Is advice from a constant upgrader to be avoided

The one thing I do is stick pretty close to home. Equipment manufactures, speaker design and driver type.. I did that over a 10 year period in my 20s. I went through a lot of gear and found what I liked and kept GOOD notes. I made a  few choices like, Mcintosh, Thoren, Russco/type (TT) Pass design SS amps, SME tone arms, Telefunken valves and great electrical filtering and conditioning. I've used a few, Topaz design always worked for me. Triplite too.. Other than new manufactures making the drivers I use or going out of business, I stick to the same kind of speaker design and philosophy in building. GRs OB servo was an exception. I’m not an OB kind of guy for the most part..

The only new piece in many years was a Decware ZP3. I got it mainly for a RtR preamp. I added Cary to the line up, but it was OLD when I got It.. Then worked it.. I love it.. Betters my VTLs and most of my Macs (not ALL). I added class D 8 years ago, 3 years on and off picking what I liked.. Ncore is just fine for me..

Rogers PA-2 will better it in every way as far as a turntable though.. 3 times the cost too. Actually I have a pair of Mac that are quite a bit better. A C20 and a MX110z. both phono sections were worked over pretty good.. Better than the Decware, a cap change is all that’s needed, though.. (pretty sure).

Maybe just add .01 collection caps.. WiMa are great for that.. for pennies vs GOLD nuggets for payment.. NUTSO pricing on some bypass caps.. Mercy oh mercy pricing. :-) AND nothing seems to be in stock..

If one thing makes sense to me is if I can remember what something DID sound like and keep that reference available, I know when it’s ME not the equipment or the room or anything else. I keep a reference system here, it’s pretty simple too.

I have a FEW buddies that use MY little reference system as a mark in the sand after a gear up grade.. More money than good ears for most of them..:-)

I do have a right EAR thing going on as of late. They changed my heart meds, it’s affecting my ears a tad..

Heads up fellas.. Heart meds mess with the EARS... Water seems to help so far.. More not less. Maybe the NURSE not the doctor was right.. BP is a little LOW.

Regards

@ebm why on earth is that your go to response? An urgent need to exercise your fingers?

@mid-fi-crisis I seek opinions from all kinds. I especially want to hear from someone who has owned or owns a product I'm interested in. If they love it I want to know why. If they didn't care for it I try to find out why, with what equipment, in what size room, and with what music. Their dislike may be closer to my preference. I would avoid the folks who have plenty to say about items they have never heard. BTW love the screen name.

OP

Good observation. I have known guys that were addicted to equipment swapping. You are correct, not the people to listen to. I, like quite a few others here have been at this for fifty years or so, slowly acquiring and evaluating one piece of equipment at a time. For the last thirty years or so I have been careful to raise my system up a level and then spend around seven years there just enjoying the music. I think a number of folks here are like that. That is why some of uds try to say enough to quantify our qualifications enough in a post, and show our system to establish some credibility and to show our point of view.

Looking at it from a different side. Without the people that swap gear frequently you would never be able to get the common questions "how does this vs this sound" answered. Also this hobby has many facets. Some people just enjoy listening to music, others enjoy the nuances of sound reproduction through different gear. 

What a fascinating topic.

Perhaps I am in an ideal position, having a good understanding both electronics and physics.

Before making a purchase, I thoroughly investigate it and then sit on it, so I don't make any impulsive decisions.

As has been suggested, the next step is getting the best from what you have before even considering an upgrade. This step is the most difficult, and I acknowledge there are many who are going to struggle. Relatively simple with stereo but hellishly difficult with multi channelled home theatre systems.