The Corona Effect- Affected your audio journey?*

I realize this is a hardware section, but let's be real, most of us sound junkies hang out here alone and this crisis effects all of us. Am I the only one desperately trying to fill audio needs before it's impossible to get anything at all?

Seems everything is scarce right now and I'm fully aware that there are much more important things to worry about...but in tough times, we all lean on the things that we know. The things that bring us joy. For us, that is music in high fidelity.

I've spent money I shouldn't have spent to get replacement tubes, even though I had perfectly acceptable ones as backups, because the exchange process would take weeks due to COVID19, and the ones I had before made me forget everything else for a while.

How has this virus effected your audio journey?

Feel free to share any other ways this virus has effected you, music related or not.

 

It hasn't. I'm still spinning. Took delivery of new speaker cables and a CD today.

 

Well that's good. How are things in Brooklyn? I know your area is getting hit hard right now.

 

Thank you, moderators, for more accurately reflecting the nature of my thread I was a little worried about posting this, but felt like it was a topic that was being mostly ignored and might need to be vented about.

 

Well, it has challenged my outlook to get more things for my set up, as I've also been saving money for survival. I did get a new AC cord and tubes for my preamp before things got crazy.

 

For sure. I'm torn between "get the things you need to survive" and "get the things you need to keep yourself sane for months alone".

 

Sometimes a part of the "journey", is to focus less on what it is you still want, and take the available time to enjoy the benefits you have.

 

Agreed. I only made this thread for cathartic reasons. A place for us all to bitch a little.

 

I don't think that's a problem. I'm only pointing out, that you do have options if you haven't considered spending more time with your available music collection, beyond making lists of what you can't go right out and find at the moment.

Audiophiles sometimes spend more time of their aspirations, than their acquisitions.

 

Gloomy. Refrigerator trucks parked in the City for overflow of corpses. Otherwise, people are out and about in good weather, seemingly oblivious to the mortal danger they're in. Better talk about gear, seriously.

 

that is horrible. Stay safe man.

 

It very closely did. I don't know how I got so lucky. I ordered my new mcintosh gear feb 25th and by the time the virus news really hit the fan, I was so worried that maybe my gear wouldn't be able to leave the factories before they shut down. But I guess I was able to eke out a shipment. Then, when I got my gear all setup, I discovered my preamp had a defect, and was making a quite audible pitch whine. So I contacted my dealer with the honest expectation I'd have to live with it for months while we weathered out the virus storm. But I was SHOCKED when my dealer told me he got the replacement unit in, and it was actually a C53 like I had requested he get me instead!!!

I'm so lucky... they're coming Tuesday to drop it off (following social distancing techniques of course)

 

I was discussing the financial impact with a friend today, he's able to pay his bills for two or three months longer than I can and we were discussing how to raise money to get through this, I told him I might have to sell my stash of idler drive restoration projects, Thorens 124, couple of Garrard 401s, SME 3009s, another couple of years and I should have been in a position to start full restorations, now they might have to go just to pay the bills. Another friend of mine has ditched his plans to buy a new amp, he's been laid off and wants to keep his cash in case he needs it, I suspect neither of us are alone and people are putting off buying or thinking about selling, on a positive what I have works well and I'm getting plenty of listening hours in.

 

I was hoping to audition preamps on my New York and Arizona vacations. Ive got cash in an envelope for the first piece that impresses. Hope I’m not forced to open it for other needs.

 

I used to get 7-8 hours per day, 6 days a week, alone at home to listen to music. Now that my girlfriend is working from home, I get about 5 hours, once per week, to listen to music at home on my stereo (through my speakers.) Like many people, listening to music at home is a huge source of comfort and enjoyment during stressful times. It was a very difficult adjustment process at first, but I am slowly getting used to it. Taking more walks outside, thankfully the weather has been good, listening to a lot more music via my phone/headphones.

On the plus side, we both are healthy and we still have our jobs.

 

I started my upgrade project in February when life was normal. I wanted to do two dedicated electrical lines, outlets, new rack, new speaker stands, some accessories, CD player, etc etc. I put everything in motion, and then it happened. Once it hit Italy it was clear that in will impact travel industry (this is where I work), but I had no idea that the virus will be spread all over the world at the time.

40% of our employees were furloughed, plus some pay cuts, but based on the transaction numbers I see this is just the beginning. I don’t worry about equipment I paid for and haven’t received, even though stands I ordered from overseas. I worry about my parents, they are pushing 80, all talent we lost at work due to furlough and their families.

 

I'm giving up my music room to clear space to move my daughter and her boyfriend in so they can get out of a worse COVID-19 hotspot than the one I'm in here, and move instead to a place where they can truly social distance instead of being trapped in a densely populated city of millions. So it's put my "audio journey" on indefinite pause. Hopefully it'll be something I can resume someday if I and my loved ones make it to the other side. A friend's mom has already succumbed to COVID-19 complications and things are about to get a lot worse around here, and really everywhere across the country. Hard for me to concentrate on something like audio at the moment. Seems trivial.

 

Respect for stepping up. Thank you.

 

I feel like that's a good and relevant issue. Yes, it is affecting me. I'm wondering if $500 for a couple of speakers (rear) is really the best use of that money right now. So many "what ifs." Still listening to what I have with great interest and appreciation, though.

 

This seems trivial, but my routine every pay day is to knock a few things off my Discogs wantlist. I didn't do that today. In fact, we haven't been bringing anything into the house that isn't essential, mainly just food. My wife has been very proactive as she's just a bit of a hypochondriac/worry wart. She was on top of making sure we had sundries well before all this was plastered into our psyche. We don't HAVE to leave for a month if necessary. I am now spending more time listening to favorites. I also got word this morning that we are having a (hopefully) temporary 20% cut in our pay by moving to a 4 day work week. Our raises which were supposed to kick in next pay day have also been taken away for the year. My library is about 22K pieces and I'm a big proponent for streaming services, so I good for now. I keep getting tempted to nab something on Discogs or eBay, but I end up just window shopping. Had a few glasses of moscato, a piece of enhanced chocolate and filling my ears with this beautiful chillout classic in a darkened room. This is what I need in these crazy times.

Coldcut - Autumn Leaves (Irresistible Force Mix Trip 2/1993)

 

I’ll tell you how it’s affected me.

I was gonna get a pair of Proac DT8’s and a kick ass amp and rock.
And now I’m getting a REL sub with my active speakers. Sigh.

First world problems.

But I was waiting a couple years to get those Proac DT8s and a good amp.

 

A few changes to this 71-year-old's audio journey--

• A sub back from repair sits in our front hall, awaiting its move into the basement. That's not going to happen without a friend over to help. When will that be?
  
• It's a lot more difficult to concentrate and enjoy the music -- really enjoy it, not just as background.
• Our audio club has canceled its meetings, and I miss my audio buddies!

 

Two effects for me:
1) I had a pair of speakers up for sale, had the only prospective buyer lined up just as COVID-19 took hold where I live.
So buyer listening session had to be cancelled. Speakers are now boxed up in a spare room waiting for some normality to return.
2) Opportunity for digging in a couple of used record stores I frequent is also on hold. Ive found that I dig through my own collection a lot more these days to compensate. So have listened to more than a few LP that I not heard for a long time. So there is a positive from this too.

Bottom line though is that both "effects" are extremely insignificant sacrifices in the bigger picture of this ****storm.

 

I'm not necessarily in the market buying or selling gear, so no direct impact on me in that respect. I feel for people whose livelihoods are impacted by this and not just in respect to audio.
I was actually going to post a thread that was the opposite of this one: all the things you now have time to do and can keep you busy rather than constantly reading the news and getting cabin fever. I still buy used records and decontaminate the packages outdoors. (Virtually all of the records I buy come from other places in the States or elsewhere in the world, so going to a brick and mortar shop isn't my usual thing anyway, apart from record shows).

I'm finding ways of keeping myself occupied and enjoying even simple tasks around the house.

 

My industry is shut down and I don’t expect to go back to work until July provided things play out as predicted in some quarters. The legislation passed Friday giving the bonus unemployment insurance on top of what I normally collect is essential, it will still be very hard to get through the next three months fiscally, there are five of us here at home.

I’ve halted all purchases of music, I have more than enough to listen too and lol forward to playing music I’ve not heard for a long time. I have no gear needs, just waiting on a tech to solve an issue with my Fisher 800-C. The repairs were done and paid for just as the virus situation was blowing up. When I got it home I discovered an issue with the balance not working properly, so back it went. On Monday I’m receiving a newly manufactured replica dustcover for my 1981 Kenwood KD770D turntable ordered before the crisis, it’s the last outstanding issue in my system other than the Fisher.

The plus is I can play music all day long as I please, no complaints there. And we’re all having a good time together as a family, everyone is keeping an upbeat attitude and being very considerate. The weather is good so family walks are happening, and the dog is getting walked more often too. Just hoping we all stay healthy and get through to the other side, that’s most important. My 80 year old mother is in New York, but her neighborhood is not densely populated. Still given her age it’s a big worry, though she’s very healthy.