@birdscantrow: I get your question and I think it is a common one. When I came to this forum a year ago, I was totally unfamiliar with the audiophile-level equipment and brands, and I too thought, “Who can spend $100,000 on stereo equipment?” I certainly couldn’t. But you learn that a number of the members on sites like this one are/were professional people with high incomes, and some can and do build or tweak their own equipment, thus getting better equipment and sound at lower cost, which was mentioned above.
Also, some of these folks have been at this hobby for 20, 30 or more years, so they have had a lot of time to sample equipment and trade up to what they have now. They didn’t start out with the Ferrari system; they worked up to it.
I also have seen that some members appear sensitive to questions like, “Why did you even want to put so much money into something like stereo equipment?” I figured it’s probably a judgment that they heard expressed by family or friends, or acquaintances, over years and it irked them then as it irks them now. It would be like someone here saying to me, “If you are going to settle for mediocre equipment, why bother?” We each have our own priorities and our own spending limits. I still enjoy hearing how other members are sampling new equipment that I will probably never hear. Some things are still to be enjoyed vicariously. 😁
Also, some of these folks have been at this hobby for 20, 30 or more years, so they have had a lot of time to sample equipment and trade up to what they have now. They didn’t start out with the Ferrari system; they worked up to it.
I also have seen that some members appear sensitive to questions like, “Why did you even want to put so much money into something like stereo equipment?” I figured it’s probably a judgment that they heard expressed by family or friends, or acquaintances, over years and it irked them then as it irks them now. It would be like someone here saying to me, “If you are going to settle for mediocre equipment, why bother?” We each have our own priorities and our own spending limits. I still enjoy hearing how other members are sampling new equipment that I will probably never hear. Some things are still to be enjoyed vicariously. 😁