Oh yeah its nice out here just insanely expensive to live.
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Brother, I have always wanted to get into learning an instrument. I’ve just never had the time or means to. I still wish my father forced me to play some kind of instrument when I was younger lol but that never happened. It’s never too late as far as I’m concerned!
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Its definitely never too late! You will be shocked at how much skill you can develop at 15-20 minutes a day. At least at guitar.
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Get a keyboard and then use these types of guides.
I called them “piano hero” back in the day. 
(that also happens to be the first track I learned in this way.)
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I don’t think it’s exactly the same, but I’m finding almost more interest in older “references” that I never heard. I have finally been able to slow down buying everything interesting after a few years with too much stuff bought😅. So hanging around sales ads, listening to music is the new standard😄
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Maybe even some… buds 
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Around Christmas I was totally there, and I picked up Doscinco in Feb., which took over my number 1 spot.
I have been seeking out stuff that is tuned differently. I think the three most listened to sets of the last two months for me are the Doscinco, Cinno, and Explorer. None of them are completely typical tuning.
I also did a pretty serious earbud detour which got me back to appreciating IEMs and music again. I know what I want from Rikubuds ( and just need to set the money aside, but life is getting in the way right now ), but that will get me in that happy place with my gear for a while.
I was thinking about chasing sources, but bought the Fiio KA17 and KA11, and have pretty much decided I am good with that plus the stuff I already had ( BTR5, DX1, MT-602 ).
I have too many mechanical watches, and IEMs sort of replaced that hobby.
I also play a fair bit of video games. I am coming off the Steam Next Fest, so I have been playing demos like mad.
TLDR … I think we all have burn out, even with things we love. Sometimes pushing away from the table and doing something else is just the thing we need.
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Crazy, random but well thought out rant coming your way. To everyone who reads it, thank you! And if it’s simply too long, TLDR; Thanks for all the support the last few months!
Summary
I sincerely appreciate everyone’s input over the last few days. It seems like stepping away from the hobby has been a topic that lots of folks are talking about recently, and I have to say, while I’m not 100% satisfied with my current stable, I can recognize that I have been abundantly fortunate with all of the gear I’ve been incredibly lucky enough to try out over the last 2 years.
Between CanJam and my other audio buddies touring their sets, I have been able to cover all of my bases with my end game options.
Bass = Titans
Mids = Monarch MK2
Treble = Annihilator 2023s
If I were to somehow get ahold of all of these infinity stones, I’d be completely done and riding off into the sunset when it comes to this mostly beautiful, sometimes ugly hobby we’ve been wrapped up in.
I tried out the reviewer thing, and it ain’t for me. I was so hyped to be a part of all these tour groups and reviewer groups, but I’ve quickly found out that it doesn’t make sense to back my self into a corner of obligation when this thing of ours is supposed to be fun. The entire point of doing all of this, finding the right IEM, tips, cable, source etc. is to enjoy our music to the highest degree - reviewing is not that. Now, I do enjoy helping the new comers and vets with recs, and I also do enjoy taking and editing photos of the sets I do get in, but holy shit does the pressure of reviewing take the wind right out of my sail. I’m officially done with it for now. I can’t say it’ll be forever, but I also can’t say I’ll be back - I’ll still be around, giving recs and advice as much as possible, but in terms of being apart of tour groups, I can safely say I am all set.
The last few weeks, I’ve been visiting the forums simply due to the folks on here, all of my close buddies, Goober, Guy, Cal, Chris, Mags, John and Jay, you guys are fucking awesome, and I love y’all. Everyone else is awesome, too, but in terms of chasing the dragon, I need to take a step back again. I won’t be as active on here like I was the last year, but my message box is always open for whomever needs advice or has a question! I just want to make sure it’s clear that I never mind answering concerns or questions - in fact, that’s probably my favorite part of this entire forum.
I’m rambling, so I’ll end it there. Thanks for everyone’s support the last few months with the articles and pics, all of the compliments and kind words NEVER go unnoticed and I appreciate them all SO much, words cannot accurately describe how much they’re appreciated.
I hope everyone is having an incredible day, listening, enjoying and sharing music! Thanks for reading.
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Yeah that reviewer hustle is only for the people that really want that hustle.
I like giving my opinion but I don’t want to chase the news releases because they are mostly boring: competent and generally sounding good but I can usually find multiple old sets that do the same thing so most sets fall into two camps:
- You never bought a set in that category before (price bracket, driver configuration, company, etc.)
- You have bought one
Either way, it usually comes down to “if you wanna spend money on it, knock yourself out”, but there aren’t many IEMs to full-send a recommendation on.
I’m meandering in my thoughts but basically my point is good for you not ruining the hobby for yourself by running yourself into the ground doing things that aren’t fun
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You are one of the only reasons a few of us are on here as well. I totally understand we’re you are coming from. Take a step back and just enjoy my friend! I appreciate you and what you have done so far in the community and forums🤙
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Well thanks for many interesting reads! Maybe join Audio Geek tours and just write short impressions? You can join as many or few tours as you want. If not, just enjoy life and music 
.
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The first line couldn’t be more true. I, for one, had the really dumb idea of thinking this reviewing thing would be fun… it is not lol for me at least. I know lots of dudes have great fun with it, but I just don’t have the time. If I was single, didn’t have my son and a normal job with normal hours, I think it could be so sick. I gave it a shot, but it just didn’t work out. But that’s okay! I don’t feel bad about it luckily.
The last thing I want to do is ruin the hobby for my self and also contribute bs posts to this forum. I know it might sound silly, but I respect this specific platform too much. There are too many good people on here and quite frankly, every single release coming out right now is just a different flavor of the same ice cream, maybe with some extra toppings on top and maaaaaybe some of them are Gelato. Like, for example, the BGVP Phantom is a mighty fine IEM, sounds tonaly correct, no BA timbre, fits really well, the techs are fantastic as well, but is it really that much different to anything else to justify it’s $900 price tag? Hell no. I’d rather have the SM4 and call it a day. I much prefer that IEM, too. Better bass, and no MMCX lol. All this to say, I’m just going to be too honest and un-enthusiastic about most sets that come my way. Also, jesus H. Christ is it boring listening to the same playlist over and over again…
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Appreciate your feedback, brother. You joining the tour group was one of the highlights of the hobby this year for me. Happy I can provide some positivity!
Already part of Audio Geek, brother, but will probably find my way out slowly but surely over the next few weeks. Getting to the post office and shipping sets out is so cumbersome. The juice is definitely not worth the squeeze in my case.
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Yep, remember all those Zeroes with pretty much the same tunings? Or the Aria clones. Oh boy im lucky I didnt accept a single one of those units lol.
Yeah…tell me about it…after years of doing that, I pretty much cant listen to those tracks normally anymore…
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Understandable, the drain is real when hobbyists like us invest significant time and energy into reviews, impression videos, and other content, often with minimal return. For example, creating a sound demo that consumes half my weekend doesn’t compare to what I could earn by working productively or spending time with friends and family.
My best advice is to approach this pursuit more leisurely. Additionally, we’ve reached a sort of plateau in the market—nearly all manufacturers are now producing good to excellent IEMs. The craftsmanship and tuning skills have elevated to a very high standard.
I believe we’re entering a new phase in the IEM landscape, but what this will entail is difficult to predict.
Three current developments can be identified:
- Emphasize on IEM ecosystems that include IEMs, DACs and software that work together to provide a unique listening experience
- There continues to be progress in the materials used for drivers and in developing new driver technologies, although this advancement is occurring at a slower pace.
- Advertising and marketing onslaught dialed to 11
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DSP iems
XMEMS drivers
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For sure 100% lol.
@domq422 Kinda ironic isn’t, listening to music can relax you, empower you, pick you up when you’re down, be your buddy in the background or almost a confidant in times of trouble…
^^ Nuff said right there my friend, enjoy your new found freedom, welcome to the zen zone where you are happy with your sets or sets you’ve heard, kick back from this convoluted BS and get back to THE 
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I have no regrets or feel any shame when it comes to the state of these two…the DX312 has been abused on a daily on the barge, in the van and in my pocket at work and never let me down 
theAndro’s are older and don’t leave barge, just get picked, used and put down x 1000 
times…gotta love patina 
Use what you have, enjoy your music and chill…more 
won’t help you it will just 
the unanswerable question…your??? 
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I couldn’t have said it better my self, brother. You’re totally right. I’m going to reconnect with the music this summer and hopefully come back after that renewed. My goal is to go to at least 5 concerts this summer, small, big, doesn’t matter. I’ve been to 1 already and I’ve bought tickets for another later in August so I’m well on my way.
Going to focus on the music these next few months for sure
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