Impulsive buys ?

Come on own up don't be shy

How many members on here are prone to making the odd impulsive / rash purchase. :spank:

You know you should audition at home, in your own system, but you see something you just got to have.

My name is Ken and I am an occasional impulsive buyer

I did such a thing this week, I am old enough to remember the first time Audio Research hit the UK big time. Went to the old Harrogate show, listened to ARC, ever since I have wanted - (nay lusted over) and SP 10 Pre Amp. I saw one on Monday on a dealers website. Before I new what had happened it was mine.

By the time I trade in my ARC LS2 line stage and sell my separate Phono Amp, I will either break even or make a small profit.

Any other impulsive buys?

Ken

 

i've impulse bought both of my dacs based on a cursory listen to their bigger brother in an unfamiliar system at a show. still the decade was less of a leap in the dark as it's very similar to the dax-2.
cheers


julian.

 

The only one I'll admit to is an Audio Alchemy DAC-in-a-Box which had garnered very positive reviews. It didn't cost much so I took a chance and bought one via mail order. To be honest, I never could detect any improvement in sound quality using said DAC, and it's currently gathering dust in a cupboard somewhere.

<Sudden inspiration>

Anyone want to buy a DAC-in-a-Box? This tiny unit will transform the sound of any CDP!

 

Theta DAC.

Read so many fantastic reviews - saw one on ebay bought it for £399. Destroyed by a £100 NOS Dac, A Denon DVD player, a Linn Mimik, a car radio, a cheap dvd player from Asda.

I will learn from my mistakes. I promise.

 

I bought my Bel Canto 200.2 without hearing it, although knowing I could sell it on for more if I didn't like it helped, as did the amount of pm'ing certain member that preceded it.

Currently lusting over 47 labs stuff with the Essence speakers, although this would mean a serious about turn in system topology ;-)

 

I do it all the time, it's the only sensible approach to building a hifi system.

It's not so bad, it means you can get rid of your rack and construct an altar instead:



-- Ian

 

I bought the Derek Shek NOS~DAC on impulse but I dont regret it so far

 

nice set up Ian, what speakers do you have?

Gotta love 47 labs

 

thats not your system now is it Ian?

Looks almost completely unfamiliar!


Based on nothing more than reccomendation of people I trust I bought

my altec speakers
my meridian 500 transport
an ortofohn kontrapunkt cart
consonance basie pre

You've got to buy it to try it sometimes.

 

I am just going to buy a Bel canto Evo4 and a dax decade without any serious auditioning. It could be an expensive mistake.

 

i did an impulse buy, with a wedding ring.............................................

 

bought my new Plinius pre/powers on a sort of impulse buy- i knew they'd sound good as my old one (£550 in classifieds folks) sounds fantastic.

but they sound stonking

 

I have not been in a position to impulse for quite some time seeing as I'm disabled and unable to work to afford such luxury, but casting my mind back several years I remember seeing a pair of JBL L150's for sale in the LOOT and they were only in Borehamwood which is about 30 miles from me.

When I got there the guy had owned them from new and was running some old Quad gear through them. Once the grills were removed I saw that the speaker surrounds which were made of foam had almost completely deteriorated (which was quite common).

I explained to the seller the cost of getting the drivers refurbished properly through JBL and offered him a real low-ball price. He said I was the second person to tell him that so he accepted my offer.

I ran them straight over to Harman Audio and they checked them over and said they were in superb shape apart from the foam surrounds, the service manager even went as far as saying they were one of the best pairs he had ever seen second-hand.

I was informed that all the parts would have to come from the USA but it would only be a couple of weeks wait for those to arrive and about a week to repair them. To cut a very long story short, I got them repaired at trade because Harman UK and USA made such a mess-up of the order and delayed it by several months that my repair bill was not even a third of the proper cost.

So fortunately that impulsive buy turned out great for me. They were great speakers and when I relocated to the USA in January 1999 I then advertised them out there on Audiogon and got a bidding war on my hands. Buyers could not get hold of them quick enough, especially as I had all the original manuals, test sheets plus the new test sheets for the new genuine JBL drivers.

My next impulsive buy was the Von Schweikert VR4.5 Silver Anniversaries, awsome speakers but regretably had to be sold shortly after my accident

O well, it's only material things, I would sacrifice everything materially to have my health back again.

 

Beyerdymanic DTX900 costing £65.

My Marantz CD6000 OSE LE CD Player, just went past Superfi I saw they had one in the sale for £150, I remember being a 16 year old kid and drooling over this lovely beast so when I realised I could actually own one I snapped it up instantly.

Its been a lovely machine as well, build like a tank and sounds brilliant. Well worth the £330 RRP never mind the £150 I paid for it. They go for about £120-£150 in ebay now, so I have lost nothing on it.

 

Mmm - too many to mention! last 2 - 1. Tube Technology mains lead (gold plated pins on the mains plug, how could I resist...), as I have a valve amp I thought I'll have this - currently unsure as to what the difference is between my Kimber cord and the TT, there is something but I'll be damned if I can put my finger on it. So - mistake! 2. Home grown Audio braided silver speaker cable to replace 8TC, no audition, sent from the USA, customs charges to pay... could be a big mistake..... no, can't recommend it highly enough - nice open sound / big breathy bass and treble to die for. Phew!

Neil

 

Oh - most of the system has been more or less an impulse buy. The only things I auditioned at home were the amplifiers - took them home to see how they went with the system and never took them back. So, the list of impulse:
* LP12 - hadn't heard one before. Looked to be in great condition and a genuine seller on ebay and managed to get it at the right price. Result.
* Trichord Dino - hadn't heard it before. Read some reviews and ordered it. There wasn't a real good range of stuff to audition at the time is my excuse.
* Planet CDP - My old NAD cdp died, I panicked and went to a hifi shop the next day. A couple of quick dems later I was the proud owner of the Rega.
* Tuner - poped into Crack Converters and found a nice little Pioneer waiting for me to light its dial. Couldn't say no for $29.
* Squeezebox - seemed like a good idea at the time. Tom and Julian's reports on their SBs convinced me to give it a crack. It was a really good idea!
* Sheck NOS DAC - too many good reports on here to ignore at the price. Stuck it between the SB and pre and now the old Planet is gathering dust.
* Speakers - had been looking around and done some dealer dems. Tracked down the Heresies at a dealer, did the dem and thought bugger it, why not? Walked out the door with them. I did this despite my stated determination to do home dems of the ones I liked to ensure they would work for me.

Sometimes life's just too short to piss about with HiFi decision making.

Stuart.

 

cant say anything was ever demoed - forgive me but i have sinned!!

pioneer PDS 904CDP - heard it once at one of those places that had everything up on display and switched between components, thanks to an add by a certain Mr Richer offering it for 250 notes against retail of 550 i managed to get a hapless dealer to part with one on a price match....

amp - audiolab 8000a - a friend bought it new, against good reviews, to replace the amp in his old PANASONIC stacking system, hated it, sold it to me for £250, did not even get to listen to it in his system...

original speakers - Tannoy 633 floorstanders - £100 against retail of about £330 - seen in the window of a CATALOGUE CLEARANCE shop.........

current speakers - Quad 12l's - mooching around ebay looking at prices of 11ls, ended up in an auction for the 12's, brand new, boxed from Lintone, £440 incl post......SWMBO thought tthey were much better to look at than the Tannoys, then i went and bought the Attacamas!

NOS DAC - too much of a good vibe around here not too try it

currently itching to pursue a Unico or Primare amp, not heard either but seem to be universally well reviewed, unfortunately SWMBO and house renovation project are stopping me scratching the itch........

 

most of my purchases were less impulse, more slow simmering things. however, i have to admit that i hadn't demoed the speakers or the amps, only the cd player before buying. i thoroughly researched all first though and asked the designer of my power amp for his advice on suitability of the rest of the kit. luckily for me it was great.

oh, and of course i had the fully wm demo before i bought all my omiga stuff.

 

Both of my last two record decks (Michell Focus One and then a Spacedeck), were pretty much impulse purchases - although I did find a bit about them before buying so was reasonably well informed- and both were good buys with no regrets.

A second Focus One (thought it'd be good for Auntie's system) was an impulse purchase and a big mistake - basically it was shagged.

My old Dansette was an impulse purchase - glad I've got it, but I know I paid far too much for it (it was effectively NOS so a bit too tempting)- the first and last time I got carried away in a last minute ebay bidding war. Still a valuable lesson learned.

A pair of Tannoy DC200s (v cheap, so nothing lost nothing gained) - not bad soundwise, but would scare your children looks wise.

Actually that's about it - most everything else I either had a listen to first or did a fair bit of research before committing or was cheap enough that it made no odds.

On the other hand I have made some informed (by listening) purchasing decisions that I've later regretted - such as buying a new Rotel RCD991 CDP five years ago for its then retail of just short of £900 when I think I'd have been better off spending the money on a good 2nd hand CDP and used the rest of the money on a better turntable and/or speakers.

 

Hi ListeningEar

You are absolute right, there is nothing more important than your own health. Although I don't know you, I hope you will get your health back soon.

Regards
Hon