Indeed. Aside from being better value and less prone to snakeoil, usually way more robust and able to take the youthful me's houseparty/intoxicated pals' inadvertent abuse.Lesson to younger self: build the home hifi system with components from the Pro world.
You seem to be a very sensible person, with a good sense of humour.Buy something more portable.
Focus on used gear. (I did that, but this is for the younger me who is other people.)
Enjoy what you enjoy, you are striving to please yourself, no one else.
General advice that didn't apply at the time...
Anyone who tells you the hobby should only be done their way is totally FOS.
Everybody: from pure objectivists to pure subjectivists is wrong. If anybody who tells you different, just refer to the first half of the sentence. Be happy and confident with your path to enjoying the hobby. It's a hobby, not a death march.
Stay off the internet.
If you do go onto the internet, don't listen to anybody named "TatersnGravy" or some similar affectation fake ass name that someone can use to hide behind.
The hobby used to be a big tent, now it's armed camps. Don't join any of the camps.
Oh yeah! Wear earplugs while riding the motorcycle.Don't listen to a walkman to pass the time at your summer lawnmowing job.
Pretty much what I was thinking... back in the day about the best you could hope for was an IVIE 10 band RTA... not useless, but pretty primitive and not exactly affordable in the late 70s early 80s.If one is telling one's younger self about DSP, REW, Spinoromas, Class-D, etc, one isn't very far in time from that younger self.
Here is the list of HiFi advice I wish I could have given to my younger self:
1) Speakers makes the most difference, spend most of your budget on your speakers despite the fact that electronics may come across as sexier for some people.
Yes… but.1a) Know that the overwhelming vast majority of the time, the speaker's sound performance corresponds to the measurements.
Industry insiders tells me Tekton is one of them and PS Audio's new speakers are another
f you hear any speakers in the showroom or anywhere else that produces a lot of "detail," know that this "detail" is really nothing more than elevated high frequency and can cause listening fatigue. For me personally, elevated high frequency is ear piercing torture after 20 mins.
2) Using REW to measure in room response and tweak with DSP and room treatment can make a big difference. Most of us don't have the luxury to make our listening space the perfect space, so by having room treatment, it can "correct" some of these room acoustic issues. To be transparent, I still haven't gotten around to doing this myself, but I have witness the before and after with other people and holy moly, what a difference it can make for some situations.
5) Do it right the first time around, otherwise, it will cost you more in the end. I was cheap buying equipment and other things, but after all of the selling to upgrade, I must have lost thousands of dollars over the years, whereas I could of afford the more expensive equipment from the start but I was just being cheap.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
How about links to such measurements? Of course I'm talking about CEA 2034 measurements that a legit and reputable person would do. I have not seen any aside from the one Amir did for Tekton and it was sent by an ASR member.I’d love to see actual data before making those claims. Tekton sent speakers to Stereophile and PS Audio sent speakers to Hifi News, both magazines known for measurements.
"I must have lost thousands of dollars over the years, whereas I could of afford the more expensive equipment from the start but I was just being cheap."True but impossible. It’s like saying “buying a house is better than renting.” Sometimes you don’t have the money to “do it right the first time around”.
If one is telling one's younger self about DSP, REW, Spinoromas, Class-D, etc, one isn't very far in time from that younger self.
Spinaroma was available since Dr. Toole's research back at the NRC. That's got to be since the 90's? Although, it was not easy to measure without a NFS, which wasn't out then and people just wasn't measuring speakers but some where though usually just on-axis.Pretty much what I was thinking... back in the day about the best you could hope for was an IVIE 10 band RTA... not useless, but pretty primitive and not exactly affordable in the late 70s early 80s.
Wrong!!! Save it and wait until the value goes up and sell it to the urban hippies and make lots of money!Don't throw away all of your LP's
How about links to such measurements? Of course I'm talking about CEA 2034 measurements that a legit and reputable person would do. I have not seen any aside from the one Amir did for Tekton and it was sent by an ASR member.
"I must have lost thousands of dollars over the years, whereas I could of afford the more expensive equipment from the start but I was just being cheap."
Of course you can't afford what you can't afford, I was specific about being cheap on things you can afford.
But I agree, you can only afford what you can afford.