Has the pandemic affected your audio purchase decisions?

[jhm]

Due to the pandemic and saving money by not travelling etc and luckily still being able to work from home, I've gone from nothing to what is for me at least an endgame home office headphone setup (Intel NUC as a Roon core, Topping D90 / A90 and Meze Empyrean) plus a nice portable solution for when I venture out (Chord Mojo Poly and Audeze LCD-1 / Etymotic ER4SR).

Thanks to ASR I am entirely satisfied with the D90 / A90 rather than looking to buy other things which have the same (or less) performance but at much higher prices!

 

[Angsty]

Due to being home during the pandemic, I spent more on audio this year than I have in any year in a decade. I now work from home exclusively, so my home office system became more meaningful.

Since January, I have purchased dozens of CDs and LPs, a streaming music subscription, a second turntable, a used integrated amp, a new USB DAC, a new MC cartridge and headshell, and a new pair of stands for my office speakers. That's just the stuff I remember off-hand.

I've had a turntable, amplifier and preamp all serviced due to age or other issues.

I think of it as my contribution to keeping the economy afloat as many have had to significantly reduce discretionary purchases. Yes, that's a rationalization.

 

[Angsty]

My best pandemic buy: A Schiit Modi 3 DAC. I always felt meh about the sound from my 10+ year old CD player. The Modi 3 was a big, welcome improvement which also provided USB connectivity. I had been considering much more expensive options that ASR dissuaded me from pursuing.

My worst pandemic buy: Several used LPs bought at the local record store. I was so excited when stores could reopen that I purchased some dogs of LPs that were not on my intended list. You can discover some unexpected gems in the record store, but I ended up with some LPs that I will just need to unload at a loss.