Most ‘ground breaking’ item you have purchased …

[Deleted member 108165]

…I’ve said that so many times…😁 then ‘upgraditis nervosa’ kicks in!

I have said it far too many times as well , but this time I honestly believe I have found my end-game system... It would need to be something incredibly special for me to ditch what I currently have. Without a settled mind it is a good idea to stay off hi-fi forums as there are far too many "I wonder" moments

 

[Deleted member 160668]

Just out of curiosity…
What would you consider the most ‘ground breaking‘ HiFi product you have bought. Either in terms of technical development or indeed the way we enjoy music at home.
For me I would say it was the original Slim Devices Squeezebox which I had to order direct from Slim Devices in the US. No UK availability at that time.
Sitting there watching that scrolling screen display with a remote control (!) and connecting to music on my server or internet radio was really a revelation. Sound quality was excellent for those days….
I truly think that one device changed the face of HiFi as we know it. 😁
Any thoughts?

Highlighting the way we enjoy music at home part...

Two comments here. "Groundbreaking", probably not, but for me.... sticking my Suggie in my front room for the first time was an absolute revelation for me.... Holy sh*t, why had I fannied around with God knows how many amps spinning them constantly... this is what it should sound like.... in the rig... Oh hold on, many many hours later.... still grinning my balls off, this is music (not even music, this is someone sat in my front room singing to me -a concert for one), like nothing else...
this amp is the end of my search for me.

The other revelation is headphones. Not sexy on a hifi forum. I have some Sennheiser IE800S which in combo with my Oppo amp/DAC are just absolutely ridiculous. Makes me wonder why I spent so much on hifi and such... Sounds ludicrously good... A fraction of total cost of my cost of kit, but sounds amazing. When the Mrs and kids in bed, this combo is quality to the max.

 

[Tinman1952]

Highlighting the way we enjoy music at home part...

Two comments here. "Groundbreaking", probably not, but for me.... sticking my Suggie in my front room for the first time was an absolute revelation for me.... Holy sh*t, why had I fannied around with God knows how many amps spinning them constantly... this is what it should sound like.... in the rig... Oh hold on, many many hours later.... still grinning my balls off, this is music (not even music, this is someone sat in my front room singing to me -a concert for one), like nothing else...
this amp is the end of my search for me.

The other revelation is headphones. Not sexy on a hifi forum. I have some Sennheiser IE800S which in combo with my Oppo amp/DAC are just absolutely ridiculous. Makes me wonder why I spent so much on hifi and such... Sounds ludicrously good... A fraction of total cost of my cost of kit, but sounds amazing. When the Mrs and kids in bed, this combo is quality to the max.

Yes you can’t beat class A….👍
I don’t listen to my headphones a great deal but the beauty of them is they ‘take away the room response’! I remember reading an article many years ago which said you would have to spend ten times the amount on speakers to get the same quality as decent headphones……

 

[Tinman1952]

You’ll have to explain that one, it’s missed me by a country mile

Don’t worry…he probably thinks it’s ‘just a cable’ 🙄
ignoring the sophisticated circuitry and the chip inside ……

 

[AJM1981]

My Yamaha Wxa50 compact amp. But one can probably insert any similar compact and modern gear with good reviews here.

It replaced my Harman Kardon amp from the early 2000s. Soundwise it is like a 1:1 change.

The HK is a great amp with all positive reviews but it was from times at which stacks of black HIFI gear were a common thing.

There is a reason why compact stuff like the Yamaha amp wasn't working as well decades ago and does now does due to improvement in technology and services

I consider it really handy to be able to switch on the amp by using an app and control the sources and content from there.Furthermore, the big footprint of the HK kind of dictated which piece of TV / Audio furniture it needed. The new amp made it possible to save space and get a more useful piece of furniture without making any offers sound wise.

 

[Tinman1952]

My Yamaha Wxa50 compact amp. But one can probably insert any similar compact and modern gear with good reviews here.

It replaced my Harman Kardon amp from the early 2000s. Soundwise it is like a 1:1 change.

The HK is a great amp with all positive reviews but it was from times at which stacks of black HIFI gear were a common thing.

There is a reason why compact stuff like the Yamaha amp wasn't working as well decades ago and does now does due to improvement in technology and services

I consider it really handy to be able to switch on the amp by using an app and control the sources and content from there.Furthermore, the big footprint of the HK kind of dictated which piece of TV / Audio furniture it needed. The new amp made it possible to save space and get a more useful piece of furniture without making any offers sound wise.

The little Yamaha is a much under appreciated little streamer/DAC/amp. 🙂

 

[jjbomber]

A Jack-hammer.


''Ground breaking.''

 

[Al ears]

A Jack-hammer.


''Ground breaking.''

Can I borrow it?

 

[insider9]

A Jack-hammer.


''Ground breaking.''

Was only a matter of time before someone pointed out the obvious 😃

 

[Friesiansam]

A Jack-hammer.


''Ground breaking.''

I have a mattock, that works well too.

 

[idc]

It was not a purchase, it was an invitation. I managed to get a very early invite onto Spotify and that totally changed my music experience.

 

[aversaurus]

There's a few things
1 .first cd player wow what a difference
2.my sansui 717 a classic
3.the first dacmagic I purchased made a huge difference at the time .
4 my arcadis dm1 speakers amazing little things

 

[Deleted member 160668]

Sticking with the way you listen to music...

One of the very best things I ever bought cost about £2 on eBay...

A laser pen, for directionally sighting tweeter alignment and properly spending time and effort getting my speakers optimally positioned in my room. This took quite a while and playing but was probably the best effort/time spent.

The Lazer pen just makes sure it is all absolutely perfect and I check alignment every couple months (yes I am that sad! 😂).

£2 peeps - if you don't own one, buy one.

 

[insider9]

Sticking with the way you listen to music...

One of the very best things I ever bought cost about £2 on eBay...

A laser pen, for directionally sighting tweeter alignment and properly spending time and effort getting my speakers optimally positioned in my room. This took quite a while and playing but was probably the best effort/time spent.

The Lazer pen just makes sure it is all absolutely perfect and I check alignment every couple months (yes I am that sad! 😂).

£2 peeps - if you don't own one, buy one.

Can you post a link please?

 

[Friesiansam]

Sticking with the way you listen to music...

One of the very best things I ever bought cost about £2 on eBay...

A laser pen, for directionally sighting tweeter alignment and properly spending time and effort getting my speakers optimally positioned in my room. This took quite a while and playing but was probably the best effort/time spent.

The Lazer pen just makes sure it is all absolutely perfect and I check alignment every couple months (yes I am that sad! 😂).

£2 peeps - if you don't own one, buy one.

Not going to be easy to do with headphones…

 

[Deleted member 108165]

Can you post a link please?

Ebay here, Insider:
laser pens
Also available on Amazon.
I think they're illegal in the UK but you can still get them.
I've got two, they don't work with rechargeable batteries - not enough juice.

 

[Deleted member 160668]

Ebay here, Insider:
laser pens
Also available on Amazon.
I've got two, they don't work with rechargeable batteries - not enough juice.

Thanks Doug.
I was just replying to say I bought mine about 18mths ago so don't still have seller details on app. But a quick search pulls up similar looking items...

New 2 in 1 Red Laser Lazer Pointer Pen LED Light Torch Cat Laser Teaser Dog Toy

 

[Deleted member 108165]

Thanks Doug.
I was just replying to say I bought mine about 18mths ago so don't still have seller details on app. But a quick search pulls up similar looking items...

New 2 in 1 Red Laser Lazer Pointer Pen LED Light Torch Cat Laser Teaser Dog Toy

Personally, I bought this one:
green laser pen
Very powerful. Runs on 2xAAA batteries, I don't leave them in as one almost got destroyed when the Duracell's started to leak, plus the batteries don't last very long.

 

[insider9]

Ebay here, Insider:
laser pens
Also available on Amazon.
I think they're illegal in the UK but you can still get them.
I've got two, they don't work with rechargeable batteries - not enough juice.

Excellent, thank you Doug!

 

[Gray]

Thanks Doug.
I was just replying to say I bought mine about 18mths ago so don't still have seller details on app. But a quick search pulls up similar looking items...

New 2 in 1 Red Laser Lazer Pointer Pen LED Light Torch Cat Laser Teaser Dog Toy

Cat and dog teaser....teases them by burning out their retinas.
Certainly great toys. I borrowed one and had a (careful) play. Was amazed when I first hit a reflective road sign at the top of my road (there seems no limit to their range).
Watch out for mirrors

 

[RayP]

In terms of sound improvement balanced against cost it has to be a pair of spiked speaker stands purchased back in the late 70s / early 80s. For around £30 they transformed the imaging of the speakers and tightened up the whole sound.

 

[Gray]

Ebay here, Insider:
laser pens
Also available on Amazon.
I think they're illegal in the UK but you can still get them.
I've got two, they don't work with rechargeable batteries - not enough juice.

See that first one in your link Doug?
Described as a 10 mile cat pointer toy . Brilliant (literally).

 

[plastic penguin]

Just out of curiosity…
What would you consider the most ‘ground breaking‘ HiFi product you have bought. Either in terms of technical development or indeed the way we enjoy music at home.
For me I would say it was the original Slim Devices Squeezebox which I had to order direct from Slim Devices in the US. No UK availability at that time.
Sitting there watching that scrolling screen display with a remote control (!) and connecting to music on my server or internet radio was really a revelation. Sound quality was excellent for those days….
I truly think that one device changed the face of HiFi as we know it. 😁
Any thoughts?

That's so difficult to answer. Not sure if any of my gear would be classed as 'groundbreaking' now.

I suppose the closets is the Leema amp. Back in 2008 very few other brands offered a switchable built-in phono stage at the £1200 price bracket.

The sound quality, again, for its price point was fairly unusual: Immensely holographic imaging yet not overbearing -- very easy listen. From amps I've heard you would need to spend well over 2k to achieve a similar presentation. Throw in 5 inputs, plus outputs for either a power amp or a sub, and it's a fairly loaded integrated.

 

[RoA]

Chromecast Audio in conjunction with Streaming Service/s

Completely changed my listening habits.

 

[Gray]

The Raspberry Pi has changed the way I listen (if not what I listen to).
Undoubtedly a ground- breaker for many.