Thought experiment

Discussion in 'General Audio Discussion' started by ktmracer12345, May 12, 2017.

  1. ktmracer12345

    ktmracer12345 New

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    Random thought experiment. Let's say everything audio-related you own has been stolen and you're starting over with exactly $1000 to spend. You still have your computer and smartphone, but nothing else audio-related. What do you build?

    Personal example:
    HD650 ~ $300
    Bottlehead crack w/o speedball $300
    Modi MB $250
    Misc Monoprice Cables $20
    1more Triple Drivers $100

    Total: $970

    What if the starting level is $250? $500? $2000? $5000? $10000

    Goals of this:
    1. At what point do most of the analog guys feel like switching to analog is worth the cost?
    2. Find out how different our tastes are when the playing field is leveled with regard to cost.
    3. At what price level does a dac become part of your chain? How about going multi bit from something like a modi2?
    4. At what point do the gains level out for most people? i.e. are your $5000 and $10000 systems almost identical except small details?
    5. At what point does the benefits of a second headphone exceed the additional benefit of better dac/amp/etc? (Especially headphones of the same type)
     
  2. Changeling

    Changeling Tube Slut

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  3. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    A thousand bucks is enough for me to hire a "private investigator" of ill repute to get my stuff back...
     
  4. Case

    Case Anxious Head (Formerly Wilson)

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    6. Hookers and blow
     
  5. Claritas

    Claritas Friend

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    This thread was done a long time ago at Head-Case. Also, we did something similar at Changstar. And Marv weighed in on some of these questions here.
     
  6. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    I assume you are excluding speakers?

    $100
    • Emu purplehearts or whatever the budget IEM pick is out of phone.
    $250
    • Noble X out of phone
    $500
    • Reshelled UERM if you can them for a low enough price out of phone
    $1000
    • B stock Andromeda out of phone
    $2000
    • Andromeda plus ZX2 plus big ass MicroSD
    $5000
    • Stop buying headphones and move on to speakers
    $10000
    • Stop buying headphones and move on to speakers
     
  7. The Alchemist

    The Alchemist MOT: Schiit - Here to help!

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    well I know all of my stuff would be Schiit products so I would work with that
     
  8. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    I would rebuild my music collection first. No music, why bother with new audio gear?

    "Audio related" also includes your music. Think about it...
     
  9. ktmracer12345

    ktmracer12345 New

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    I thought about that, but I'm really not looking for advice as much as I am trying to see trends. I thought it'd be interesting to see differing opinions and where things like dac inclusion begins.

    Thanks! I have not seen either thread. They are both pretty decent. Head-case is way before my time, but the ideas (not the gear) are still current. The Changstar thread is legit (at least for a couple pages before it trails off into nothingness). The very first post has a HD598 in his $1K rig. I never would've guessed anybody would've put it that high. I've seen that post by Marv. It's gotta be one of his top 10 straight advice posts. A lot of good content in there. Also, you're right, it does overlap with a lot of what I'm asking.

    Definitely don't exclude speakers! This is perfect! So somewhere between $2000 and $5000 headphones become completely irrelevant. I take this as the TOTL level is probably already too high regardless of income level.
     
  10. DrForBin

    DrForBin Friend

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    hello,

    when you don't have to listen to the hardware anymore because you are digging the software that much, you stop, of at least take a breather.

    on my desk: Bifrost Multibit, Lyr 2 with electro-harmonix 6922 GOLD glass, AKG K7XX Massdrop First Edition Headphones, Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 6XX . what i am hearing: music.

    $599 + $449 + $65.90 + $199.99 + $199.99 = one very, very f'ing happy camper or $1513.88.

    YMMV.
     

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