The Ugly Truth About This Hobby! Not Worth The Headache! 

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I can't tell you how many times I've seen people in this A/V hobby do everything possible to get their systems tweaked, upgraded, adjusted, sold, and only to re-purchase back, etc... They do everything but the main component of this lovely hobby----Enjoy the music!

The less I watch RU-vid reviews, the less urge I feel to upgrade

Most of my stuff I purchased years before my marriage, so it's been no problem as far as my spouse is concerned. Jay, I had to laugh when you talked about strange people coming into the house carrying boxes of equipment and focusing on and stressing over much of the time on the equipment.

2 months into this hobby and it’s true. The endless pursuit and obsession is not healthy when it takes over your mind and time. I will just enjoy what I have in moderation. Tks for sharing. 😊

Hi Jay, My wife hated my system for years. She refused to even try to enjoy it. She saw it as what it’s value represented in other possibilities in our life. I worked on this forever and eventually got her to see that we can do both. Now she will spend short amounts of time in my audio room. Never more than 30-45 min but that was a huge positive development. As far as time allotment goes, I generally only spend long hours with my system on Friday and Saturday nights. I have to get up and work on weekdays. Even then I spend those evenings with her doing what she wants to do then when she goes to bed (she likes to read so rarely stays up past 10) I head to my refuge until 1 or 2 am. And she honors this because it is a relatively small amount of time. I think this is a good balance. I also find that I look forward to these sessions and enjoy them immensely. I don’t get jaded. My system blows my mind all over again. The antidote to the affliction you describe is one drop of discipline and two drops of gratitude to that beautiful being who puts up with us and our strange love affair with sound.

I started building my system pretty innocently enough. Then everything became “just one more piece” I even opened a private bank account in order to procure gear from overseas. Her finding out about the bank account almost cost me everything. Now I sit down. Close my eyes and enjoy my system and my marriage. You nailed the OCD condition.

As someone who's intermittently struggled with 'audiophilia nervosa,' it's become clear to me - and this is crucial for many of us - that in the absence of an audio or music obsession, those of us (and that includes me) with more obsessive natures can easily find other obsessions and compulsions to which to latch on in the place of one let go- so for many out there, 'audio ocd' can be a symptom of a larger imbalance, and not 'the cause' of one's distress. Often better to look deeper than simply ending a problem obsession that one has!

I don't have this problem since I've no wife or GF. Thus no headaches and complete Peace.

Having been an audiophile for over 55 years ( yes I'm that old) I am shocked at what this hobby has become. Like so many other things in life, it has become a hobby of luxury goods where the more you pay, the less of an incremental improvement you get. When I started in the hobby the difference between decent entry level amplification (ie dynaco,) and high end amplification ( ie McIntosh) was a ratio of about 1 to 5 or 6. And gear in between had a reasonable proportion of sound quality. Now entry level to top high end can be well over a 1 to 100 ratio in price. Back then most all the gear served the music. Not so much anymore. Now we have $500,00 turntables, $1,000,000 speakers and so on. Much of it doesn't even sound musical. We also didn't have $20,000 interconnects, and $10,000 power conditioners and so on. In many ways this hobby has gotten simply ridiculous yet at the same time, wonderful sound for many can be gotten for less $$, and more easily accessed than ever before. Like many things, this some of this hobby has become a money pit for the uber rich.

Jay many thanks for being so brave and honest about the effects of this hobby which we all share in various degrees. I have a Bi Polar condition mainly I suffer from hyper mania. When I have watched many of your videos a strong common denominators run through, your pursuit of that perfect sound, your singular attention to detail, your limitless recources to get 'that latest component and your need to share your pursuit/journey with the rest of us. I have a feeling that the need to share your journey is the strongest compulsion for you.

I finished with a partner because of my system. She irritated me over keep saying her 1k bose system was just as good. Had some real big arguments over it.

For me the solution for this was very easy. I put the system in our living room for all of us to enjoy. The system however got in a bit of trouble. Supposedly, it was better to listen to it over a nice cup of coffee. I then bought an espresso machine and we all now enjoy music over many many cappuccinos. 😊

Thank you Jay for being so open and honest. Spoken from experiences. I realised earlier on that this could go out of control so I took a step back for a while and just enjoyed the music with what we had, which was already pretty good. Then my wife and I discussed about how far I wanted to go with this and to firmly stay grounded. Cheers Jay😎

Obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and depression are all streams that flow from the same spring. Tony Robbins said that the greatest happiness comes from relationships, and our audio hobby needs no relationships to be enjoyed, it is a really a solitary hobby, there is only one “sweet spot” to sit in. To get in the mindset that there is no “finish line”, that there is always something that can be done to the system to make it sound better is not healthy. We should lead a balanced life, where we do many different things and not focus on just one thing to the detriment of others. We would not want to eat just protein, we feel better on a balanced diet. A balanced life is key, no one thing should dominate our time. Now I have to go make sure I locked the door, and I need to try it several times to make sure it is truly locked and that I will remember it is locked. Control of things is paramount to relieving a little bit of anxiety. Rituals temporarily relieve stress too.

Jay, don't get discouraged. I am really enjoying your journey through the hobby. Love seeing you try out Mac tubes, and vinyl. It reminds me of when I was your age. Don't forget it is about the music, and how it makes you feel. One suggestion...try some tube linestages like DeHavilland, Shindo, Audio Note (Japan), and roll some tubes. Should make great content, and great consternation.

Hi Jay thanks for your blood, sweat, and tears. Through your journey. I am grateful for your dedication and your unbiased nature. Ps do me this one thing don't change and stay real you are truly a great man

Watched several tubers in past weeks doing similar videos. Well done. This is a very real, important, and very common issue. Often it’s not realized until it’s too late and real damage is done.

Buying and selling is fun. I've cut back, but still enjoy meeting other audiophiles, making good deals, and trying new stuff. Of course the music too ! ! ! I am not ashamed to admit I love the gear.

Interesting and thought provoking , entered an audio competition a few ago,and I sort of skirted round this,I use my system mainly as an add on to my TV viewing ,that way everyone can share the experience

Love when he says “latest and greatest” and shows clip of cassette tape:)

I’ve been through a ton of gear because I was interested in finding a sound I like. It was expensive and at times stressful, but I still spend time with the family because my system is in my office and I listen during the day whilst I’m working. Additionally I’ve spent a lot but I’ve kept it real and enjoy the music and buying music.

Props to you for daring to bring up the "elephant in the room" -- especially given that you are a dealer! This shows a lot of integrity on your part. And you are absolutely on target when you say this can be a problem at any price point. I've been there and it doesn't feel good. It's far better to be satisfied that one's system is "good enough" and to focus on enjoying music.

Thank you Jay, for your honesty. Just like anything it can be addictive and if not under control, it is just like gambling…. it will ruin you and your life.

Some people have called this “upgrade fever.” Frankly if people can afford the upgrades towards The Absolute Sound that is fine; I believe you can do BOTH; acquire new gear, appreciate the improvements AND enjoy those improvements as experienced through the music; Harry Pearson used to say you aren’t aware of the shortcomings of your system until something better comes along; thank God my wife sits with me and listens; when I met her she had 1000+ albums; she says I married her for her vinyl; thankfully she has great ears and can discern differences in audio shows; she didn’t think when we met that her LP’s could sound great; once we took them to audio shows her jaw dropped and understood; we are happy where we are system wise and yet we are about to add the Michi X-5 Series 2 integrated. We will never lose sight because first and foremost we are passionate about THE MUSIC; improvements to the system making THE MUSIC sound more real, all the better; more enjoyment! I dare say sitting on the couch together eyes closed listening is one of our most BONDING experiences we share. How many other subscribers listen with their wives who share the music as a mutual passion; I am certain there are more than you realize.

Thanks Jay. Keep keeping it real and from the good place in your heart. We need more people like you in our hobby/addiction/passion 😊 Been long time subscriber and happy to see your channel growing.

To me a hifi system serves as a triggering device for my mirror neuron to the music being played, and through perception action coupling I get to perceive the beauty of the music, the brilliance of the player's performance, etc... So a better system might trigger more! There is an overlapping area between music lover and hifi lover.

Yes, I know that feeling. Meanwhile I don't listen to music anymore, I'm listening to the sound the music makes..

Jay, great video u are very honest. You have went to the extremes of spending the most money I have ever seen. You should have the best sounding system. What would be more fun is try to make the most musical system under 20 or 30K where most people can afford. I have been in this hobby over 40 years and what happens is we start chasing the equipment instead of enjoying the music. It happens to most of us. This hobby can get to be an addiction like a drug, its crazy we are all trying to build the best system, but there is no end. We have to go back to just enjoying the music and not go overboard. Spend more money on just building your vinyl collection than on equipment would be my advice.

I came home early one day and caught my wife playing with my high end hifi gear. I filed for divorce as I considered that both of them have been unfaithful to me. I now live happily with a beautiful Marantz AVR home video set up as I do not trust high end gear anymore. Call me anything but don't call me crazy.

I agree I have terrible OCD, I can't sleep at night wondering how to get those blacker blacks, all night turning from side to side on how to make the soundstage 1mm wider. I even went on holiday and came back half way through as I thought I might have the put the wrong fuse in that made me lost that 1 mm of depth to the soundscape. I then went out and bought an Eversolo and all my OCD problems were cured.

This is very good advice. MODERATION used to be considered a virtue for a reason. Many of us have forgotten the value of it.

This bites much earlier and slowly grows on you. I started from my personal portable radio to denon amplifier ! The search of perfect sound and music never ends ! But it is expensive hobby for sure. Now I have decided to buy a new marantz amplifier and hopefully stop there ?

It's a very good topic. I find it very important not to overspend, that also is a problem for many. Especially when you can not afford.

Short of being obsessive about the power supply for your equipment, there is a fairly good solution. If you get an inline watt meter like killawat, you can start to learn the wattage your equipment pulls. You will then know what is safe to consolidate on a power strip. You can then use the power strip to start consolidate the power supply and likely enable yourself with only one switch to turn off that will guarantee success. Of course if you have equipment with clocks and memorized settings that need sustained standby power, this can be a deal breaker.

great video and I can relate. I lost a 15-year relationship because of my addiction to audio.

Definitely a problem for me financially and in my personal life, much appreciated post Jay.

It's sad that the system is the entertainment instead of the music. I personally enjoy my $5000 system, sitting back and enjoying a coffee or a glass of wine and listening to the music, not the system.

Jay - You should start a new AA (Audiophile Anonymous)

Good video , for me the only great positive my system has over my girlfriend/wife is that when I want some peace and quiet e can just turn it off

Be a music lover,and not ocd about equipments.There is no absolute sound,just like foods.The law of diminishing return does apply.Once the system gives you the sound you like,you can stop chasing equipment s.Always use your ears to be the final arbiter.

Jay is 100 PERCENT RIGHT! Women don't GIVE A DAMN about Stereo's or speakers! Unless its a beautiful, wife friendly and sexy Sonus Faber speakers! If its a ugly Wilson Audio speaker that you're bringing home, be cautious to NOT leave it at home with her when you're away, she might just burn it, and trash it.

My pre and power amplifier is always on, server is always on. It sounds beter 😅

Switching my focus from gears to music helped me.

That's why I like McIntosh, it has "creature comfort", such as: auto off, powergard, etc, that most "audiophile" gears don't have.

Love the video, Jay. Great advice!

"Audiophilia Nervosa" is real. When I started only listening to well recorded music, which some I didn't even like that much instead of listening to the music I loved because a lot of it wasn't well recorded/produced, I had to step back. Having OCD to begin with leads to the never-ending quest and that leads to feeling disillusioned. Thanks, Jay, for your honesty!

I agree with some of your statements, enjoying this hobby with family members (maybe) on the Home Theater side.. My Wife has OCD, I do not, I never worry about leaving an Amp on or lights on, and never have, well maybe an old Class A Amp, sucks too much power! I enjoy the music more but I have been a Flipper and it feeds my hobby of course "its a flipping hobby"! I know guys that spend hundreds of thousands a dollars on vintage cars a year again it's a hobby! I can hear the differences in Mid-Fi and HiFi at times are marginal gains at best in sound, when you get to HiFi and Mega HiFi, incremental gains in sound. When I close my door and walk away from my HT and Audio Room, I concentrate on other matters. I agree on the Wife end, wife could care less, she is fine listening to music on an Amazon Echo. Lately I am spending more time "actually" going to concerts with my wife, I do listen late at night because I don't have to worry about her or my family needs. I call this "Family Therapy", everyone needs alone time! LOL I find it funny on how you say people obsessive over it (Most serious hobbyist) do this, my wife obsessive over hand bags and shoes, and 6 Amazon deliveries a day, lol! My wife understands, I use to work at a store for fun when we met and by selling gear off it helped us get a huge downpayment on a house 20+ years ago, so she is fine with it to a certain extent. Now I am trying to focus more on live music, also when Covid hit, it helped keep me sane! ;) The only major negative factor it has had on me is obsessing over the "next" best thing and better equipment, but when you get to a certain level, the equipment isn't really any better, it just sounds different. I need to re-focus on the music and the enjoyment of that, but people get that "Christmas high" another new piece of equipment arriving starts to trump everything else. If it gets to the point where I want to spend more time in my basement and not going to my kids soccer or CC events, then I know it will be time to hang it up for awhile, thankfully it hasn't come to that.

I have been listening to my Marantz 2325 , Klipsch k-horns and a set of Klipsch Belle’s. The amount of music to me is fantastic. For over 30 years they have served me well . I am very happy with my system. I know I have got my money worth. Know what you want and get it then enjoy it ! I haven’t turned my Marantz off for the past two months ! Problem free, a couple of bulbs out. It still Rocks ! I am as happy as a little pig in slop ! My family says please ! My room is double insulated and my stereo was made for the room it’s in. Be Happy , Celebrate Life ! Music 🎼 is life , like riding my motorcycle it frees your Soul ! Life is moments so try to make more good memories than bad ones ! Rock on with something you can turn on and not need a computer to enjoy it ! Watch Concerts together and listen with your system. Even my kids liked that when they were growing up . Enjoy quit over thinking it ! G D Bless you all Jay !

Very good point Jay. You could say We are chasing are arses... On the plus side of it wasn't hifi, it would be something else... Regards Antony Warrington Cheshire England..

You have big kahunas bringing this topic up. It is so true I already lost my wife and my children but I have all Macintosh components and that makes me happier than my wife and children . I lost my parents to some Wilson Speakers I second mortgage to their house and I lost it but at least I have some hundred thousand dollar speakers. But they still don’t sound right because I can only spend $50,000 on speaker cable. I need the hundred thousand dollar speaker cable the one that is wrapped in ice and comes with that whole refrigeration unit that keeps the wires frozen to keep the impedance down below freezing levels. It’s all about the love of the sound, screw those people they didn’t mean anything to me

Just got done blasting AC DC on my 5.2 JBL system along with my darling wife. She enjoys the music while cleaning out the parrot cage. Can't imagine listening to that system! 🤯 Chloe my parrot was also dancing ecstatically enjoying the music! PS: That ghost of Johnny Cash music has to be the best produced/sounding whatever you want to call it produced music I ever heard!🤯 Made even Eric Clapton sound subpar!🤔🤫😝

No guts. No glory. Excellent.

Awesome, thanks Jay.

My wife occasionally will come in to my listening room, but she has a sewing studio to work on her creations…so we both have our time with our “passions”…and yes I have the illness as well I have now 5 complete systems, 4 vintage, one new. And getting that next box past my wife,..from EBay is a challenge…ha ha

True true. luckily I find this hobby interesting and annoying at the same time. All I want is a stereo that can accomplish what my JBL boom box does. Give clear music with a punchy bass that hits from the mids to low mids, but in a proper setup with deeper lower bass to fill the room. I have almost got that but it seems to me that most speaker vendors cant mash up this properly in one. Therefore the quest has not yet ended, but I am pretty satisfied with what I got now, and do not have to waste my time tweaking as I see there is no more tweaking to be done to get what I am looking for. And I hate tweaking actually. I just want my system to sound good with anything I put on so I can enjoy the music, and I am done wasting money, and will not sell anything before I have heard an confirmed that the next speakers will deliver properly. I neither do believe that more expensive equipment will solve this, cause I have tried that path, and usually more expensive speakers supposedly need more power, the correct amp and pre amp and so on jada jada. Some truth to it, but it should be possible with less like my boombox.

My system ... an endless bundle of joy .... An HTPC driving a small DAC driving a Class-D mini-amp driving a pair of Pioneer towers. Total investment? Less than $1,000. You see I simply don't care how resovling it is. I don't worry about cables and dodads and I have no need for "high end" anything. I bought reasonable components, hooked them up, played with speaker positions a bit and then just left it as it is. For entertainment, I walk over to my system, put on some music, and go do what I need to do. I will put on a movie in the evening and relax with friends to watch it. The system is NOT the centre of my universe. It is simply a means to bring good sounding music into my home.

Jay. I I’m single so I don’t have those issues. However, I’d also believe some wives are happy that husbands have a hobby and stay out of their way!😅😅😅

It's part of truly living.. improve your singing and music and serenade your significant other (partner) and work your ass off to support your hobby. I'm pretty sure there will be a middle ground you can both agree, the point is communicate!

Just keep it simple. After all the running around, going nuts about the smallest details in this hobby, i've finally just got myself a simple set up of an integrated amp and speakers that i like plus a source or two. Not going to bother much about other stuff as long as i can sit down and enjoy my music. And if i can fall asleep while listening to my music/system. Thats good enough for me.

Is obsession interchangeable with addiction? My first year of hi-fi life was an addiction! Some days I'm happy to have a budget that limits my gear and allows my mind to stay on the discovery of music. Stay cool, Jay.

Great topic and presentation Jay. Very appreciative that you took the time to do this video. Hopefully you have enlightened quite a few of us audiophiles. Now in my senior years I'm enjoying this hobby more and spending very judiciously.

Pick up a book, learn to play an instrument...it's all the same...you must share with your spouse and get them to understand YOUR joy. What motivates you, gives you strength, give yourself room to keep YOUR personality, strengthen your spirit, while respecting their love and devotion. Give them time to understand and they should do the same for you. MODERATION is the KEY here. Do not let a hobby become a life altering OBSESSION. Keep things under control, YOUR BUDGET, YOUR TIME, your self confidence; it's all under your control, not you controlled by the hobby. Besides, it saves a lot of resources of time and money, enjoying a concert at your leisure nightly if that's what you want; ENJOY it together! Avoid the VICIOIUS CYCLE of upgrade, repair and replace that too many people experience , which keeps the capitalist industry going, BUT, keeps you(and your spouse) worried over how you prioritize your time and money.

This topic is true. Thanks for the video!

Everyone here knows how obsessive this hobby can be. The search for the holy grail can be an endless, very expensive thing, as addictive as nicotine in its own way. I've been there and still get a hankering for trading in or trading up. Fortunately, I'm still comfortable and impressed with what I have. Being retired and on a fixed income helps ground one to reality.

Years ago, there was a girl who i fancied anyway one night I dreamt that we was going out with each other and she moved in with me and then one day I came home from work and found out she had sold my hi-fi system and my record collection after that dream I did not fancy her anymore, and it has put me off dating algether

The best thing you have done!

I'm blessed that my "better half" loves audio but has predilections and biases that are different than mine. This means if there's a deficiency in our system we can verify its there using what we call "the psychedelic test" i.e. if two people see it, then its real. :)

Realy important topic🙂👍

I don't have a wife, children or girlfriend, but obsession wouldn't require it. If you're that far into the hobby, there are other issues at work. I'd think ANY hobby could be taken too far. I may have the opposite issue. I have a decent system that I barely play anymore. That means I'm out of balance. I shouldn't be coming to RU-vid to listen to music; it's easy and convenient, but it's not the same as listening to the same music on my system. The perception of time is one issue, and not feeling as if I have it to spend with the stereo. That's one reason I have so many LPs I haven't played or even opened; fatigue is another. This is a good "makes me think" video. Thanks.

Let me give a simple piece of advice. Make sure you choose a partner that has a hobby or interests. The problem is often that alot of partners can not entertain themselves. They have no interest in things whatsoever. So they are bored out and expect from the other to spend as much time with them to keep them occupied. In general men can entertain themselves, but women can't. Most women want to talk talk talk talk talk and talk. They are addicted to communication. While men in general are kinda authistic. They can spend hours and hours noodling on their guitar for example or building something.

I'm totally in awe of your memory of all the pieces you have owned, how it sounded, strengths, weaknesses, even part numbers, etc. You have a steel trap mind/memory. Amazing to me!

I know sound I like and sound I don't like. It has nothing to do with the cost of the equipment; I've been blasting my ears for years, and probably have an audio range of about 27 to 15k Hz. I play bass and some guitar, and am not gentle with the volume. However, there are certain things that my ears like. Even though I might not have the hearing range of a younger person, I like clarity, depth and positioning in my sound. I have have an old Sony 200 watt stereo receiver, and some old Pioneer 12” 3 way speakers that cost me about $80 per, 40 years ago. They sound good to me, are very clear, and with good toe-in give me good imaging. I also listen mostly to my headphones, that are Sennheiser HD 600s (pretty good). Beyerdynamic DT 880 Pro’s ( I really like them) and Beyerdynamic 1770 Pro’s (they’re OK). I listen through a pretty good DAC and headphone amp. I’ve heard systems that have amazed my because of their projection (AMT 1b’s with Heil air motion transformers) that projected to other sides of the room. When I bought my speakers, I tested against ones that were “phase aligned”, and there was no comparison, the Pioneers sounded MUCH better. I’ve heard some really amazing systems on line that were binaurally recorded, and many sound superb. I can’t pretend to have the money to buy them. And even now, which headphones on, I will take them off and investigate if something sounds out of place.

I know 2 people are going through a divorce right now because they can not stop putting $$$ in their systems. My equipment only worth $0.25M and all paid for and still happily married. I am considered myself very lucky

I replaced my main cable with a pure silver cable. I swear I’m out of the rabbit hole. I may just watch RU-vid videos but, I’m seriously done done done. Well…with my main system.

Congrats Jay for bringing this touchy subject up. Talk about being real. Maybe one day talk about the never-ending, unattainable quest for The Best Sound or Next Best Gadget and the hole it leaves in your heart.

Well done! Mr. Pete----------> aging hippie

I guess I did it different I bought my stuff after much much much research and am totally happy with it and ended all my research for hardware. Instead I do research artists none stop, buying records all the time, research different pressings, entire discography ... ALL DAY LONG i do this and waiting for delivery. After that everythings gets listened to as soon as possible

A great subject for a video, great honest advice for all of us! Please keep up the good work on this subject! Thanks!!!

one law : diminishing returns; which also means we run out of time (we will die) /money/space...power limitations just to name a few

Damn I have 2 expensive hobbies, car is second one , : 1 . Turn off your entire system for a week completely, it helps you to reset your ears and relationships. 2 get her some nice present every time you bring that big box of whatever. At the end it’s and addiction and sooner you admit it and start managing better it is . 🍺

That was the most honest video I have seen. Thanks for sharing. I too was obsessed at one time with upgrades. But I now have a great system for my retirement and can now just enjoy the music (although not so much that it upsets the wife) 😅

this is an absolutely great video.👍

people, don‘t buy class A amplifiers, then you don‘t need to switch off and have nightmares about this. my systems are always running 24/7, only when i go in hollidays, i turn it off 😉

Ayre kxr/vxr/mxr twenty or d agustino hd momentum pre/s400?

so what's with those small wilson's there?

Stratton Acoustics Elypsis 1512 Loudspeakers are very Addictive

The other side of the coin of course that many will be thinking out there in the hobby, is do I really need a significant other?

brilliant video... it's all true

Way to keep it real Jay. I'd never seen any of your videos so this was the first but I subscribed. I'm blessed with my wife who enjoys our home theater setup for watching movies, shows and cranking up her cleaning and holiday music. I enjoy that system even more, knowing she enjoys it too. Plus... It's a great excuse to improve upon it, and she's chill with that. My main thing is stereo music however, not surround sound movies, etc. So, while my wife and I watch and enjoy together quite a bit, (even Livestream Church is better up-mixed), the music portion of the hobby is indeed solo as you said. I, like you, have turned my hobby into a business by starting a RU-vid channel on my primary focus which is loudspeakers. In particular, vintage mass market RestoMod speakers that I film document from beginning to end. That also allowed me. (again like you), to get my wife's support because of the potential for the channel to grow and hopefully supplement our retirement. So, in the same way I enjoy her enjoying the surround sound setup, and I tolerate the plethora of uninteresting streaming shows, series and movies she watches to spend time together enjoying it, she also enjoys seeing me enjoy the stereo stuff and speakers, while tolerating and supporting the RU-vid aspect of it, which for me has become a second job, alongside a career in insurance that takes up the bulk of my waking hours. All that being said, you did ask for real comments and feedback about how the hobby affects us, so my closing thoughts are that while I may not have the same OCD about whether or not equipment was left on and such, I do get OCD about all the different directions and topics for upcoming videos, constantly on the hunt for decent vintage speakers to acquire, speaker components and selection of them for upcoming builds and videos... It affects my family life some, but more so my day job and health. As an avid cyclist and someone who suffers from medically related things that demand routine and exercise, (I can tell you work out too), but that's also taken a backseat. I've recognized this obsession and it's negative aspects, before I watched your video and have already started to make changes: 1) My dedicated work from home for my day job office, that served double duty as my home gym had become overrun by speaker building stuff... Still is at this moment but is changing, BECAUSE... I decided to set up a dedicated RU-vid studio in the basement, which I can do speaker building and testing videos. BUT, once my wife saw the new space, she suggested a home theater which is something we've always wanted anyways. 2) So, in the name of putting an end to the OCD, and gaining back a routine in my life that emphasizes God, Family, Job, and Health, I think what I'm going to do is setup the studio in the basement for double duty, so my wife can enjoy the fruits of my speaker building hobby, and I can do more videos on home theater setup, which honestly get way more attention than stereo. 3) Then, with all the stereo speakers and RU-vid stuff, out of my office / gym, I can get back into a routine and focus more on personal and professional focus, health and growth, while keeping the hobby/business side of things compartmentalized and part of a scheduled routine instead of the 18+ hour per day mental obsession it's become. Thanks again for the video, very cool and you basically cemented my plan going forward. *The bit in your video about sneaking boxes in really hit home! I've got unopened boxes in my office from stuff I bought months ago lol. And, as a bit of a shameless plug, only because I mentioned what I'm doing in the comments, if you or any of your viewers who read this are interested in RestoMod Speakers, or DIY speakers, etc. Infotainment for audio nerds like me, I am pretty sure by clicking on my avatar you can see my channel or videos. Thanks again for your eye opening candor in this video.

this video strikes a chord with me being OCD about my home cinema I think about it 24/7 I often joke I should go and see a doctor to get patches to wean me off this drug but I agree with a lot of the replies above you started this video with the realisation of the problem but now use are using business as an excuse to justify continuing to take the drug that wont change how long you spend away from the family ot thinking about it at the zoo I would go as far as to say it will make things worse

OCD is an understatement. I'm just above the average joe tier in stereo audio, in addition I am cracked on headphones and home theater. Which is why I got into stereo. I have spend more money in the three years of the hobby, just hit the three year mark, than most people spend in their first decade. Fortunately my girlfriend is very supportive and also enjoys audio now too. My entire place is an audio graveyard, I have so much crap sitting just idle because all I wanted as a new audio enthusiast is to try new things and see what's out there. Purely experience. I believe there are two types of people, the one who seeks to upgrade and get better sound followed by those who love the hobby so much they wish to try different things and learn especially in the beginning phase. I watch a lot of reviewers and it's not really to buy products, but rather to see what's out there and learn. Including you Jay, and even though I cant afford the things you got it brings me great pleasure to watch and see the possibilities. I love it all from dirt cheap to ultra high end. I got audio in every room of my house, 2 HT set ups, 3 stereo set ups. I dont bring many friends over, but when people come they are like wow this is amazing. I want this too, and I tell them to stay far away from this hobby and they think I am nuts, and the reason behind it is cause I know how consuming and draining this hobby can be. I wouldn't want anyone else I know to get so deep into this without the means to support it and very highly likely can put someone into debt or the things you mentioned above. Fortunately I have not had the issues you are mentioning, but that maybe because that is how I am in general being fairly organized and I dont ponder. But like you said it's almost like you cant stop looking or watching or wondering. Even though I got the money I am currently going on 2 months, which is technically insane if you think about it, of not buying anything audio related in the past 3 years. Almost like a detox because before this I would buy crap 2-3 times a month. I really jumped on this and decided to put my foot down cause I actually have so much new crap in boxes that I haven't opened or used for months after purchasing it because there's literally no where to add any more audio to my home. My home for sometime almost resembled a small audio shop, until I had a sell off cause it was too much.

Jesus man, I don’t have any of these problems you mentioned. Maybe this OCD complex you mentioned is a mental disorder and to more than just the Audio equipment hobby and something they do in all things in their lives? Maybe they should look into DIY if they’re that tweaked out and then CHILL OUT ? ✌️

just buy B&O 90 system and stop (sorry bro, your findings are true and precious. the whole issue is deep, not only with audio aquipment. B&O and BOSE are a absolute point of ridicule in audio equpment field, I couldn't help myself from adding a joke)

my wife loves thy system... .this can be dangerous as well... as she does not stop me from purchasing LOL : )

Great topic

Well spoken!

ilikewell made wood speakers-like sonus faber/ Kef 201/2...otthers maybe...my criteria is: does this makemehappi?

Jay, I’ve watched your channel from the beginning. Your video’s very informative, however, comparing 500k systems month every month gets old. A format change is way overdue. May I suggest DIY projects to grow your viewer base. Much respect for all your hard work and dedication to this channel.

Good job! This is why I gave up on the hobby when the kids were growing up. Now I’m back into it, many hours on end. Not super expensive gear though.