How can you justify spending so much cash??

[Knucklehead90]

I finance my wants with a little thing called 'Bank on Yourself'. The concept is simple for purchases - if I have the money in the savings account designated 'Bank' I can buy whatever I'm wanting at the time. Until I build up the reserve in 'Bank' I'm stuck - I can't buy.

And while there is any balance on a credit card - no using 'Bank' funds to buy something - 'Bank' is used to pay off the credit card - which is zero at this time - and 'Bank' is being built up for the purchase of a new prepro.

While it doesn't sound like it would save you money it in fact saves quite a bit. Look on your CC statement and see what they are charging you for borrowing. Not having to pay them 10% or more on outstanding balance plus the (yes - meager) interest you get for maintaining a balance means a steady 10% or more money for spending on what you want - not making some fat bank fatter. I'm a credit union member too. Much better to deal with than any bank.

Just my ohtwocents worth.

 

[Patrukas777]

My HT continues to bring my friends and family together on a regular basis...I have yet to find anything else in my life that does just that. My friends/family and I hardly ever go to the movies...why should I go to the movies and hear a bunch of obnoxious people disrupting something I enjoy. I don't think any of us go out and buy the most expensive thing we see...We research the hell out of these products, discuss them, compare them, and then try to find the best deal on them we can.

Your question is hard to answer. If you break it down...How can we justify anything that we do if it isn't a necessity??? I think your asking the wrong question my friend because the only thing that one can justify is keeping a roof over their head, clothes over their back, and food in their bellies (and in their familiy members too)....

Now back to the hookers and blow... If you bring good blow, the hookers are free! We all know that hookers love blow haha .You don't need to divide your money, just buy the blow

 

[Davemcc]

My kids are grown up and moved out. It's my turn to have nice things.

 

[mperfct]

I honestly can't in some instances, especially when so many people are having hard times right now. My wife and I plan on substantially increasing our giving this year to help out those without jobs and similar circumstances. We do just fine, and I think it's selfish to keep loading up on "stuff" while 5 year-old kids are on the street looking for food.

 

[Adam]

I spend so much time enjoying my system, that it's worth it to me. I'm fortunate enough at this point in my life that I don't need to decide between buying a receiver or buying food, so there isn't much justification going on in my head.

If you have a good hooker, you can get away with cheap blow.

Only Greg could get a cheap blow from a good hooker.

The man is a master. I kneel before him. Oh, wait...

 

[Jacksmyname]

I've been a movie fan since I was about 5 or 6 years old (I'm now 60).
I still think that the VCR was invented just for me so I could record all the movies I love.
I've been "foolin' around" with audio-video since high school.
The first audio/video enhancement I had, about 30 years ago, was a TV audio only tuner that could be connected to an integrated amp or receiver. It was connected to the TV antenna to receive the TV station audio. There were buttons for the channels: 2,3,4, etc. up to 13 (no cable in my town yet). Connected to my amp, it gave me "high fidelity" sound!
As "home theater" started to take hold with the advent of the VCR and rental stores, I added a Yamaha DSP unit which had Dolby Surround, and then the Yamaha Dolby Pro Logic decoder to go with it. Extra amps for front and rear surround/presence channels, two stacks of equipment (and the rat's nest), well, you get the idea.
Now I have what I consider a pretty nice 7.1 system, with Blu Ray, HD-DVD, SACD, Yamaha receiver, Emo amp, Energy RC speakers, two subs, 46" LCD, etc. etc.
A fair amount of money? Yes.
Worth it? Absolutely.
My wife also likes movies, and I'm also one who likes the fact that we can share this hobby (although my wife just appreciates watching the movie, and doesn't "need" the super nice picture and sound).

 

[Tungsten06GT]

Wow, reading through all these posts has definitely gotten me excited... I'm still waiting on my back-ordered Impression red burl towers, but I can still comment on what justifies spending the money.

For me, it all started with car audio and the first time a friend of mine took me for a ride in his car with a powerful sub in the trunk. I was in high school at the time, so my virgin ears had never heard such noise before haha. There was just something about that power, that sound, the vibrations, I couldn't get enough!

So naturally, now that I have a house of my own, my car audio hobby has transitioned into home theater. And the day I realized I needed to get a nice system was the day I realized the speakers in my LCD was wrecking movies for me. I just can't get into them anymore.

Well, going to Best Buy and having them give me the whole dog and pony show made me realize what I needed was great sound. Granted, I understand their audio room is probably set up for ideal "marketing" conditions, but it has then become my goal to give myself and my gf that same experience everytime we watch movies. So yeah, I work hard for the money, I'm going to buy what I want as long as I can still afford the mortgage payments haha.

 

[mibson]

Popcorn, pop, crappy seats

At the theater, the prices are too high...

The seats are uncomfortable, with some fat *** trailer park trash's Ecoli on them,

At home a beer is cheeper than a pop at the theater...

You get thrown out of a theater if you have sex while watching a movie...

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I can justify it because I can work it into my tax returns and the wife had no idea how much money I spent.

 

[Alex2507]

At the theater ... You get thrown out of a theater if you have sex while watching a movie...

But at least you're not alone.

 

[jinjuku]

I don't justify it. If I have to justify it, that means I shouldn't be getting it. I PLAN all of my large expenditures, I save for it, and utilize patience until I get what I want at the price I want it.

Once I get it, I plan no more big purchases until I have put the money just spent back into the bank.

I waited over a year to get my Sunfire TGP III on Audiogon. That patience paid off big time. I was willing to spend 1500.00 for one. I got mine for 1100.00!

The other reason why I can spend what I do, is because instead of buying a cheap POS, I buy something that is made to last for years & will keep it for years.

My main speakers are going to be 20 years old in Feb. I am only just now possibly considering upgrading them simply due to age. I will keep my Sunfires until they die, the same with all of the rest of the gear in my signature.

I don't need the latest & greatest thing that comes out, nor do I want it. That to me would be a waste of money.

Agreed. I don't justify spending money that I went out and earned. My Last set of speakers were some PSB's purchased in 95-96. I still have them and they still sound great.

I believe in bang for the buck mostly.

I don't get wrapped up in super expensive interconnects. Get a decent brand like Signal or Blue Jeans Cable.

I don't get wrapped up in esoteric amps. I prefer to get something that is solid, linear, and clean. Even most 'audiophiles' when pressed with a blindfold over their eyes can't follow the bouncing ball so to speak.

Basically if you need to justify you can do it with the thought of buying quality components that will stand the test of time.

My wife still doesn't understand why I went and purchased a used Kirby Generation 4 vacuum. That is $250 spent for most likely the next 20 years.

 

[Zaluss]

I've spent less than $1000 on my 2ch setup. Infact...

$400 for the Onix SP3
$39 for the Yamaha SACD player.
$149 for the X-Omni's (Originally priced at $549)
$225 for the Maverick D1 DAC.
$30 for 10'x2 DIY BJC Quad Canare speaker cables.
$10 for some premium monoprice interconnects.

$850-900ish.

Not bad.

 

[TLS Guy]

I honestly can't in some instances, especially when so many people are having hard times right now. My wife and I plan on substantially increasing our giving this year to help out those without jobs and similar circumstances. We do just fine, and I think it's selfish to keep loading up on "stuff" while 5 year-old kids are on the street looking for food.

That's what makes this such a great country!

 

[lsiberian]

I agree totally with this post. Especially avoiding POS! We unfortunately have endless discussions on these forums about which POS is better than that POS. That is one aspect that makes them tiresome.

Unless you are super wealthy, the best way to go about things is to build a good system over time and gradually improve it.

I leaned early that a good audio system brings immense pleasure, and keeps you connected to the musical arts world. Not only that, a good system is like a magic carpet, and really can put you in another space a continent apart.

My systems have been in continuous evolution for over half a century. By making good choices, I have some items that have been in continuous use for close to half a century. Now that's value. On a yearly basis I have spent relatively little on the hobby. If I had to do it all at once the result would be penury!

So I would recommend starting with two good speakers, rather than five or seven and a sub and adding as funds permit. Two good speakers will beat out seven mediocre or bad ones any day. Also if you choose wisely you can enjoy those speakers over many years, without costly upgrades.

If funds are tight good older gear can be a superb investment. Actually good older items such as preamps, amps and turntables, are an excellent investment. If you do your homework, you can run down units that have known superior performance and known for very low failure rates over time. So you can actually buy older units with a much lower statistical chance of failure than a new unit.

It seems on eBay there are a lot of savvy buyers, as I have noted that units in the category I have described fetch the best prices, and likely always will.

You probably will have to sacrifice a remote, but that may well prevent you dying of pulmonary embolism.

I'm not one for movies much. Some I really enjoy, an awful lot put me to sleep. However other family members and friends really do enjoy it, which is a big added bonus.

So there are lots of reasons for spending funds, thought and effort on AV systems. It should never put you or your family in penury.

I totally agree Mark. I wish I had done this from the beginning. I'm certainly doing it now.

 

[eljr]

Just interested in hearing some peoples' input here...

I know everyone's got different tastes and different products. Some people think they have a great setup for under $1000 while others have spent ten times that amount!

But basically, how can you justify spending (what you personally perceive to be) so much $$$ on a home theater? What are some of YOUR reasons?

I guess you would freak out if someone spent $25,000 on a CD player two power amps and two speakers.

 

[mtrycrafts]

... I used to pick very cheap hobbies (probably for good reason) like chess, reading, ..., underwater basket-weaving . . .

The first two expands your mind, a one or two person max participation.
The latter is not cheap, so that gets deleted.
Movies can be a group event.

 

[mtrycrafts]

The justification is easy, getting the $$$$ together is not

 

[Polygon]

What should I spend it on?

Should I pay $500 for the blue-tooth option on my car?
Is that Prius worth $10,000 more than than Yaris?
I spent *what* on a pool?

I justify it as "this is what I want more than the other things I could spend this on". How about you?

This is exactly it.

This is a hobby and you don't need to justify it. It's want and in the end all hobbies are really a waste of money when you look at it. In the end you don't need it, but who cares? It's your money and as long as you're not spending money you don't have then justification should never come into it.

 

[Surroundpro]

heres the reason...

To each his own... some spend thousands on playing golf, some on other hobbies. A/V is the same as any other hobby, you can spend 100 or a million. I am a happy medium guy and believe that the enjoyment from an enjoyable, affordable theater can provide some good family fun , or great times with friends, provided its not abused ( spending your mortgage money on that new center channel or watching movies 24/ 7) .If you want the true definition of happy medium, look at everything that Bose sells .... They are a tremendous marketing company that does not target " costco buyers " or "refined audiophiles" but they know what middle america has, wants and needs. They even know how many cds you have on average, thats why they dont have a media center that holds 12,000 cds, only 200 hrs on the 38media center. Happy medium.... We buy the equipment, the factories sell more, which provides more jobs, and everything becomes more affordable. hope this helps !

 

[Mitch613]

This is exactly it.

This is a hobby and you don't need to justify it. It's want and in the end all hobbies are really a waste of money when you look at it. In the end you don't need it, but who cares? It's your money and as long as you're not spending money you don't have then justification should never come into it.

110% agree with that! I have some expensive and whack hobbies... Golfing, drumming, snake breeding...