When I still lived with my parents, and didn't pay rent, a large portion of my income went toward entertainment related electronics. Specifically home theater components.
I also worked for a while at a high end audio/video shop that sold and provided custom installation services for obscenely expensive gear. At the time, I was quite passionate about it, and read a lot of the industry news and and publications which elevated the experience of listening to music to an almost mystic and quasi-religious status.
Years have past, I've sold a lot of the high end gear I owned (used to have a full blow surround system with preamp and power amplifier separates), and gotten married and I'm now starting a family. I still very much enjoy music, and watching movies but at the moment I'm fairly satisfied with the "Home-Theater-In-A-Box" (HTIAB) which I currently own for sound and video reproduction.
I recently started shopping for a new Flat Panel TV considering the government mandated change to HD for all broadcast TV. As part of my exercise of researching TV's and making a purchasing decision, I recently subscribed to Home Theater Magazine one of the industry publications I had previously studied carefully.
Where I used to completely agree with their assertions, and at times even look down my nose at the authors as "posers", I now find myself offended by the haughty and elitist attitude which permeates the articles I read. I feel as though, rather than being my peers and people that "get me" I'm reading material from authors who would label me a heretic for putting "real life" ahead of the pursuit of excruciatingly expensive electronic equipment for the sole purpose of reproducing sound waves.
Now, don't get me wrong, if I could afford it, I'd still probably be "one of them" and own the most esoteric and temperamental gear in pursuit of the perfect movie or music experience. But as it is, I can't. I can afford my "high end" HTIAB and for the most part I'm happy with it. I also don't need to worry about the neighbors banging on the door because I'm playing it too loud. I don't need to worry that my rooms acoustics aren't doing my $10,000 a pair main monitors justice. I don't need to worry that my baby son will put peanut butter in the tray of my fancy new BluRay and HD-DVD player, destroying a $2500 investment.
Perhaps I've lost perspective on the passion and experience I so eagerly pursued in the past. But then, have I really lost that much?
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