kind of like it.

 

[CoryGillmore]

No. I plan on buying more audio gear. I have more money now since I stopped going out to expensive restaurants and bars and not going on any trips or vacations.

I’m also not buying any new clothes too. No trips to museums, no $100 concert tickets. No going out and randomly buying pizza lunches. Only eating at home. Saving lots of money and I feel richer. I kind of like it.

Same here! My exact sentiments. I have more money in my pocket now than ever haha.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Lucky people, I lost two jobs due to the pandemic and I am unable to graduate from my professional program as I needed to complete a second practicum placement which was in a psychiatric hospital setting and the agency stopped such placements during the outbreak. Big disparity is found among those who work for the public service and have been allowed to work from home while being paid their full salary. I know many people who work for various government agencies and despite having greatly reduced work-loads their pay has remained full. That must be a lovely luxury. So for me, I will likely have to start selling off some of my gear not acquiring new toys.

 

[baskingshark]

Lucky people, I lost two jobs due to the pandemic and I am unable to graduate from my professional program as I needed to complete a second practicum placement which was in a psychiatric hospital setting and the agency stopped such placements during the outbreak. Big disparity is found among those who work for the public service and have been allowed to work from home while being paid their full salary. I know many people who work for various government agencies and despite having greatly reduced work-loads their pay has remained full. That must be a lovely luxury. So for me, I will likely have to start selling off some of my gear not acquiring new toys.

Hang in there friend! I hope things get better soon. Money can always be earned back eventually, but health is more important IMO.

I suffered a pay cut too with some furlough, so i can emphatize with u. Stay safe!

 

[Sonic Defender]

Hang in there friend! I hope things get better soon. Money can always be earned back eventually, but health is more important IMO.

I suffered a pay cut too with some furlough, so i can emphatize with u. Stay safe!

Thanks mate, you as well.

 

[Redcarmoose]

I posted probably buying less gear.

 

[CopperFox]

More, but mostly it hasn't got something to do with the pandemic. I started getting back into hifi after a break of 2-3 years last autumn and it has escalated higher than before since that. There also seems to be a lot of good deals and offers around. I've had trouble ordering balanced cables for my headphones recently because there has apparently been a surge of demand for headphone cables during the pandemic. One cable builder even shut down their online store for ten days to keep up with demand.

I work in a sector that is generally busier than usual in these times and I would prefer to work in the office. Never even liked living too close to my workplace. Makes it more difficult to separate work and free time.

 

[c4sadler]

As a consumer, I'm uncertain about the future of the economy. For this reason, I plan to save more $ by spending less on audio.

 

[mantsm]

For me this quarantine period was the reason why I have started to research headphone world and bought my first hifi headphones and an amp. Now I want more, but probably I will stay away from further purchases for another year.

 

[wuwhere]

Well I'm done spending anymore on this hobby. To improve on my current setup I would have to spend thousands.

 

[BobG55]

I’m not spending at all and I haven’t for a while, even before the pandemic. As a matter of fact I’ve sold a pair of HD660S & my Violectric V100 which I liked but I prefer my WA6 gen.2 now. I’ve finally reached a point where I’m pretty much satisfied w/ what I have. Maybe its age related ? I just turned 65 and for the past 3-4 years I’ve slowed down as it pertains to buying audio items. I digress, so, no, I’m not buying more.

 

[Malevolent]

I've actually done more "business" during this COVID-19 period. I've bought several headphones, but I've also sold some of my unused and/or unwanted stuff to cover the costs.

I wasn't this active pre-lockdown.

 

[BrownBear]

I have definitely bought more gear and music during this time. Bought two pairs of headphones, a new cartridge for the turntable, new speakers for my audio room, and a cheap tube amp that I'm hoping will be my introduction to tube gear.

I've also bought music. Got several new vinyl LPs and several new cassettes.