Wrong decision

[drummerman]

This is not about somebody in particular but lets assume you made what perhaps seems like a bad decision. You just bought that highly recommended piece of kit at a bargain price. Perhaps you did'nt listen to it first, perhaps you did. So, its in your rack, looks great but does'nt sound so good compared to what you had before. You think it will 'run in' and get better. Perhaps it does a little but after a while you still can/t fall in love and not for a lack of trying. What do you do?

Do you give it more time to get to know it? Start upgrading around it or revert back to the old system which you lovingly created over time and loved like a well worn pair of trainers? Do you think an upgrade has to make your existing system sound better or is it indeed worth taking a step back for a longer term plan?

 

[the record spot]

I take it this is a scenario which has gone beyond the point in time when a dealer would let you exchange for something else? If so, I'd take a step back and see what it was that was causing the issue with the original system, why the replacement didn't meet the expectation and how best to get round that.

I had kind of this situation when I demo'd a Rega Mira some years back - luckily I had it on home loan from the excellent Loud and Clear in Edinburgh at the time - but it made virtually no improvement over my then amp (Arcan Alpha 5) being of a similar sonic type and not what I'd expected at all. At £500 at the time, it was an investment I am glad I didn't pursue.

I ended up buying a P3 to improve my source and a month later upgraded the amp from the Arcam to the current Marantz amp I have. The amp was the big step up in terms of sound - it presented a clearer picture, but still had good detail with a firm grip on what was happening. Biggest bonus apart from the sound was buying the Marantz in a sale for £330, so a real "icing on the cake" moment!

 

[drummerman]

I'll start this off. A long time ago I bougth an audiolab 8000S. It had great reviews and I did listen to it. Had great bass but once I had it in my rig I just could not like it. Do you know what I mean, everytime I tried listening to music I was listening to it. But it had great reviews so it must be good. I tried everything in the couple of month I had it and stretched my dealers patience to capacity in the process. Speakers, cables, players ... you name it I tried it. Did'nt work. In the end I gave it back and relied on my dealers goodwill. I re-instated my old stuff and enjoyed my music again. The system changed later of course, more successfully. I'd never say I wont make mistakes again but now an upgrade has to sound good/make an improvement immediately. If I'm not happy straight away, I wont buy.

 

[jimdonnelly]

IMO, if there is any doubt in the mind about the kit then this feeling will gradually get worse. Even if after running in it sounds better, the feeling of disappointment will never be forgotten. Thus there will always be doubt. Better to revert to the system you loved as we can all get a little carried away with upgrading. While I agree that there is nothing wrong with trying to achieve better, we need to be able accept that we were wrong (maybe that's the real issue). After convincing my wife that we need a new bit of kit I could hardly say that I made a mistake and it sounds bad.

Upgrading around the offending item is a dangerous and potentially expensive route to choose (albeit there would be a lot of fun to have).

Most importantly all these thoughts will take away from the musical enjoyment due to the constant analysis of the electronics.

 

[Anonymous]

Upgrading is always 'steps' towards an end. I think that you need to have an idea in your head of where you are trying to get to. Perhaps for example, you want to improve a hifi or AV system. The final goal is probably to change everything, starting one item at a time.

The full potential of any one item may not be truly utilised until other items are also changed.

One thing is for sure, there is a limit to how much improvement can be achieved by hoping things will improve with time!!

This is where the importance of using a good dealer comes into play. They should allow a home trial or even exchange if not satisfied.

A bargain is only a bargain if it is well spent.

If the new product does not satisfy then certainly revert back to the old product if you enjoy the pictures/sound better. Don't put up with something new for the sake of it. Cut your losses, get rid of the bad purchase and move on more carefully!!

 

[Tear Drop]

[quote user="drummerman"]If I'm not happy straight away, I wont buy[/quote]

Best bit of advice I've read in a long time. If you can't hear that some piece of kit is fundamentally right or satisfying in the first place, no amount of 'running in', tweaking, rave reviews or false hope is gonna change it. I suppose the main point in this thread is that you MUST learn to trust yourself and not hifi mags or price tags.

 

[JoelSim]

[quote user="Tear Drop"][quote user="drummerman"]If I'm not happy straight away, I wont buy[/quote]

Best bit of advice I've read in a long time. If you can't hear that some piece of kit is fundamentally right or satisfying in the first place, no amount of 'running in', tweaking, rave reviews or false hope is gonna change it. I suppose the main point in this thread is that you MUST learn to trust yourself and not hifi mags or price tags.[/quote]

Agreed, there's no substitute for your own ears and everyone has different tastes. Otherwise we'd all end up with the same equipment.