According to my Fiance I spent WAY too much on...

[Pierre.Suave]

Stereo Equipment.

I have incredibly good sounding speakers, some mid priced electronic gear, and two awesome tube amps
(a stereo amp and a pre amp)

The overwhelming majority of the cost is in the amps and speakers.

I am listening to some Jane Monheit right now and the level of detail, warmth, and musicality is STUNNING!

I am afraid to post how much I spent for fear you will all agree with her, so why don't you all just agree with me? OK?

[KitchenWitch]

1. You spent way too much.

:P

[Pierre.Suave]

4. Thats not the response I was hoping for.

:mad:

:P

[some guy]

2. I'll agree

with your musical selection. Jane Monheit :thumbsup:

Are your speakers Bose 901s? Best speaker I've ever heard. :)

[Pierre.Suave]

3. NO, definetely not.

I dont like the Bose speakers I have heard.

I have Bowers and Wilkins 802D's

http://www.bowers-wilkins.com/display.aspx?infid=1157&sc=hf

AWESOME is the only word I can think of right now.

[mikeytherat]

30. I got a pair of Nautilus 800s for the deal of the century.

Friend needed cash, fast, and I got them for a song; however, I still love my (recently rebuilt) 23-year-old Phase-Technology PC-65s the best (mated with a Proton integrated amp and my California Audio Labs CD player). Nothing on this planet sounds like them. In fact, if anyone ever sees any Phase-Technology PC-65 speakers (mid-1980s vintage), please let me know. I am always looking and condition of the speaker is unimportant (as long as the cabinets are intact, I can rebuild everything else direct from Phase-Tech. I am always scouring the 'net looking for these speakers.

mikey_the_rat

[Pierre.Suave]

35. They are awesome speakers

are they not?

I wish I had been able to get a good deal on mine.

[mikeytherat]

36. Let's just say, "I paid less than "$5,000 for the pair."

Seriously. Everyone hates me, but I can drown them out with sonic bliss.

mikey_the_rat

[Pierre.Suave]

41. HOLY SHIT!!!!!

That is one hell of a deal.

:mad:

:P

[mikeytherat]

49. I honestly feel that I am renting them, and they will go back to their

rightful owner one day (at a slight premium, perhaps, but I won't be a dick about it).

mikey_the_rat

[Pierre.Suave]

53. Enjoy them while you have them

they are amazing speakers.

[Pierre.Suave]

5. I am now listening to some...

Madeline Peyroux and I am astonished.

the sound coming out of these speakers is simply breathtaking.

[Madrone]

6. When I read the AVS and Audiophile forums and see all the guys whining about their wives disapproval

...

I always think to myself, #1 WHY couldn't I find a dude that had enough money to spend on all that STUFF, and #2, why couldn't I find one that had the money and DID??

lol

I'd be the PERFECT girlfriend for one of those audio/videophile guys. NO QUESTION.

[Pierre.Suave]

7. isnt that the truth

I read some of those forums, and am on one. I see those posts all the time. Granted, I spent a small fortune, but DAMN this sounds good...

:P

[Madrone]

8. LOL -

I guess if I ever find myself desperately looking for love again I'll just hang out on those forums and oooooh and ahhhh over the size of the guys' ... home theatres. LOL I'd probably not need stay single for long!

I love music, electronics, and gadgets. I just can't afford them at that level. :(

I DO have a nice A/V receiver though, that I recently got. One day I'm having myself some of THESE: http://www.salksound.com/

[Pierre.Suave]

10. I have never heard of those,

I should go find some and listen to them.

I am not a video guy, strictly two channel stereo music for me.

I love music too, and I love the purity of the reproduction I get with what I have.

it makes the performance come alive, in all its nuance and passion.

[Madrone]

12. Definitely look into the Salks!

Good luck finding any though - he makes them to order.

I'm like good sound in movies - and I can't afford a separate home theater from the main stereo - so I combine both.

This is the receiver I got an AMAZING deal on - I haven't found anywhere yet that touches the price I got mine for:
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-WvtYGzNQStT/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?i=022RXV1800

I want to get some of the Salk SongTowers - (the Veracitys are AMAZING AND BEAUTIFUL - but I'm trying to be realistic) for fronts because they are supposed to be amazing for music, and do amazingly well at double duty when it comes to movies (voice). Those Veracitys though --- hubba hubba. They're beautiful.

[Pierre.Suave]

14. That looks like a cool reciever

I have heard some good things about Yamaha.

I don't think I will be replacing anything I have now for a VERY long time though. The only thing I am looking for is a nicer cd player and possibly a record player if I want to go vinyl. I think the tuner I have now, is ok for the time being. Radio is not that critical anyway.

[Madrone]

17. Yeah - the receiver was important to me because it will be the hub of my entertainment system.

It's going to be a long while before I get it together, and new speakers are WAY down the line - I plan on making do with what I've got for quite some time. I do need a new 1080P tv though - the receiver upconverts EVERYTHING to HD, and I have a home theater pc that (as soon as I get rid of the crt and get a new tv) will tie in - my music is(somewhat - still ripping) in digital FLAC format and streams to my stereo system via a Squeezebox - http://www.slimdevices.com/pi_squeezebox.html.

The PC will act as a DVR/media server/ etc - and I'll put a bluray drive in it that will play both bluray and hddvds. I REALLY can't wait to hook the pc up ... it irritates me to know end that it's sitting there collecting dust because I don't have a tv w/ enough resolution to use it on. It's pretty much unusable on the crt.

I went with the Yamaha because - generally AV receivers are far from audiophile quality. HOWEVER - Yamaha combines to two VERY well - and better than most for sure. That receiver is supposed to be amazing with music as well as the video stuff. That was a big selling point for me.

Unfortunately - life gets in the way of my PLAN. x(

[Pierre.Suave]

21. Frustrating

I know.

I saw some very nice TVs at the shop where I bought my stuff. They were a lot of money though. I actually finished a mini home theatre a bit ago, all music right now though because other than a playstation 3 and its blu ray player, I have no other player nor a multi channel reciever. I went with a HD Projector, let me say that DU is pretty awesome at over 100 inches of HD love when I plug the computer into the projector.

It is also pretty awesome with games and the PS3.

But I mostly listen to music. it is my passion.

[mikeytherat]

34. My wife (aka Mrs. Rat or DUer "bonecrusher") is an A/V-phile

Her dad got her started with a really nice Denon system in the mid-80s, and that's all it took. Whenever I read about A/V gearheads complain about the W.A.F. (Wife Acceptance Factor), I always laugh and say, "Dude, you should have married a scientist." Best line uttered by Mrs. Rat (about some "architecturally-pleasing" tiny satellite speakers being touted by a salesbot), "Who gives a shit what they look like - how do they sound."

mikey_the_rat

[Pierre.Suave]

37. I like your wife already.

I also hate most salespeople. They are much more likely to make me leave their store than get me to buy anything.

The guys at the local HiFi store are good though, nothing like the teenagers at Worst Buy, etc..

The store where I bought my stuff, hooked everything up for me in one of their listening rooms before I bought it, so I could hear it. Of course they knew that after hearing it, I would have no choice but to buy it...

[GOPisEvil]

59. Why did I know that I'd find you here?

We've got such a backward relationship in some ways. :D

However, you have exquisite taste in electronics. I can't WAIT until you get your setup the way you want it.

[Captain Angry]

9. A story.

I went couch shopping with a couple that I know. They were looking for additional opinions.

While we were there, the wife says "Is our TV big enough?" I told the husband that he better never screw up, or I'm running off with her.

They're both best friends of mine, so they knew I was poking fun.


And a word of advice: If she's worried about the price of the stereo equipment, don't say well you spent all that money on the washer. It will turn out badly. :-)

[Pierre.Suave]

11. That is funny.

I would never say that to her, but she is probably expecting one hell of a wedding ring now.

LOL

edit: It would have to he one hella expensive washer to even come close to what I spent on stereo equipment.

[Captain Angry]

13. She probably got a dryer too. And maybe even a dishwasher.

It all evens out. :-)

[Pierre.Suave]

15. All 3

and throw in a decent midsize car too... and I bet I STILL spent more.

[Captain Angry]

18. Ok, you're starting to swing me to her side. :-)

I will say this then.

I have a buddy. He has made his own money, and a good amount of it. He has significant savings. He has investment income. He is in no danger of not being able to pay his bills.

He has a hobby. He gambles. He put $500.00 in an offshore betting site or whatever. He's turned that into like $5000.00 in about 3 weeks.

His wife is mortified that he's going to lose everything, and wants him to stop. His total expenditure is only $500.00. He can't lose any more than that, and does not intend to put more in if he loses his original $500.00.

She's extremely upset about it. He can't understand why she is so mad when he loses $1000 to fall from $5000 profit to $4000 profit. He has the money, it was his well before they started dating.

Why is she mad? Are you in a similar situation?

If you just bought this stuff and still have car payments to make, I can see her side. Otherwise, rock on. :-)

[Pierre.Suave]

20. She isnt mad, she just thinks it is a waste of money.

I am in a similar situation to your friend.

I am not endangering anything by doing this, except maybe my hearing!

No car payments here.

There may be a mortgage in the future though, but still, no problems.

[Captain Angry]

22. She sounds like my mom.

My mom and dad have worked hard for decades.

They're doing ok.

My mom grew up in a terrible part of Philly. (yeah, redundant, back off) :-)

Her family was very poor, and I think that stuck. She won't spend any money on herself. They have the money, but she feels like she's wasting it if she buys something not on sale.

Unfortunately, I don't have a cure for you. You're going to have to do something that really freaks her out. Go buy a Porsche, and then return it two days later. She'll feel like she talked you out of it, and will hopefully forget about the stereo. :-)

[Pierre.Suave]

23. I have looked at them

just cant get myself to buy one.

Good idea though, I will consider it if things get too bad.

:rofl:

[Captain Angry]

24. Psychology.

Does she want a Prius or something? Buy the Porsche, give her the near heartattack, then return it and buy the Prius. She's happy, you're happy, gasoline bills fall...

Magic.

[Pierre.Suave]

26. LMFAO

I think I need to put you on speed dial.

:rofl:

[Captain Angry]

27. I have all kinds of bad advice.

I should set up a Miss Cleo type of phone service.

[Pierre.Suave]

28. HAHA

you might do pretty well, you never know.

[Runcible Spoon]

32. oh wow tools of domestic servitude

every woman's dream. totally compares to expensive stereo equipment :eyes:

[Pierre.Suave]

38. When you unbunch your panties...

maybe then you can read that for the joking comment I am sure it was...

:eyes:

[harmonicon]

16. depends on how much money you make

I would imagine that you rake it in if you're buying tube amps though. I've never really been an audiophile, though I have some decent enough things like an NAD turntable. I don't think that I would buy it now though. Now I listen to music either over my laptop speakers or my 10 year old, taped together, AKG headphones. It's not that I don't know or can't tell the difference.... I've dedicated my life to music (working on a PhD in it right now), and somewhere along the line stopped spending money on things like stereos and even cds and records. I do however do things like spend hundreds of dollars to go to Germany or Switzerland just to go to a concert. I think music should be listened to live, and I figure that all reproduction is a very poor representation of what musicians do, so I no longer really care about the quality of it.

Still, if you enjoy it and can afford it and enjoy it, go for it. My father is into that kind of stuff, even though he's becoming more and more hard of hearing - he just likes the statistics about the equipment, I think. He's been building his own speakers and designing his own cross-overs, etc. for a few years now, since he retired. He's so excited to show me how much cheaper he built a speaker for compared to what an equivalent audiophile speaker would cost, except that he's now built more speakers than he can give away, and probably spent just as much money in the long run.

[Pierre.Suave]

19. Your father sounds very dedicated

I think it is the ultimate labor of love for a music lover to build their own speakers.

That is really very cool.

[harmonicon]

25. yeah, he's an interesting guy

He was really into that stuff when he was younger, but didn't have time for it because he had to deal with selfish little bastards like myself who needed things like food and college for decades. We still have a radio that he built when he was in highschool (1940's or 50's) - the kind in the big cabinet, though the actual radio hasn't worked for years. I think the amount of money that he spends on this stuff is absurd too, but it makes him happy, so that's what matters, and it's not like he's a bad dad or spends money on this sort of stuff instead of nice things for my mother.

[ET Awful]

29. Well, the only time you can be said to have spent too much is if you bought

some majorly overpriced cables with all the requisite marketing voodoo attached.

If you spent large bills on speakers, amps, etc., I won't fault you.

As to me, I went a more modest route, but it works VERY well for my purposes.

I like having music and home theater, so I compromised. Most of my equipment is from internet only sellers, such as:

www.outlawaudio.com

Bought an LFM-1 Compact subwoofer from them. EXCELLENT sound quality and performance from this baby.

www.svsound.com

Have SCS-01 speakers from them for my front channels and center channel, have the SBS-01 from rear surround duties.

http://www.oppodigital.com/

Have a DV981-HD from them. This currently serves as both my DVD player and CD player (until I get my Marantz CD player out of storage . . a CDM-1 Mark II that can also act as a transport if I buy a separate DA converter).

Currently, I only have a Pioneer receiver (top of their line for the base models without getting into the Pioneer Elite line). I plan to upgrade this sometime next year to an Outlaw pre-amp/processor and power amp. I'll do that as soon as Outlaw upgrades their line to have HDMI integrated.


Is it audiophile quality? No. Does it serve my needs admirably? Hell yeah! Even at moderate volumes, I can hear every detail in the music and in movies, I can hear whispered dialog even through loud action passages.

I'm extremely happy with it all.

[Pierre.Suave]

39. You know...

I had the opportunity to listen to various cables, and to my ear, it made a difference.

[ET Awful]

46. Yes, but after a certain point, it's all BS.

I'm sorry, but anyone who buys stuff like Pear Anjou cables is just foolish. There is NO WAY that a .5 meter pair of interconnects is worth $1,200, and there is no way that it will measurably and objectively surpass a pair of $100 interconnects.

This holds true even more for digital audio. Anyone who says that buying a digital s/pdif cable that costs hundreds of dollars gives them better sound than a basic well-shielded cable is flat out wrong.

Digital audio is ones and zeros just like any other digital signal. As long as there is no interruption in signal, the ones and zeros will still be ones and zeros. Nothing can change that. Anyone who says otherwise is just trying to (a) make money from foolish people, or (b) justify their foolishness in giving money to (a).

There is a reason that the owner of Pear Cable was afraid to step up to bat for a $1 million challenge to differentiate his cables from monster cables in a double blind test.

I would venture a guess that in the cables you tested, you knew what cable was what, and were letting your preconceived notions color your opinion or subjective evaluation.

I won't object to someone spending $100 on a pair of interconnects, but anyone willing to spend more than that per foot is just buying marketing bunk and not truly experiencing any objective increase in sound quality.

It's BS, and until someone can actually prove that they can hear a difference in a double blind test, I won't believe that a thousand dollar pair of interconnects is anything more than fools gold.

[Pierre.Suave]

52. If I remember right

my cables cost me a total of 600 bucks.

I would not spend thousands of dollars on them.

[ET Awful]

55. That's not bad.

Mine were less, but that's because a guy I knew was dumping some middle of the line Monster cable for higher end Kimber stuff back in '96 or so), so I only paid about $150 for all the interconnects (3 pair at the time) and about $100 for speaker cable (from KnuKonceptz, another internet only retailer). The speaker cable is VERY nice stuff and very reasonably priced. I bought the cable that's designed for in-wall use, but it's super flexible and has a really high strand count per conductor (I definitely recommend checking them out if you're in the market for speaker wire). I terminated the speaker wire with locking banana plugs (purchased from E-Bay).

Like I said, between dirt cheap cables (such as those unshielded ones that ship with some components) and mid-level stuff, there is a huge difference. Between mid-level and the ultra-high-end "magic" cables, no difference that could possibly be heard by the human ear, let alone justify spending hundreds of dollars per foot.

[lizziegrace]

31. My ex is a musician

He has an unbelievable tuner, pre-amp, power envelope, speakers that cost thousands and a lot more now that we're divorced. It all started with a pair of Bose 601 speakers in the early 80's...

:)

[Pierre.Suave]

40. It is an addiction.

How are your interviews going in the big WI?

I wish you luck and look forward to hearing the good news!

[lizziegrace]

44. They're going very well

If things go as I hope they will, I'll be here for good by the first week in June. :)

[Pierre.Suave]

54. I am sending all the good luck I can

your way.

I hope it works for you!

[Deep13]

33. Sorry, I agree with her.

I'm 40 and I only replaced my stereo from the 1970s last year.

[qb]

42. If you can afford it then feed your passion.

If it brings you joy it's worth the investment.

[Pierre.Suave]

43. Thats how I see it too

and right now it is bringing me much joy.

I had to get a listen in this morning.

I am in AWE!

[Burma Jones]

45. Piffle

Anything under $100,000 is reasonable......

I mean, you can drop over $40,000 on a turntable alone, another $7,000 for the tonearm and then you can add that Koetsu Cartridge for $15,000 and you're talking some seriously bad bad bad Karma......

Let's see, $7,000 for a Phono stage and then maybe another $5,000 for the Equipment Rack

Then perhaps $30,000 to $50,000 for your power amp and maybe $10,000 for a pre amp

Of course you won't want just any electricity, so drop $8,000 for a power conditioner and another 4 or 5 thousand dollars for power cords.

Then you need a CD player and a DVD player, drop another 5 to 10 grand for each...

Oh shoot, you won't want just any cables, so budget another $10,000 for cables.....

That brings us to $176,000.00 before we even look at speakers.......


You can spend upwards of a million dollars on speakers, but the most expensive commercially available ones I can find with a short sharp search are $325,000.00


Sooo, if you wanted to really spend a lot of money, you could pick up a decent sounding rig for about half a million dollars.


My wife rationalized my moderately expensive (about $15,000) stereo by telling people, "he's a musician, he needs a good stereo"

[Rabrrrrrr]

50. Power conditioner? Screw that, I built my own power PLANT!

I'm not trusting someone else's electricity - I make my own, to my own exacting and precise specifications, delivered to my house by the finest of electrical cables, dew-picked in Iraq, and flown in fresh every Friday. Of course, to ensure that any vibration from the power plant doesn't affect the turntable, the plant is 400 miles away and my turntable sits on a well-polished and beautiful 25,000 ton slab of marble.

:rofl:

[Pierre.Suave]

57. I wont even ask

how much THAT cost...

:rofl:

[Rabrrrrrr]

58. It was worth it - those Tiffany and Debbie Gibson albums just sonically open up

and the full depth of their creative genius shines forth.

And Butch Yelton and Upbound's "Swing that Gospel Axe" is like going from a stuffy closet to suddenly being bathed in the full entirety of the universe, depths and subtleties and wondrousness beyond human imagining.

[Pierre.Suave]

60. LOL

:rofl:

Those artists and albums need all the help they can get too!

[Pierre.Suave]

51. HAHA, LMAO

I am under 100K, lets get that out of the way right now.

I do not have a Power Conditioner, yet... Convince me I need one and I may go buy one.

Here is what I do have.

Speakers, Bowers and Wilkins 802Ds: $14,000.00

http://www.bowers-wilkins.com/display.aspx?infid=1157&sc=hf

I have a Rotel Tuner and a Rotel CD player. ( for now )

Tuner, RT 1080: $750 If I remember correctly.

http://www.rotel.com/NA/products/ProductDetails.htm?Id=23

CD Player, RCD 1072: $1,500.00

http://www.rotel.com/NA/products/ProductDetails.htm?Id=24

A VTL 7.5 Reference Line Stage Pre-Amp: $12,500.00

http://www.vtl.com/pages/preamplifiers/75/

A VTL S-400 400 watt stereo power amp: $20,000.00

http://www.vtl.com/pages/Amplifiers/S%2D400/

Don't forget my DAC. A Musical Fidelity XDAC V8: $1,500.00

http://www.musicdirect.com/product/73980

and cables for about $600 bucks.

for a total before taxes of: $50,850.00

yes, I am certifiably crazy. I am still in the market for a better cd player and a record player.

[ET Awful]

56. I see nothing wrong with any of that. Would I spend it? Nope, but nothing wrong there.

I'd be more likely to go with pre/pro and power amps from Outlaw Audio and would probably go with speakers from AV123:

http://av123.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=23&category_id=19&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=37

The Rocket RS1000 would blow your mind. I can almost guarantee you would find that they compare favorably to your B&W. I say almost because I've never had a chance to compare the two side by side.

The AV123 stuff is top-notch stuff at very low prices.

I would go this route primarily because I can't afford the stuff you have, and also because I think that for 10% of the cost I could get 80% of the performance. . . just my opinion, nothing more.

[Rabrrrrrr]

47. I don't believe it's possible to spend too much on audio equipment.

[AngryAmish]

48. All of that is kinda lost on me

My hearing is not very good due to too much loud music in my youth. So I am in the fiance camp.