Estimated reading time: 13 minutes
Table of contents
Do you know the thrill of unboxing a brand-new piece of audio gear? The smell of fresh plastic, the satisfying rustle of packaging, the gleam of new and untried dials? Ah yes, welcome to the high of gear addiction and the pursuit of auditory Nirvana.
Photograph Compliments of Caio Silva
The Lust For Equipment
If this description fits you, I welcome you as one of the card-carrying acolytes of Gear Enthusiasm. We fondly refer to ourselves as Gear Sluts. Certainly, it is a less-than-flattering label, albeit accurate. Holding pride in the handle is a tribute to our self-awareness.
We acknowledge our unquenchable lust for gear and sound equipment. If you are a proficient artist, then you know beyond doubt that average-quality instruments ain’t gonna make the grade. If you are a sound engineer then you know the adage, “It’s not the gear, it’s the ear,” only holds so much truth.
Let’s face it, gear lust is a kind of addiction, and we audiophiles are all too gleefully complicit in our self-inflicted malady. We do seek out new equipment with a religious fervor.
Photograph Compliments of Austin Chan
The Ten Commandants Of Gear Sluttery
- Thou Shalt Covet Thy Neighbor’s Gear: Let not a day pass without a longing gaze on the shiny new piece of equipment in your fellow audiophile’s studio.
- Honor Thy Analog and Thy Digital: Remember, in the eyes of a true gear addict, all forms of audio gear are sacred. Each holds a place in the auditory pantheon, from the warmest of tubes to the crispest of digital signals.
- Thou Shalt Not Commit Auditory Adultery: While the temptation to replace your faithful old gear with the latest model may be strong, always remember the sonic adventures you’ve shared.
- Thou Shalt Keep the NAMM Day Holy: The day of the new gear release is sacred. Cancel all appointments, switch off your phone, and immerse Thyself in the celebration of fresh sonic possibilities.
- Thou Shalt Worship No Other Hobby Before Gear: There is no room for false idols in the studio of a true gear addict.
- Thou Shalt Not Take the Name of Your Gear in Vain: Remember, each knob turned, each button pressed, and each note played is a testament to your dedication to the holy quest for the perfect sound.
- Thou Shalt Observe the Ritual of Unboxing: Take care to savor every moment of this sacred rite, from the first cut of the tape to the final removal of protective wrapping.
- Thou Shalt Spread the Gear Gospel: Share your love for gear with others so that they may join in your holy quest for the ultimate audio experience.
- Thou Shalt Always Strive for Better Sound: Rest not on your laurels, for there is always a higher level of audio nirvana to attain.
- Thou Shalt Remember: More Gear is Always Better: The path of the gear addict may be rocky, but remember, the only cure for gear addiction is more gear.
Addiction Or Obsession?
As audiophiles, we wallow with unrestrained joy in our peculiar obsession. We’re the magpies of the music world, gleefully attracted to the gleam of a fresh synth or the allure of a brand-new studio-grade microphone.
Picture us, the linguistic gymnasts, fluently conversant in the jargon-laden world of DACs, DSPs, and DAWs. In our dopamine-charged minds, every new product unveiling causes a shiver of anticipation, a rousing call to action for the relentless gear collector.
We’re constantly in the throes of a passionate pursuit of auditory perfection. It’s a chase with a tantalizingly elusive finish line. Perhaps we could compare it to the endless chase of the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Yet, in our case, it’s more akin to the pot of perfect sound at the end of an XLR cable.
It all comes down to a mathematical formula: n + 1. The letter n represents the constant of basses I own. I can always add one more, and I probably will.
Dopamine: The Culprit and the Catalyst
Our brains have a crafty little chemical called dopamine, the VIP of our reward system. It’s like the brain’s personal concierge, ushering in feelings of pleasure and satisfaction. Now, the thing with dopamine is that it loves new experiences. And what releases dopamine in our gear-loving brains? That’s right – the sight, sound, and touch of brand-new audio gear.
As music producer Sylvia Massy once said, “There’s a certain euphoria when I unpack new gear. That first time you turn it on and it hums to life – it’s a moment of pure, unadulterated joy.”
Sylvia Massy’s Work Space
So each time we run our hands over a new guitar or when we hear the crisp notes from that state-of-the-art studio monitor, our brain rewards us with a dopamine hit. And like a sugar addict who craves the next donut, we start longing for our next gear fix.
Take my buddy Brandon, the drummer, for instance. The man’s a bonafide cymbal connoisseur. He has more cymbals than fingers and toes, yet he somehow manages to justify buying another one. The other day, he had this gleam in his eyes – which I recognized all too well. It turns out; he had just added a new Sabian 40th Anniversary Artisan 22-inch Dry Ride Cymbal to his collection. “Each cymbal brings a unique sound, a different flavor,” he tells me, twirling his drumstick like a magic wand, “I can’t possibly pick just one!” That friends, is the addict’s own words at play.
Photograph Compliments of Brad
The Pursuit Of Perfection Is a Double-Edged Sword
The quest for better sound quality and equipment is like the Holy Grail for us audiophiles. We’re constantly tinkering, tweaking, adjusting – in the hopes of achieving audio nirvana. But here’s the catch: this relentless pursuit is both our blessing and our curse.
Yes, better gear often equates to better sound. However, this belief, mixed with a generous helping of addiction, leads to an endless cycle of desire and dissatisfaction. We’re like hamsters on a wheel, always running, always chasing, but never quite reaching.
On one hand, we have our desire for better sound quality – a noble cause. No doubt we are saving the world. But on the other, we’re never quite satisfied with what we have. Our mixer could always be a bit more advanced, our headphones a bit clearer, our synth a bit more versatile.
The March Of Technology
Photograph Compliments of Possessed Technology
Technology and its rapid advancement is our beloved enabler. But it’s also a sly trickster, introducing a concept we love to hate: planned obsolescence. Today’s cutting-edge audio interface becomes yesterday’s news before we can even fully explore its capabilities.
The relentless locomotive of technology continually fuels this constant thirst for improvement. The cruel, unforgiving cycles of product updates and new releases often make our latest acquisitions feel outdated, even before the “new gear smell” has had a chance to dissipate.
It’s a phenomenon that mirrors the ceaseless march of fashion or the ever-evolving world of automotive design. An incessant parade of newer, shinier, and purportedly “better” products are continually vying for our attention. They promise the earth and the moon when it comes to revolutionizing our sound or even our look – an ode to our shared plight with the beauty and fashion industries.
“Keeping up with technology is like running on a treadmill that keeps getting faster,” says Carl, a sound engineer friend with a home studio that could give professional setups a run for their money. “You’re just catching your breath when a new model or an upgrade hits the market.” Carl’s studio is a testament to his love for gear, including an attic filled with “outdated” gear that was top-of-the-line when he bought it.
My Story
In the early ’90s, I scratched my head as I tried to wrap my brain around a music software program.
Back then, the DAW was a baffling beast. I was more accustomed to the tangible, tactile sensation of physical gear, so diving headfirst into the digital realm felt like being tossed into the pool’s deep end. But in the grand tradition of gear junkies, I was undeterred. I was about to embark on an auditory odyssey that started with Cakewalk and me squinting at a clunky computer screen. I couldn’t figure it out.
Enter stage two of my journey: the Roland 1680 Hard Drive Recorder. This beast came with a screen so small that reading text off it was like deciphering hieroglyphics off a grain of rice. It was like transitioning from a unicycle to a motorbike. I squinted, strained, and started to understand the mysterious world of DAWs.
Fast forward a year and a half, and I had mastered the 1680. I knew its nooks and crannies like the back of my hand. My journey taught me about EQ, compression, reverb, and the subtleties of onboard processing. It was like learning a new language, but I was dealing with decibels and frequency bands instead of words and phrases. This newfound knowledge was thrilling; thus, my lust for new gear ignited.
Enter Protools (Tah Dah)
Around this time, I graduated to a Mac Desktop, complete with a Digi Design Digi 02 rack and control surface. I embraced ProTools like a long-lost friend, my lessons from the Roland 1680 serving as the perfect primer. Within six weeks, I was recording and mixing like a Pro (Tools pro, to be precise).
My quest for the perfect sound took me on a journey through the hallowed halls of analog and tube preamps. Looking at them displayed in my racks, I couldn’t help but feel a bit like a mad scientist in my audio laboratory.
This passion became a borderline obsession as I amassed a veritable trove of condenser and dynamic microphones. Each was an exquisite piece of technology, a testament to the evolution of sound capture.
But amidst this whirlwind journey, a question began to form in my mind: When is it enough?
Why was I constantly chasing the next piece of gear, the next upgrade? Was it all those positive neurotransmitters? The thrill of a new piece of equipment, the sweet satisfaction of adding another processor to my collection? Or was it a byproduct of our inherently competitive nature, the subconscious desire to have the latest and greatest gear?
The Zen State
One day, I found myself standing in my studio, looking at the endless array of gear I’d collected. I was surrounded by the fruits of my passion – a myriad of wires, blinking lights, and shiny surfaces. And yet, I found myself questioning the need for more. Pursuing the perfect sound, I had accumulated a mountain of gear. But had I found what I was looking for?
So, when is enough enough? As my wise audio mentor once told me, “When you have enough, you’ll know.” Duh.
The Sonic Fashion Catwalk: The Enabler Of Audio Nirvana
Enter NAMM, the Mecca for gear addicts. It’s like the Paris Fashion Week of the audio world. Here, the latest and greatest audio equipment strut their stuff on the runway, begging us to take them home.
Industry insiders know just how to hook us gear junkies. They create buzz, release teasers, whip up frenzy. And we? We fall for it hook, line, and sinker. The siren call of new gear is just too strong to resist. And let’s be honest – we wouldn’t have it any other way.
The Pursuit Of Perfection And Auditory Nirvana
Photograph Compliments of Nejc Soklič
The quest for better sound quality is like the Holy Grail for us audiophiles. We’re constantly tinkering, tweaking, adjusting – in the hopes of achieving audio nirvana. But here’s the catch: this relentless pursuit is both our blessing and our curse.
Yes, better gear often equates to better sound. However, this belief, mixed with a generous hormone boost into those neuroreceptors, leads to an endless cycle of desire and dissatisfaction. We’re like hamsters on a wheel, always running, always chasing, but never quite reaching.
On one hand, we have our desire for better sound quality – a noble cause, no doubt. But on the other, we’re never quite satisfied with what we have. Our mixer could always be a bit more advanced, our headphones a bit clearer, our synth a bit more versatile.
We are often teetering on the brink of financial indiscretions, all in the name of this elusive chase for superior sound. The simple mantra we live by? “Better gear equals better sound.” Yet, our quest for the best often slides down a slippery slope, becoming an all-consuming search for the “next best” that threatens to outshine our current treasures.
The Melodious Addiction: The Passion For Better Sound
Us gear aficionados are a tight-knit squad, a merry band of knob twiddlers. We understand each other’s peculiar itch, the irresistible urge to hoard the latest sound toys, and the unyielding drive to birth the perfect note. We babble in the secret language of watts and decibels, of MIDI and DAWs.
By the time the sun sets, our infatuation is a grand monument to our zeal. We’re always hot on the tail of flawlessness, playing catch with groundbreaking sounds and hunting down the elusive beast of gratification. And en route, we birth ideas, spark inspiration, and stir up a storm of innovation.
So raise your limited-edition microphones to us, the gear junkies, the audio adventurers, and the ceaseless fiddlers. We may be branded with a ‘condition’ as per those lab-coated brain geeks, but what a melodic, harmoniously mad condition it is!
Now, if you’ll excuse me, this new Fatso Jr. is calling me. Ah, sweet, addiction, clear the red carpet.
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