How does one get off the merry-go-round?

Great post Greginnh ! How true. how true , a grand here a grand there -LOL.

Don_c55, I think it is even easier today.

Since even the few remaining dealers will soon be gone, most audio paper magazines will also be gone, and electronic magazines will be available for all perspectives and will disagree on everything, and everything will be no better than MP3, and finally most will want music 24/7, all you really need to do is wait.

Furthermore since only the top 1 percent will have discretionary income, you might as well get off the merry-go-round. High end audio will be like yachts. How many of your contemporaries have musical systems in their living rooms now? It used to be well over half of mine did. Now I see maybe one out of ten older friends have any and they are old ARs and receivers with lamp cords to the speakers.

By participating on this thread you already have admitted that the audio merry-go-round does exist for many however as mentioned above many do enjoy the ride. Why is it that Audiophiles are on a Merry-go-round while other people involved in other hobbies are just indulging in their interests and doing something constructive?

You're suggesting a critical judgment of audiophiles but not of other hobbies. I doubt that's true. Obviously some audiophiles feel it's constructive and others see issues with it, such that they might frame it as being on a Merry-Go-Round. I'm sure the same is true for other hobbies, don't you think?

I've always believed that hobbies and how we engage in them are partly an outlet for, or an expression of, our neuroses: pursuit of perfection, defense of one's decisions as the best possible choice, etc etc. You see all sorts of patterns play out here constantly. I'm sure this is true for golf, racing...you name it.

My neurosis is all about creating a legacy. Since this thread I started almost 15 years ago is still going, I believe it's time to declare victory. Though I'm still not off the MGR. :-)

Drubin, I think you have earned a victory with this thread and it's quite possible others who have participated here must feel some sense of victory as well.

I can give an example of why I feel my above comment might hold some truth. A friend and myself go into a local HIFI shop. He spends only two hundred dollars on a used Hafler amp and I have spent a great deal more money on an another piece a gear. The owner tells him that he is very smart because there are not too many people that are sensible when it comes to spending on audio. Basically it was just another way of calling me stupid. I suppose there is some criticism on other hobbies but I'm not hearing it.