Dpoirier
Fractal Fanatic
I just thought I'd check in with this great community, as I'm facing a decision and I can't seem to be able to convince myself either way.
I've been a somewhat discerning audio buff for a long time, and used to spend more of my budget on audio gear than I did on housing, transportation, and food combined. My search for sonic nirvana ended when I eventually discovered electrostatic speakers and bought a pair of Acoustat of gargantuan proportions in the early eighties. I have yet to hear speakers that bring me as much listening pleasure, and I've heard many very high end ones at audio shops and at friends' who share my passion.
One problem is that, as of now, my preamp and power amp driving these beauties are 39 years old. They are quite respectable components from PS Audio, and they were revamped by legendary audio guru Dan Santoni who replaced all the degraded components a few years ago. But even though the PS Audio have been able to push these demanding speakers for 39 years, they have now started having mechanical failures, i.e. the power switch which broke and the substituted replacements that keep breaking every year or two. Therefore, logically, I'm thinking of getting new amplification components. Again, Acoustats are difficult - they demand a lot of power, high current, and have a nominal impedance of 4 ohm that dips below 2 ohm from 12Khz to 35Khz. I found the pre- and power-amp that I'm looking for, but...
I'm now 66 years old, my hearing is damaged from loud bands and power tools, and two years ago I sold the big house and moved to a trouble-free condo with poor sound insulation in the floors and ceilings and an easily irritable downstairs neighbor. In short, I can't listen to music at the levels I'd like to, and my hearing isn't as refined as it used to be. So the laws of diminishing returns collide head-on with the cost of buying new equipment. That's the "reason" argument.
But I still get tremendous enjoyment out of the precision of the three-dimensional imaging I get out of my stereo when I play good source material on a good medium. There is also the risk that my PS Audio amps will one day suffer a terminal failure, even in spite of the recent replacement of degrading parts (and then I'd have to scramble to find a replacement, and the demanding nature of the Acoustats would still limit choices).
So why am I writing this long story? Surely there are other high end audio enthusiasts here, and surely some of you are also going through similar changes - hearing damage or other conditions restricting your listening opportunities - and I'd like to hear from you about how you face that debate.
New high-end audio gear costs a lot, and the possibilities of enjoying it are on a down-slope curve... but there are still plenty of reasonable justifications.
Thoughts?
I've been a somewhat discerning audio buff for a long time, and used to spend more of my budget on audio gear than I did on housing, transportation, and food combined. My search for sonic nirvana ended when I eventually discovered electrostatic speakers and bought a pair of Acoustat of gargantuan proportions in the early eighties. I have yet to hear speakers that bring me as much listening pleasure, and I've heard many very high end ones at audio shops and at friends' who share my passion.
One problem is that, as of now, my preamp and power amp driving these beauties are 39 years old. They are quite respectable components from PS Audio, and they were revamped by legendary audio guru Dan Santoni who replaced all the degraded components a few years ago. But even though the PS Audio have been able to push these demanding speakers for 39 years, they have now started having mechanical failures, i.e. the power switch which broke and the substituted replacements that keep breaking every year or two. Therefore, logically, I'm thinking of getting new amplification components. Again, Acoustats are difficult - they demand a lot of power, high current, and have a nominal impedance of 4 ohm that dips below 2 ohm from 12Khz to 35Khz. I found the pre- and power-amp that I'm looking for, but...
I'm now 66 years old, my hearing is damaged from loud bands and power tools, and two years ago I sold the big house and moved to a trouble-free condo with poor sound insulation in the floors and ceilings and an easily irritable downstairs neighbor. In short, I can't listen to music at the levels I'd like to, and my hearing isn't as refined as it used to be. So the laws of diminishing returns collide head-on with the cost of buying new equipment. That's the "reason" argument.
But I still get tremendous enjoyment out of the precision of the three-dimensional imaging I get out of my stereo when I play good source material on a good medium. There is also the risk that my PS Audio amps will one day suffer a terminal failure, even in spite of the recent replacement of degrading parts (and then I'd have to scramble to find a replacement, and the demanding nature of the Acoustats would still limit choices).
So why am I writing this long story? Surely there are other high end audio enthusiasts here, and surely some of you are also going through similar changes - hearing damage or other conditions restricting your listening opportunities - and I'd like to hear from you about how you face that debate.
New high-end audio gear costs a lot, and the possibilities of enjoying it are on a down-slope curve... but there are still plenty of reasonable justifications.
Thoughts?
