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Buyers remorse.

post #1 of 48
2/28/13 at 12:33pm
Thread Starter 
Out of curiosity, how many of you have spent tens of thousands of dollars on hifi equipment just to have it sit around finding that you hardly use it or just plain got bored of it soon after?

This will probably be skewed because if you fit into this category you probably wont be on these forums anymore to respond.
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post #2 of 48
2/28/13 at 12:40pm
Use it in conjuction with the Internet! I'm set up with two monitors (spilt screen), so I can browse my library, download stuff, transfer movies from another computer, watch some pretty cool stuff in HD and so on. This has really boosted the fun with a nice hi-fi system.
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post #3 of 48
2/28/13 at 2:28pm
Thread Starter 
Can you explain your setup more. The two monitors are computer screens or 'TV's'
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post #4 of 48
2/28/13 at 2:34pm
The small one is an old flat screen monitor off an XP box, the large one is a 50' Plasma. The 50' is connected by HDMI while the small screen is connected from the the traditional 'VGA' port. I have windows 7 open a new window in the large screen from my library listed on the small one. The Windows 7 box is connected by 'homegroup' from my main workstation. All this runs through my 5.2 system. smile.gif

In total I'm working with 2.5 terabytes.
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post #5 of 48
2/28/13 at 2:35pm
I have a nice mountain bike and a Kayak in the garage that fit that category. Really, I bought them so I could get out and work out more often. But after the first few weeks, they see less and less use as I just can't find the time to enjoy them. Winter doesn't help, but I can barely use that as an excuse since I'm in So. Cal.

But my audio system gets used everyday. I've been into this hobby since I was 10 years old (I'm now 46). I can't watch simple TV without turning on my audio systems. I don't think I'll ever get tired of music and this hobby.
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post #6 of 48
2/28/13 at 2:38pm
lol - got 4 MTB's just collecting dust now..........
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post #7 of 48
2/28/13 at 2:47pm
Thread Starter 
This would be snowboarding for me. I have spent so much money on gear. After constant price hikes on season passes I stopped getting them. Then went less and less with daily passes. Now with the 1 year old, the nail has been driven in. I look forward to taking the boy up for his first trip though.

I'm just hoping I don't spent $15k for a new TV, speakers, receiver, and what not just to hardly use it in the future. I haven't even received my first floorstanding speakers yet haha. They come in tomorrow.
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post #8 of 48
2/28/13 at 3:06pm
I have just spent 6k on a new tv, 3 speakers, and a sub and I am loving every minute of it. They were upgrades so I new I would use them but I am happy i love them so much. I did extensive research and it paid off
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post #9 of 48
2/28/13 at 3:10pm
We spent about 5k on a 5.1 setup including the TV back in 2008 and have enjoyed it a ton. No regrets there. I did just upgrade my basement 2.0 room with SVS Ultra Towers. Jury is still out on how much use those will get, but hopefully a decent amount.
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post #10 of 48
2/28/13 at 3:19pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by NewHTbuyer View Post

We spent about 5k on a 5.1 setup including the TV back in 2008 and have enjoyed it a ton. No regrets there. I did just upgrade my basement 2.0 room with SVS Ultra Towers. Jury is still out on how much use those will get, but hopefully a decent amount.

Haha you have TWO of these beasts?
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post #11 of 48
2/28/13 at 3:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by coresare View Post

Out of curiosity, how many of you have spent tens of thousands of dollars on hifi equipment just to have it sit around finding that you hardly use it or just plain got bored of it soon after?

This will probably be skewed because if you fit into this category you probably wont be on these forums anymore to respond.

I cannot imagine a hobbyist spending tens of thousands on hifi equipment and then getting bored. When a hobbyist puts together a sound system at 10K and above, he or she pretty much knows what they are doing and has selected components to achieve listening satisfaction relative to the investment.

Now I suppose a well off newbie could spend 10K plus on their first system, not particularly like it and get bored. If that happens, the person probably has so much money that it was just another impulsive whim. No different than buying an expensive boat that spends all its time on a trailer or a sports car that sits in a garage and is never driven. I know people like this - the kick is simply having a possession that they seldom if ever use. No pleasure is derived from the use of the product. Once its purchased, they could really care less. So your right - people like this are probably not reading forums like this to begin with as they have no interest after the acquisition.

I am curious why you ask such a question.
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post #12 of 48
2/28/13 at 3:50pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paraneer View Post

I cannot imagine a hobbyist spending tens of thousands on hifi equipment and then getting bored. When a hobbyist puts together a sound system at 10K and above, he or she pretty much knows what they are doing and has selected components to achieve listening satisfaction relative to the investment.

Now I suppose a well off newbie could spend 10K plus on their first system, not particularly like it and get bored. If that happens, the person probably has so much money that it was just another impulsive whim. No different than buying an expensive boat that spends all its time on a trailer or a sports car that sits in a garage and is never driven. I know people like this - the kick is simply having a possession that they seldom if ever use. No pleasure is derived from the use of the product. Once its purchased, they could really care less. So your right - people like this are probably not reading forums like this to begin with as they have no interest after the acquisition.

I am curious why you ask such a question.

I spent a month or two deciding whether I should take the plunge and finally decided to. It first started off with wanting to replace our old CRT in the living room. After I bought the 65" Samsung ES8000 LCD I wanted to add the sound system. After being unhappy with the edge bleeding of the Samsung LCD I returned it and am waiting for the Panasonic ZT plasma to come out and pricing.

I went and auditioned some speakers and sadly you can definitely hear the difference in quality between speakers. This led me to choose the Paradigm Studio 100's which I did not originally plan on spending so much on, but after hearing them sound better than lower end stuff...I made the purchase (that's why I said sadly).

I just hope my enthusiasm for it lasts =)
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post #13 of 48
2/28/13 at 3:55pm
I have other hobbies and interests besides a/v equipment. I have been in the game for going on 40 years now and am just as into it as day one, probably more so with modern technology. I have been home sick for three days, thank God for my ht.
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post #14 of 48
2/28/13 at 4:02pm
Well...the 100's are jumping in with both feet...ill give you that.

If you have any doubts I would for sure to keep an eye on your return period.
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post #15 of 48
2/28/13 at 4:13pm
Well as a musician, music lover and movie lover, I think this is a silly scenario. smile.gif I wish I had tens of thousands of dollars to spend on Hifi gear, if you are sick of yours I will take it off your hands. Consider it charity. biggrin.gif
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post #16 of 48
2/28/13 at 4:58pm
From what I got out of this...he had a budget. Went in and liked the Paradigm sound...and of course they probably started him with the Studio 20's or 60's...(or speakers in his budget range) then he heard the 100's next to them....

And well there went his budget. He really isn't all that into audio. He wanted a decent 2.0 or 5.1 or ...a decent system. Went way beyond his budget without listening to a ton of speakers or reading a ton and he is worried that he made a mistake:

1) Either he paid too much
2) Or he will listen to music on them for 3 days after gets them then just turn them on for the occasional movie (which (for the most part) is way over kill to be having the 100's)

Anyway...that is how I am reading it.

I will tell you now...if your already regretting the decision...get them home and listen to them. If you feel that way towards the end of your return period...return them. (Unless you dont have a return period biggrin.gif )
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post #17 of 48
2/28/13 at 5:37pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Newbie01 View Post

From what I got out of this...he had a budget. Went in and liked the Paradigm sound...and of course they probably started him with the Studio 20's or 60's...(or speakers in his budget range) then he heard the 100's next to them....

And well there went his budget. He really isn't all that into audio. He wanted a decent 2.0 or 5.1 or ...a decent system. Went way beyond his budget without listening to a ton of speakers or reading a ton and he is worried that he made a mistake:

1) Either he paid too much
2) Or he will listen to music on them for 3 days after gets them then just turn them on for the occasional movie (which (for the most part) is way over kill to be having the 100's)

Anyway...that is how I am reading it.

I will tell you now...if your already regretting the decision...get them home and listen to them. If you feel that way towards the end of your return period...return them. (Unless you dont have a return period biggrin.gif )

I don't have them yet biggrin.gif They're supposed to arrive tomorrow. I started by researching online and reading a lot of reviews. Decided on Paradigm... I like quality sound. Spent quite a penny on car audio in the past with Dynaudio speakers, Zapco Amps with balanced lines..yaddi yaddi.. With car audio .. that was sort of a ticking clock as we tend to sell our cars relatively quick. Car audio tends to break after awhile also..
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post #18 of 48
2/28/13 at 5:50pm
I didn't go that far but did spend much more than I initially thought on my 5.1 system. I also dropped quite a bit on a brand new gaming computer after my last one was reaching on 5 years old. The computer investment was a no-brainer because I'm literally on it every day, the sound system one - while still being worth it to me - gets used maybe once a week at most.. No TV and only movies to watch means I went through the stack pretty quick. If there was better internet and could stream HD content, I'd be much more apt to using it more, but alas, we live in the country with a slow net and a data cap.
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post #19 of 48
2/28/13 at 6:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ryan West View Post

Well as a musician, music lover and movie lover, I think this is a silly scenario. smile.gif I wish I had tens of thousands of dollars to spend on Hifi gear, if you are sick of yours I will take it off your hands. Consider it charity. biggrin.gif

Good answer.... I'm second in line. smile.gif
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post #20 of 48
2/28/13 at 7:44pm
If I am home the house is shaking.. My wife complains daily. I get home from work at 11:30 pm and either kick on some jams or a movie or play some PS3. I get up and take my daughter to school at 7:30 and when I get back home the music comes on and stays on until I go to work lol. I didn't buy it to not use it.

Common complaint from the wife are; "I can't hear my self think, You just woke up the baby, I'm sick of bass music from the time I get up until the time you go to work" and "you're going to make us all deaf". cool.gif
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post #21 of 48
2/28/13 at 7:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ryan West View Post

If I am home the house is shaking.. My wife complains daily. I get home from work at 11:30 pm and either kick on some jams or a movie or play some PS3. I get up and take my daughter to school at 7:30 and when I get back home the music comes on and stays on until I go to work lol. I didn't buy it to not use it.

Common complaint from the wife are; "I can't hear my self think, You just woke up the baby, I'm sick of bass music from the time I get up until the time you go to work" and "you're going to make us all deaf". cool.gif

Doh! Seems as if you have serious wife faction issues! Better be getting some flowers every week and a nice "I love you" card at least monthly!
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post #22 of 48
2/28/13 at 8:19pm
Divorce forces sale = buyers regret! smile.gif
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post #23 of 48
2/28/13 at 10:31pm
If I spent what I did on my stereo speakers for home theater only use I would have insane remorse because I could never justify spending that much for sound on TV/Movies yes i want better sound than the TV offers but the $100 2.0 Infinity Primus setup is really good and good enough to me.

Music I was willing to spend a bit more and get a bit nicer speakers but a lot of time I think maybe I should of spent less or I could of been just as happy with a lesser system like bookshelves instead of towers.
But other times I really do like the towers and I'm glad I got towers because of the huge sound over bookshelves.
Edited by nothingspecial - 2/28/13 at 10:48pm
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post #24 of 48
2/28/13 at 10:53pm
I have a us amp and treo sub for my car since 2004. Never even used. I can't seem to let go of them, I keep telling myself I'll use them very soon. Meanwhile, I went ahead and got a much cheaper system for my current car. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me.
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post #25 of 48
3/1/13 at 5:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Newbie01 View Post

Doh! Seems as if you have serious wife faction issues! Better be getting some flowers every week and a nice "I love you" card at least monthly!

I buy lots of flowers smile.gif

Quote:
Originally Posted by CleatusCat View Post

Divorce forces sale = buyers regret! smile.gif

No divorce, she still likes the system.. I can counter her complaints with my own too. biggrin.gif

Quote:
Originally Posted by nothingspecial View Post

If I spent what I did on my stereo speakers for home theater only use I would have insane remorse because I could never justify spending that much for sound on TV/Movies yes i want better sound than the TV offers but the $100 2.0 Infinity Primus setup is really good and good enough to me.

Music I was willing to spend a bit more and get a bit nicer speakers but a lot of time I think maybe I should of spent less or I could of been just as happy with a lesser system like bookshelves instead of towers.
But other times I really do like the towers and I'm glad I got towers because of the huge sound over bookshelves.

I'd just hook them all up together.. 2 primus speakers just isnt' enough... biggrin.gif
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post #26 of 48
3/1/13 at 6:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by coresare View Post

Out of curiosity, how many of you have spent tens of thousands of dollars on hifi equipment just to have it sit around finding that you hardly use it or just plain got bored of it soon after?

This will probably be skewed because if you fit into this category you probably wont be on these forums anymore to respond.

I think it's an interesting topic. I think most of us have been and will go through buyer's remorse.

So what exactly are you regretting?
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post #27 of 48
3/1/13 at 7:22am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by AcuDefTechGuy View Post

I think it's an interesting topic. I think most of us have been and will go through buyer's remorse.

So what exactly are you regretting?

Oh nothing! I'm not regretting anything. Just wondering if like in a year from now I will hardly even use the sound system... Just seeing if this hobby is something that has a lot of 'turn around".
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post #28 of 48
3/1/13 at 7:40am
I try to buy only what I (think I) need, and I'd never spend "tens of thousands of dollars" on hi-fi / HT equipment...unless I was filthy rich and the money didn't matter. smile.gif

My system serves two purposes: movie-watching, and music / concert films while I work out in the adjacent "gym" area. So, one way or another, my system gets regular use. And every time I use it, I'm happy with what I have. cool.gif
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post #29 of 48
3/1/13 at 8:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by coresare View Post

Oh nothing! I'm not regretting anything. Just wondering if like in a year from now I will hardly even use the sound system... Just seeing if this hobby is something that has a lot of 'turn around".

Upgrade fever is rampant among frequent forum members.

The only cure is to completely leave all forums. biggrin.gif

You own Paradigm? Oh, yeah, you will have the desire to replace them if you continue to frequent these forums.

Some people will say that such and such speakers sound much better than Paradigm, and so on and so forth. Leave NOW while you can! eek.gifbiggrin.gif
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post #30 of 48
3/1/13 at 8:17am
I've never had buyers remorse over audio/video gear. I've wanted a home theatre since I was in high school, and now I have a dedicated room with 3D projection, and an 8 foot screen.

Just yesterday, I ordered new towers to replace my bookshelf mains. This was after upgrading the center channel the day before. smile.gif This puts me at the top of the food chain for the brand I chose, so the investment will last for years.

My system gets plenty of use, and always puts a smile on my face, and of my family/guests. I do consider myself fortunate to have the disposable income to do this with, as I have the money available to feed my hobby without worry.

Good luck with your new equipment!
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