Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

general questions, comments and ideas about recording, audio, music, etc.
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rolandk
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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by rolandk » Thu Feb 10, 2005 5:55 pm

C'mon, buy it!


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lunchboxaudio
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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by lunchboxaudio » Thu Feb 10, 2005 6:00 pm

nick_a wrote:Where does it stop for you guys? Where do you draw the line?
dood...i know what you are feeling. i had the same feeling when i subsequently bought my vox ac-30, orange halfstack, gibson combo, magnatone combo,...mmm...memories...

by the way, don't be afraid to haggle for a better price...
maybe you can save a few bucks towards that computer.

StivBatorsWreckedMyCar
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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by StivBatorsWreckedMyCar » Thu Feb 10, 2005 6:06 pm

Do what I do in this situation. Go to your favorite watering hole and get a beer. Think about that sound you heard. It's haunting you, you can't help it. Think about you playing it in your basement and the utter bliss. Then think of someone else having that beautiful creature all to his or herslef.

Have exactly one more beer.

Go to the store and grab it before someone else does.

Is there no Top Ramen? Is there no Chef Boy R D? Calories are calories but sound can be SOUND.

I bought my 61 Bassman in the above fashion 12 years ago. I love it like a son. It's the sweetest damn thing ever to mine ears.

TrumpsHair
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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by TrumpsHair » Thu Feb 10, 2005 6:10 pm

I started out with a Digi 001, but the sound, due to the low-quality converters, was like some amazing toy from Mattel. And then I thought, what if I get lucky and record something really amazing, but the sound sucks...

About $8,000 later, I was able to finally relax.

I hate gear lust. I hope that it is gone for a long, long time.

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nick_a
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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by nick_a » Thu Feb 10, 2005 9:37 pm

Thank you, everyone.

It has become obvious to me what i must do...



Drink a beer.



If any of you dc kids go to action, DON'T BUY THAT AMP!!!

love,
nick

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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by Madguitrst » Thu Feb 10, 2005 11:59 pm

You dissapoint me Nicky.

Here we are sharing all of this good advice and all you can do is drink a beer while reminiscing about the one that got away (which what you're gonna do). All the while you go a buy a computer (I know that's what you're gonna do) that will be obsolete in a couple of days.

Oh well......we tried......
The Madguitrst has left the building.

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Scodiddly
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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by Scodiddly » Fri Feb 11, 2005 12:42 am

I dunno, $1600?

It may be worth that much to you, but it sure seems like you could get a better deal all the way around.

First off, are you going to be gigging with this amp? Is the worry about it being stolen on a gig acceptable?

Second, why do you like that one so much? Has it been very recently serviced/rebuilt? I could easily see finding the same model much cheaper and spending a few hundred on professional service to bring it up to "restored", doing the cosmetics later (or not at all, to discourage theft).

If this amp is getting some magic from worn parts, that phenomenon won't last. Better to be certain that the magic sound comes from things being in good shape, because that state can be maintained just about forever.

Here's one concrete test you can perform, too: You want to make sure this amp has the right amount of power for your needs. What you do is borrow a dB meter (or just buy the $30 one from Radio Shack) and get a reading from your current amp at a gig. Then take that to the store and see if the dream amp can reach the same SPL level with a good sound.

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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by hiwatt33 » Fri Feb 11, 2005 1:32 am

Scodiddly wrote:I dunno, $1600?

It may be worth that much to you, but it sure seems like you could get a better deal all the way around.

First off, are you going to be gigging with this amp? Is the worry about it being stolen on a gig acceptable?

Second, why do you like that one so much? Has it been very recently serviced/rebuilt? I could easily see finding the same model much cheaper and spending a few hundred on professional service to bring it up to "restored", doing the cosmetics later (or not at all, to discourage theft).

If this amp is getting some magic from worn parts, that phenomenon won't last. Better to be certain that the magic sound comes from things being in good shape, because that state can be maintained just about forever.

Here's one concrete test you can perform, too: You want to make sure this amp has the right amount of power for your needs. What you do is borrow a dB meter (or just buy the $30 one from Radio Shack) and get a reading from your current amp at a gig. Then take that to the store and see if the dream amp can reach the same SPL level with a good sound.
Agreed. Fuckin $1600.00?

:twisted:
pffft...the internet. Is that thing still around?

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NewAndImprov
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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by NewAndImprov » Mon Feb 14, 2005 4:17 pm

About 10 years ago, I bought a bass for just under $2000, you guys would all laugh if I told you what brand, but this bass just killed me the first time I played it. After 10 years, it's still my main/only instrument, it's probably still worth what I paid for it, and I've played it on 4 cd's by my bands, a bunch of sessions, and probably at least 1000 gigs. So, yeah, it was worth it. I just had the fingerboard refinished and a fretjob done on it, and it'll probably last me for the rest of my career.

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Re: Justifying lots of money going into one thing.

Post by soundguy » Mon Feb 14, 2005 5:05 pm

Try to get into the mindset that its all just gear, its all replaceable and its all disposable, it makes buying and selling stuff way easy, and ultimately, thats the reality. I have stuff I bought years ago that I still rely on and I have stuff I bought last week that is way cooler. The most important thing is to invest your money wisely so when you get sick of whatever you bought you can get your money out of it and put it towards the next thing you are convinced you need to have. Like joel said, the "whats the best piece of shit for too much money thread" in the long run, it will cost you WAY more money buying bullshit gear because nobody will ever give you anything near what you paid for new retail crap when you sell it, which you eventually will. Take a bite out of something expensive, that way even if you have to sell it the next week, you wont take a big beating on it. Try to avoid getting attached to every piece of gear also. I listen to recordings I did years ago on gear I dont have anymore and wish I could have kept some of the stuff on them, but selling those items allowed me to upgrade and its just a constant state of upgrading until you have nothing but awesome shit, you cant do that if you get real attached to things. Look at this stuff for what it is, tools. Sometimes you need to buy a wrench to turn a nut 8 times and sometimes that wrench costs a fortune, but you need to get the job done so you bend over, buy it and then sell it and move on once the job is done. Treat your audio purchases in the same light, everything ultimately is a rental. Buy the amp, use it, sell it, if you lose a few bucks, that was the price of the rental, if you make some money on the deal, party.

dave
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