Morality of spending a lot on Hi-Fi
Matthew, I thought you had an Onkyo TX-8050.
Had being the operative word. Sold it. 
Matthew, I thought you had an Onkyo TX-8050.
Had being the operative word. Sold it.
Matthew, I thought you had an Onkyo TX-8050.
Had being the operative word. Sold it.
I'm shocked that you're shocked!
Seriously, the TX8050 is a great product and very capable but once I'd decided I wanted the better user interface of the Squeezebox Touch for streaming and Music on Demand duties I decided to go back to the slightly warmer NAD sound. The NAD is an amp I can happily listen to for very long sessions and that is key for me.
£50, £500, £5000, £50,000
It's all an 'obscene' amount to someone, somewhere and everyone will have an opinion.
Spend what you are comfortable spending on hi-fi and remember all the jobs you are supporting with your purchases.
If we all lived frugally, and only spent a minimum on just essentials, the resultant job losses would be enormous and would create more poverty and misery.
Totally agree, ad this is where our dumbed down media screws it up. In tough times, if you have cash, then spend it, but don't borrow it of you don't. Saving it in case you lose your job etc is likely to cause job losses. There is a difference between disposable income and debt that seems to have been missed.
Never mind hi fi, the price of bread is obscene, petrol well don't start me! As for houses, after my divorce there is a strong possibility I will never own one again! It's all relative, and frankly spending money that you have is not something to be ashamed or guilty about.
£50, £500, £5000, £50,000
It's all an 'obscene' amount to someone, somewhere and everyone will have an opinion.
Spend what you are comfortable spending on hi-fi and remember all the jobs you are supporting with your purchases.
If we all lived frugally, and only spent a minimum on just essentials, the resultant job losses would be enormous and would create more poverty and misery.
I thought someone might make this argument, and it's not entirely convincing because there's a false dichotomy used ; disposable income can either be left sitting in the bank or spent on consumer entertainment - when that money could easily be invested, creating jobs, raising people's incomes and hence creating more demand for the 'essentials'.
Plenty. Just off the top of my head, these brands make most of their kit here:
Rega
Naim
Cyrus
Neat
Wilson Benesch
PMC
Leema
And there are many more!
Linn
Sugden
ATC
AVI
Arcam (some products)
Spendor
Harbeth
Humax (all UK Freeview devices made in Newtownards NI)
SME
Chord (cables)
Chord (Electronics)
KEF (some products)
B&W (some products)
Monitor Audio (some products)
Musical Fidelity
Art Loudspeakers
Inspire Hi-fi
Nottingham Analogue
Meridian
Exposure
Kudos
Tannoy (many products still made in UK)
ProAc
Acoustic Energy
Michell Engineering
Funk Firm
Audio-Note
... etc.
Can you now list some you would actually want to buy 
£50, £500, £5000, £50,000
It's all an 'obscene' amount to someone, somewhere and everyone will have an opinion.
Spend what you are comfortable spending on hi-fi and remember all the jobs you are supporting with your purchases.
If we all lived frugally, and only spent a minimum on just essentials, the resultant job losses would be enormous and would create more poverty and misery.
I thought someone might make this argument, and it's not entirely convincing because there's a false dichotomy used ; disposable income can either be left sitting in the bank or spent on consumer entertainment - when that money could easily be invested, creating jobs, raising people's incomes and hence creating more demand for the 'essentials'.
Spending money on hi fi means someone has a job (to make it, sell it etc).
If that is not wealth creation, what is it?
Making and selling things at a profit, be it bread or esoteric consumer electronics, all the same in the end.
£50, £500, £5000, £50,000
It's all an 'obscene' amount to someone, somewhere and everyone will have an opinion.
Spend what you are comfortable spending on hi-fi and remember all the jobs you are supporting with your purchases.
If we all lived frugally, and only spent a minimum on just essentials, the resultant job losses would be enormous and would create more poverty and misery.
I thought someone might make this argument, and it's not entirely convincing because there's a false dichotomy used ; disposable income can either be left sitting in the bank or spent on consumer entertainment - when that money could easily be invested, creating jobs, raising people's incomes and hence creating more demand for the 'essentials'.
Spending money on hi fi means someone has a job (to make it, sell it etc).
If that is not wealth creation, what is it?
Making and selling things at a profit, be it bread or esoteric consumer electronics, all the same in the end.
Spend your diposable income on consumer electronics, which supports some jobs, or invest it in businesses attempting to produce essentials for marketplaces in the more impoverished parts on the world. FTR I didn't want to start preaching... we need distractions especially with long working hours etc.
It's that Hi-fi just is money sink if you let it be, what with endless upgrades, cables and supports. I don't understand why we can't be satisfied with something that sounds good.
Rega
Naim
Cyrus
Neat
Wilson Benesch
PMC
Leema
And there are many more!
Can you now list some you would actually want to buy About ten from my list and three from Clare's. (I have taken the liberty of putting the commas back into my list to shorten this reply.)
It's that Hi-fi just is money sink if you let it be, what with endless upgrades, cables and supports. I don't understand why we can't be satisfied with something that sounds good.
With that I do agree, but self restraint is a different issue altogether perhaps.
FWIW I'm not happy with cheap wine, or rubbish coffee, is that equally indulgent? You could logically argue that anything other than mere existence is therefore selficely indulgent!
Ultimately, I believe that everyone should be free to exhange their labour for whatever they so desire providing it does not harm another human/animal, and celebrate the diversity!
But I'm not talking about "rubbish" sounding Hi-Fi ; rather it's why we can't just spend the minimum required to get a good (listenable, enjoyable) sound quality and leave it at that?
But I'm not talking about "rubbish" sounding Hi-Fi ; rather it's why we can't just spend the minimum required to get a good (listenable, enjoyable) sound quality and leave it at that?
I've only recently bought my system and already I have been considering the possibilities of upgrading.
This is largely because I read this forum and am learning about all the options available to me and because my passion for my music is far greater than other personal non-essential material considerations, except perhaps nicer car and house but these are in a different league in terms of spending anyway whereas the level of hi-fi I'm considering upgrading to is tantalisingly close to being affordable and justifiable.
Having said that, after a few tweaks, I'm genuinely very happy with my set up for the foreseeable future and this surety and confidence, I think, adds to the enjoyment of the music because I believe that mood can affect music and if you're constantly picking holes and thinking about what is wrong with your system rather than what is right I suspect it must be a less enjoyable musical experience.
But I'm not talking about "rubbish" sounding Hi-Fi ; rather it's why we can't just spend the minimum required to get a good (listenable, enjoyable) sound quality and leave it at that?
It's a commendable ethos, but how do you define "good" and who is the arbiter?
It is all relative. If you have the money to spend on hi-fi and it isnt for instance at the expense of things your family really need (food / clothes) then there is no real issue as long as everyone who needs to agree (partner for instance) does so.
As mentioned there are far more destructive ways to spend money such as drinking, smoking, gambling. At least a hifi is something you can keep for many many years and enjoy. Once you have the separates bought and divide by the number of years enjoyment then its not so much
Finally Chebby makes a good point, we all need jobs and if you decide to buy a British made item then you are helping our economy and someone else make a living and thats something to feel good about.
+1
Musical fidelity M6i Roksan caspian M2 cdp Atc scm 40s Tellurium Q black speaker cable chord chamelian xlr graham slee novo sennheiser hd598