Could you keep your current (or favorite) gear for 10, 15, 20+ years?

joeinid

joeinid

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I think Bryston is the only manufacturer to offer an extraordinary 20 year warranty (still thinking about those 28BSST² amps :D). This will help reduce financial outlay going forward to maybe just shipping charges.

I've been thinking about what gear (I have or I am thinking about getting) that I could conceivably ride into the sunset and/or get off the merry go round and enjoy. I know this sounds funny coming from me :weird:, but we all take a financial hit swapping gear, and lately, seems to be getting easier to lose money. :mad:

I have a few pieces now, barring failure, improper repairs or lack of parts, that I am loving and may never sell. Re-tubing amps/preamps bring them back to sounding like new. Class A amps run hot, could they last 10-20 years or longer without intervention? Are there certain designs that sound awesome and seem to last forever?

I am curious for those in or near retirement, are you pretty set system-wise? Do you budget a certain amount for new/different gear? I'd love your thoughts.
 
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LOL. I was just thinking of this. Due to the audio binge I went on the last few years I have pushed retirement out to 3-5 more years in order to recover the funds, and get a few extra dollars. I can live with my current setup, both two-channel and surround. I might do some minor upgrades, file player, DAC, cables, TV, etc., but that is probably it. Of course, never say never. :)
 
I buy most gear with a lifetime view. Lifetime is a minimum of 10 years. I suspect I will have the McIntosh gear much longer than that. That probably means I will accumulate more systems over time.

I also find it difficult to depart with some pieces that have been boxed for years.

eg.

Toshiba SD-900E (as new, an awesome DVD-A player)
Denon S-10 monoblocks. (Maybe they will see some new life one day driving ceiling speakers?)
 
I might go for the Shindo Western Electric 300b amps in the next year, but after that, no change. My current system will out last me.


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Joe, Wow! What a sea change...congrats! Ultimately it does get tiring being on the merry go round, so to find gear that no longer leaves you wanting & you can say to yourself "this is what i've dreamt of. This is what I want. I'm happy, i'm done" then you're a fortunate audiophile indeed! :audiophile:

You have some dream gear for sure; your CJ Gat & Art amps are classics, as are your Strads, Harbeths, VPI Classic 3 & i'd be prepared to say your Modwright Sony XA-5400ES. It seems to me you like stand mount & floor standing speakers, as well as tube and ss gear, so your solution might be running 2 systems, one ss and the other tube-based. Even taking that approach, you'd still probably have excess gear you could sell off. Personally, i'd rather concentrate my resources on one system & buy the best gear I can afford.

I've kind of been there, done that with tubes and am over baby sitting them, worrying about stock levels, biasing, counting tube hours etc. Besides that, there are enough tube-like ss offerings to keep this audiophile happy. I'm very happy with my Vitus SIA-025 & am done for life with my Vitus SCD-025. The beauty of the SCD-025 (like other Vitus products) is it's modular design which means as upgrades become available in future, individual modules can be easily upgraded in the field by a qualified AE. If I one day move into a bigger house, I would like to upgrade to the new Vitus SM-011 mono's which have all the power I could ever need & employ 'Intelligent Class A bias' which maintains optimal thermal conditions for the output stage at all times, which both improves the sound and long-term reliablility of the product (which were already beyond reproach). Paired with an SL-102 pre, I would be done for life with my amps!

I love my Jorma cables and am definitely off the merry go round with them too. The only other thing I could see myself upgrading in future is my speakers, possibly to a future replacement for the S5...possibly to a 2nd hand pair of M Projects one day. Who knows? But the next pair of high end speakers I buy will do me until i'm old and dotty :thumbsup:
 
The only way to not buy any more equipment is to stop listening and stop frequenting audio forums! :)
 
Hi David,

I love my Stads, so they are staying. I have been thinking about possibly replacing the 40.1's when they go. If it were not for my Strads, they'd be my primary speakers.

I have been thinking Magico S3 and even Salon2's as alternates. I am in no way obsessed with more or new speakers now, but it's nice to dream.

I may eventually get away from tubes, but so difficult to do considering how amazing they sound. I don't like to worry about them, but realize it's mostly in my head. I've never had a problem with them so far and realize the fear may be irrational.

Music is on more than my TV and even then, the sound is muted on the TV while I listen to the music.

Choice of solid state is important. Ease of repair and warranty come into play as well as what speaker I use with it. My XA60.5's are amazing and wonder about the Pass point 8 version. I think an upgrade to the newer amps is coming by next winter. The added heat will be welcome for these cold nights :)

I think the Sony's will eventually be sold as I am getting away from cds and using a server/computer with dac. Non-essential gear is being sold off as I pare down to what moves me.

I appreciate everyone's thoughts. It's interesting to see where we all end up. I do love the gear, but enjoy the music more. :D

Bodhi said:
Joe, Wow! What a sea change...congrats! Ultimately it does get tiring being on the merry go round, so to find gear that no longer leaves you wanting & you can say to yourself "this is what i've dreamt of. This is what I want. I'm happy, i'm done" then you're a fortunate audiophile indeed! :audiophile:

You have some dream gear for sure; your CJ Gat & Art amps are classics, as are your Strads, Harbeths, VPI Classic 3 & i'd be prepared to say your Modwright Sony XA-5400ES. It seems to me you like stand mount & floor standing speakers, as well as tube and ss gear, so your solution might be running 2 systems, one ss and the other tube-based. Even taking that approach, you'd still probably have excess gear you could sell off. Personally, i'd rather concentrate my resources on one system & buy the best gear I can afford.

I've kind of been there, done that with tubes and am over baby sitting them, worrying about stock levels, biasing, counting tube hours etc. Besides that, there are enough tube-like ss offerings to keep this audiophile happy. I'm very happy with my Vitus SIA-025 & am done for life with my Vitus SCD-025. The beauty of the SCD-025 (like other Vitus products) is it's modular design which means as upgrades become available in future, individual modules can be easily upgraded in the field by a qualified AE. If I one day move into a bigger house, I would like to upgrade to the new Vitus SM-011 mono's which have all the power I could ever need & employ 'Intelligent Class A bias' which maintains optimal thermal conditions for the output stage at all times, which both improves the sound and long-term reliablility of the product (which were already beyond reproach). Paired with an SL-102 pre, I would be done for life with my amps!

I love my Jorma cables and am definitely off the merry go round with them too. The only other thing I could see myself upgrading in future is my speakers, possibly to a future replacement for the S5...possibly to a 2nd hand pair of M Projects one day. Who knows? But the next pair of high end speakers I buy will do me until i'm old and dotty :thumbsup:
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This is a fun thread Joe, I'll play.

Speakers: Salon 2's are staying, I could be happy with these for the rest of my days. If I ran into some money, and they came out with Salon 3's, I'd be tempted.
Amps: The Hegel H30 is staying, period ! It's the best sounding SS amp for me, and I've heard a lot of good ones.
Preamp: Classe' CP 800. This would look like my weak spot for people that haven't compared it to 20-30 thousand dollar preamps as I have. Until I hear something better,that I can afford, it's staying.
Digital: Lumin A1 is staying, period.
Analog; VPI Classic. I love my Classic, if I had some extra money I'd upgrade in the VPI family. But for now, It's staying too.
Cables: The Kimber Select 6063 copper sp cables aren't going anywhere, best damn sp cable I've ever had. IC's are up in the air, I've got Shunyata now, but I'm willing to experiment.

It's no wonder that you,Mike, and Bruce call me the "Turtle". I do move slow.
 
BlueFox said:
LOL. I was just thinking of this. Due to the audio binge I went on the last few years I have pushed retirement out to 3-5 more years in order to recover the funds, and get a few extra dollars. I can live with my current setup, both two-channel and surround. I might do some minor upgrades, file player, DAC, cables, TV, etc., but that is probably it. Of course, never say never. :)
Click to expand...

Bud- you need to work another 5 years to save up for all your future Friday night disasters.
 
Not quite the same league, but my Odyssey Stratos also came with a 20 year warranty. Been flawless for close to 15 so far.
 
Source components will almost always need upgrading. Certainly digital sources are continually improving, and despite the vintage trend in LP playing gear I think that has also improved significantly in the last 10 years and may continue to do so. The only area where there might be limited benefit is open reel tape machines.
 
For me, it's not just about finding the best gear - even if that means 11 year old speakers that convey the passion and emotion of the music better than no other - but it's also about finding gear that works best in my room.

When I moved to the Pass XS amps, it was a huge eye opener. Like Soulution 701's, Vitus, Boulder, etc. they are on such another level, they rendered all the rest of the amps I had unusable. They were all great amps in their own right, but compared to the XS - no contest. The XS preamp (and pending XS phono) will be icing on the cake.

The KRONOS turntable has stopped my search for world class vinyl playback in its tracks.

It's no secret that I find cables frustrating - the hundreds of brands, each with a seemingly endless amount of lines, categories and models within each - all priced into the stratosphere, I find more than a little frustrating. Other than wanting to tinker with a crystal cable or a Siltech cable, I'm quite content with my Kimber Select.

My reel to reel is humming along nicely and I love it as an analog alternative world class source to my KRONOS.

The Lumin A1 and S1 (system dependent) just continue to beat all comers. The Berkley Ref DAC was better, but no DSD and frustrating apps and noisy computer make it a no go for me. I would love to try a Lampi DAC, but having to get up and throw a switch to go between DSD and PCM is a no go for me. I make a playlist and it can go back and forth between PCM and DSD from song to song!

I would like to add a spinner I think. I know, I know, crazy. But....

I would love to add some world class tube amps just for "flavoring", so Joe, once you send me your CJ amps to try, I will know if they are for me. [emoji3]

I want to maybe add some front diffusors, but I'm really just down to tweaking on room acoustics.

Could I see myself selling the Strads and trying a pair of Focal Stella's? Maybe. Possibly. But that's just a "kicking around" idea - with a lot more demoing and listening required. But I love my Strads and they work in my difficult room, so a change would be tough, if not impossible.

I still dream about a pair of Soulution 501's/520 - but it's just that....a dream. But if I didn't own Pass XS, I would own class A Vitus. I love Class A sound. I've been so spoiled by the dead black backgrounds of the XS gear, great bass, speed, mind blowing dynamics and INCREDIBLE sweetness on the top, that going back to tubes full-time would be tough. My Pass XS amps sound more SET like than any of my previous SET amps!

I've completely ignored my home theater and may spend some energies there, but other than that, I'm VERY VERY happy with my system. Not having the nightmarish bass problems is such a relief!


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I will keep this short. There may be some tweaks to my digital sources but the price of any amps/speakers etc that might interest me have risen to the point where the SQ vs Cost is not worth if for me. High end audio pricing no longer makes sense to me.

But I never say never.
 
Great thread. My 1-year old Brinkmann table is going to last 30 years :)

I've had so many amps, can never say I wouldn't try one again- I don't see another SS amp though as the Dart is far and away the best I've heard. KR Audio or Quad tube amps more likely. If anything, may upgrade to Dart separates in a year or two.
 
Right now I am set with my rig in our current NY home. But we are searching for a new house in NC to semi-retire, so I will have to assess how things sound when we find it and I set up the rig there. All in all, I'm expecting to have a bigger space for myself (hopefully) and this rig should fit the bill. But you never know for sure. I'm very happy with all the pieces.

Apogee Duetta Sig's speakers
McCormack DNA500 amp
Audio Prism Mantissa preamp
Ayre CX7e-MP CD
VPI/Moerch/Transfiguration turntable
Hagerman Trumpet phono
TWL cables
 
One of the great things I've seen in this thread, is how diverse our systems are. There simply is not one "Best" of anything. We all have our own tastes :celebrate008_2:
 
The gear I have now will last for the next 10 years or so, now the only way to go into retirement and still have a viable system. i feel gear swapping is still in my future
for now tho i want to add a Lumin to the 2 channel system and add a amp and rear speakers + a sub for home theater
 
I still have my Infinity QLS I kept them in my system from late 1970s till 2010. Great speaker not till I heard the CLXs did I hear a better speaker I could afford. I also kept my Mac mc32 and mc 2205 for many years. Before my folly with tubes. Then Ayre was a move up as was the Clear Audio Statement many good thinks to come I hope.
 
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