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Thinking of selling it all, or massive downgrade at least......

A Majik DSM is in a completely different league in terms of SQ

Once I compared a Linn cd-player (Mimik or Genki, I can't remember) to a Naim player and it sounded sooooooo dull. Combined with my Classik experience I find it too hard to ever give Linn another try.
 
Once I compared a Linn cd-player (Mimik or Genki, I can't remember) to a Naim player and it sounded sooooooo dull. Combined with my Classik experience I find it too hard to ever give Linn another try.

Go and listen to a Majik DSM (when allowed...). Completely different from the ‘old’ Linn electronics. I think you’ll be surprised. Then listen to an 803, you’ll be even more surprised.
 
Lockdown has done odd things to us all.

Having spent 30 years building a half decent system, why would I think of changing it?
Not sure - lack of use, lack of enjoyment, sick of seeing massive depreciation?
Retail price today on my system well in excess of £100k.

Giving serious thought to selling the lot, and getting a simpler, cheaper system.
Anyone else been through this? Is is madness or cathartic?

I spent about 15 years building what I thought was a fairly decent system during the 90's and early naughties. The retail value would have been a fraction of yours (even today) . I sold this system as I wanted money to build a bike and the only way I was going have the necessary funds was to sell what I had of reasonable value. I was working at the time and earning good wages (not a salary) but that was weather dependent and keeping two houses is rather pricey.
I did keep a reasonably good system, Meridian DVD player for digital duties, Unison amp and SF Concertos , I did add a Rega TT after a while a changed the amp to a Rega Brio. At no time did I feel short changed or that I was missing out and listened to as much music as I did previously and since. I didn't read a single post on a hifi forum or buy a single hifi mag , I was pretty focused on bike building as l had to learn everything from scratch and had decided to build a bike from the ground up, experience has taught me that this is more difficult than starting with a whole bike.
In the past couple of years I've regained an interest in hifi equipment mainly I think as I'm interested in trying different technologies, speaker, amplification, turntable and tonearm designs, I'm immensely enjoying the hobby, I'm hearing more from my records, I really do like the equipment and it seems there's much for me to try.

So, I think if you've reason to sell your equipment, downsize or downgrade then go ahead, you may find it cathartic, but if you're just bored it may be madness.
If you don't need the money then perhaps sell off what you don't need and just keep a system for listening to music and find something a bit more involving and challenging than hifi equipment as a hobby.
 
Did the OP specifically say all in ones? Why not an integrated and streamer, or preamp and actives? There's a lot of putting the cart before the horse today IMO.
 
A decade ago I went to some friends, we listened to mega large Wilson speakers, heavy Krell mono blocks, full loom of silly expensive cables, everything in the millionaire class.
When back home again I was happy with my modest Creek amp, Rega Ela speakers and some source which I can't quite remember, possible a Systemdeck turntable with Goldring cartridge.
The cost was 1/1000th or thereabouts of the large millionaire setup.
To be honest, differences were large, the big setup was impressive but tiring in the long run, I enjoyed the little setup more, it did the timing Prat thing better.
 
Did the OP specifically say all in ones? Why not an integrated and streamer, or preamp and actives? There's a lot of putting the cart before the horse today IMO.
OP didn't say that he wasn't looking for an all in one either, don't see the point of your post really but hey ho....
 
Lockdown has done odd things to us all.

Having spent 30 years building a half decent system, why would I think of changing it?
Not sure - lack of use, lack of enjoyment, sick of seeing massive depreciation?
Retail price today on my system well in excess of £100k.

Giving serious thought to selling the lot, and getting a simpler, cheaper system.
Anyone else been through this? Is is madness or cathartic?

Selling won't stop the depreciation just crystallise it, possibly a rather depressing experience!

If going for simple i'd go for a decent sound card in the PC into a pair of room size appropriate active PMCs.

Set up the house so you use the system to minimise depreciation per minute; we use ours virtually every evening and sometimes most of the weekend.

Most of the time it's streaming through the PC using a cheap tablet as remote while we cook dinner or chill out with a drink after work.

Haven't used a cd or record for over a fortnight now.
 
OP didn't say that he wasn't looking for an all in one either, don't see the point of your post really but hey ho....
Maybe I misinterpreted the gist of the thread, but I thought it was more of a hypothetical "should I make this big change" question, rather than "what specific thing should I buy next". No harm either way.
 
‘He did have a great hifi’ has never been seen on a tombstone has it..

Ha! Not wishing to sound even more meh than a thread aboutn selling up already is, ironically, I have been looking at buying a burial plot now. Clandon Wood, near Guildford. Hopefully, i'll forget about it and it can be used in 20,30, 40 years time. But your comment definitely had me thinking about suitable epitaphs!
 
Maybe I misinterpreted the gist of the thread, but I thought it was more of a hypothetical "should I make this big change" question, rather than "what specific thing should I buy next". No harm either way.
More on this in a mo, as last night was a lot of talking to my better half and some further thought.
 
" The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom "
" for we never know what is enough until we know what is more than enough "

EDIT: edited for accuracy. Two bits of William Blake stitched together by a website that should know better. From "Proverbs of Hell"
Sage advice. The second one def a candidate for the gravestone!
 
You are more in the James line of epitaph.
“If I hadn’t seen such riches I could live with being poor...”
 
I've said this before, and will say it again.

Contentment comes from liking what you have; not having what you like. The OP seems not if he's not using or enjoying his hifi much.

I have been there before. I'm now come full circle back to a hifi system that enthralled me when I was a young 'un. Built around kit made in the 1970s and 80s, the fundamental magic is still there; enthralling me with music every day.
 
Again, a massive thank you to all that have contributed to my thread. I'll try to go over the key points and questions asked.
So my journey with hifi is over 30 years old. From midi systems, to first separates, then Naim boxes, to valve stuff, to big box Class A, and back to valves.
I have also heard many different types of hifi system, from cheap as chips to mega (as in over £250k) set up's. The cost doesn't determine the ultimate quality and enjoyment, but it is a general shove that way. I've preferred a Rega, Sugden, Harbeth system (say £5k) to a massive Accuphase/Tannoy one. So I'm well aware that joy can be found in lesser set up's, but also downsizing to lesser will result in a loss of (insert hifi cliche here) but perhaps not a loss of enjoyment.

I have tried to do this before. Couple of years ago I toyed with big changes, only to bottle it and I kept what i had (and have since added to it). I think my head was in a very different place then to now. Obviously, in recent times, we've had a global pandemic - and with that, no live music, no travel or holidays - and much more time at home. Time to sit in front of the hifi system more, which should add to the enjoyment yes? Ok so why do I feel the opposite?

Perhaps factors I chose to ignore have bubbled to the top. Valve amps, complicated turntables, expensive cantilevers, it is all very delicate, user-unfriendly and has become my realm with my partner, son, friends terrified to touch any of it. Even the cats give it all a wide berth. Considering music is to be enjoyed by all, everyone else in the house plays music via portable BT speakers or headphones, as the hifi is out of bounds, unless I operate it. This is just silly and is the main reason for change.

Next up if the value. To replace my system, new-for-old, is well over £100k. Of course i didn't pay that much for it, and as a sale price it's value is a lot less, but it is still a massive chunk of depreciating asset that only I really use. If we move house, its a nightmare, if I croak, leaving this to my partner is a nightmare. If we go on holiday, fretting over the housesitter going near it, is a nightmare. In short, most aspects of owning this system are negative, the only positives are when i sit and listen to it, with no other stresses in life. Again, reference the last 18 months, will this come back any time soon?

The system then, which a lot of you know, is as follows:-

Analogue : Thales TTT-C Mk II Turntable on Levi Base with Simplicity Tonearm and 3 headshella. Ortofon MC Anna Diamond, Zyx Universe II, Zyx Ultimate 100 cartridges. Tron silver RCA cable & Clearaudio Smart Matrix RCM.

Digital : dCS Bartok, Acoustic Plan DriveMaster CDT & PowerMaster PSU, Roon Nucleus Audio Server. English Electric 8Switch Ethernet Switch.

Amplification : Tron Atlantic Ref 300B Power Amp with Electro Harmonix, Takatsuki & Western Electric 300B Vacuum Tubes. Tron Seven GT Line Stage & Tron Seven GT Phono stage.

Speakers : Devore Fidelity O/96 Loudspeakers with bespoke covers.

Support : Grand Prix Audio Monaco SWB c/w Carbon platform, Apex Feet and latest pads. Solidsteel 3-3 4 shelf support.

Cables : JPS Labs Superconductor V Speaker Cables, Harmonic Technology Cyberlight P2A x2 & Wave & Siltech 550i RCA’s, Cardas Golden Ref, Isolclean Focus, Analysis Pro and Okutsu Denko Air Power Cables. Acrolink 7N-D5070-3 Digital Cable. Audioquest Cinamon Ethernet & Toslink Cables.

Misc. : iFi Power Station Power Conditioner, iFi AC iPurifiers. Gryphon Black Exorcist Demagnetiser. Epluggs RCA High Power Grounding.


So there you have it. Two towers of audio porn, which looks, and more to the point sounds fantastic! Many years of careful upgrading and fiddling to arrive at this pile of stuff only I really use, and mostly gets used for TV/film, which goes to the Bartok dac.

I talked at lengh about this with my partner. We also talked aboutn watches, cars and other stuff that has been acquired and only recently have I started to question, why? The amount of comments on here from people who have been on the journey I am contemplating, and have downsized, and remain happy! They didn't keep over and die over the loss of fidelity, the world carried on rotating! I guess it's like when I sold my mega headphone systems and now happily live with my B&O H95 - they get used and enjoyed, and i like the fact they cost less than a cable on my old set up!

With that in mind, and referencing back to my Roksan/Creek/Royd system of decades ago, I feel this might be a tad too far. I still want a good sounding system, an easy to use record player, easy Roon streaming, the TV connected. The fact it's less boxes, neater and less "look at me" are positives. I know it won't sound as good, but do I care? The support i got at home (as well as on here) is very welcome. My partner's advice, she is far wiser than me, was to set timelines, then make decisions, stick to them, see it through. We talked about what "we" want from a system and how low we can go, as we both love music. Perhaps the hardest thing in the last year or so has been us not seeing live music. We go all over Europe seeing bands we like, and the joy of music at home is always greater if you've seen the bands live.

So, if i do this, then perhaps i can be excited about what i do get to replace it all. Active speakers are a definite option - whether Buchardt, ATC or many other options mentioned. Alternatively, a one box amp (with DAC, Streamer, phono) and yes i know all the caveats mentioned about "what if they go wrong", but in fairness, i've had valve amps fail too, so complex tech doesn't have a monopoly on failures. Also Dirac, as my living room isn't acoustically right - I've lived with it and made excuses - but if i am to change then I'd definitely be keen to explore this.

So amp wise, we have things like the NAD M33, Lyngdorf, the Naim one box. Maybe some lovely passive speakers (so much choice!) or go active. A planar 10 turntable. That's it.

I'm going to mull it all over some more, another option is to mothball the entire system for 6 months, get the new set up and see "IF" i can live with it. If not, bring back the old stuff, or if i live with it and all is fine, then sell. There is no pressure to sell, but, raising some cash wouldn't be half bad, I can do plenty with the money and have less stress/pressure.

Anyway, more to follow i'm sure, and again, thank you to all who have contributed. I've read them all, and PFM is proving again to be a cracking bunch of sensible people :D
 
I've had a massive churn of kit over the years owning some quite expensive stuff on the way, although nothing to the tune of £100k.

The digital-only system I now have in our family room cost £890 all-in (£180 speakers, £90 DAC, £620 power amp), sounds as good (if not quite as loud) as any of them and is very discreet.
 
My 'new' main system in our living room now consists of a Technics SL-150 with SME 3009 arm and Shure cart with a conical stylus, Nait Mk1 (my first amp), a DVD player for CD/DVD work and a pair of Rega Alya speakers in a wood finish which matches the room. It has replaced a bouncy TT with fancy cartridge, Naim boxes a-plenty and a pair of dark and foreboding black ash standmounts with black metal stands.
The family has started to actually use it because it's simple, my wife now plays records, my daughter CDs and it doesn't dominate the room. Everyone is happier with this and it's more relaxing to be around and use. Does it sound as good....no. Does it allow you to relax and listen to music.....yes. Will the old system return....NO.

The 'other' system(s) are in use elsewhere but TBH, I'll probably sell or gift a lot away over time and just buy more music with the money and keep my hobby going through DIY'ing stuff.
 
Badger, I know that you have some really, really fantastic kit, after reading several of your posts over the course of a few years. Take things slowly and do not rush your decision here. You probably already know the right answer to your situation, but it could be a bit cloudy and murky at the moment. Usually there is balance somewhere in the mix, and you will find it. The biggest thing is once a decision is made, don't look back with regret on it later. I always find for myself, when things are kind of rolling around in my head or heart about some decision to be made, be still and quiet, give oneself time for clear head. In the end, hifi is not the end all, be all. Living is.
 


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