How do you afford HT... what's your profession?

**FlashJim** · **01-10-08, 01:47 PM**

Quote:

n737nc wrote:

How ironic that I started this thread, and something else has happened.

Got about 3/4 of my money saved up for a projector, and now the washer has gone out

Headed to Home Depot this afternoon to buy a new one

Frustrating, but it could be worse. Things like this happen to me all the time. That's why I'm only as far as I am on the HT.

Real Life gets in the way of Reel Life.

**eugovector** · **01-10-08, 02:45 PM**

Quote:

n737nc wrote:

How ironic that I started this thread, and something else has happened.

Got about 3/4 of my money saved up for a projector, and now the washer has gone out

Headed to Home Depot this afternoon to buy a new one

Quick aside on washers:

My parents had a 12 year old Maytag. It was working fine, but they decided they "needed" a new one (kind of like audiophiles with their equipment). 3 months out of warranty (2 years), the new one breaks. The repair guys comes out, says he's been repairing washers for decades, and they should have keep their 12-year old machine. It was overbuilt. Every new machine, regardless of cost, is built to last no more than 5 years, so if it does, it's a miracle.

Buy the cheapest washer you can, save the rest for HT equipment. Believe it or not, your HT equipment may last longer than your washer.

**salvasol** · **01-10-08, 02:49 PM**

Quote:

eugovector wrote:

... Buy the cheapest washer you can, ....

The cheapest will be to get a used washer

**eugovector** · **01-10-08, 02:57 PM**

Quote:

salvasol wrote:

The cheapest will be to get a used washer

Exactly, see if you can find a 12 year old Maytag

**drf** · **01-10-08, 03:36 PM**

We bought an LG about 6 years ago, my parents bought one 9 years ago and my inlaws got one 4 years ago. To date they are all as good as the day they were delivered.

**imbeaujp** · **01-10-08, 05:13 PM**

Why don't you hand wash ?

(Joke)

**drf** · **01-10-08, 05:53 PM**

washing is over rated anyway!!

**n737nc** · **01-10-08, 06:04 PM**

Thanks for the advice(on the washer)

There is no way I would be able to pass a cheap or used washer off on my girlfriend. When we have the money, she lets me buy the best that we can afford, so I need to give her the same respect when it comes to her "toys". Of course her birthday is less than 2 weeks away, so this became her birthday present

**salvasol** · **01-10-08, 06:13 PM**

Quote:

imbeaujp wrote:

...Why don't you hand wash ?

...(Joke)

Well is not a joke for me

... we use the hand wash cycle in our Whirpool

**drf** · **01-10-08, 08:43 PM**

Quote:

n737nc wrote:

Thanks for the advice(on the washer)

There is no way I would be able to pass a cheap or used washer off on my girlfriend. When we have the money, she lets me buy the best that we can afford, so I need to give her the same respect when it comes to her "toys". Of course her birthday is less than 2 weeks away, so this became her birthday present

Thats sneaky, just remember not to get angry if your birthday present turns out to be a lawn mower or a couple tins of paint for the bedroom

**doctor subie** · **01-11-08, 06:06 AM**

This being my 1st post, I'd thought this would be as good a place as any to do it. I'm an internal medicine doc, soon to be transitioning to hospitalist medicine (where I would only take care of hospitalized patients). the pay is decent, the schedule potentially flexible.

Funny, that in medical school, I would have considered myself more of an 'audiophile' and was the person who subscribed to Stereophile, believed in high-end cables, and buying equipment above what I could realistically afford. Now, I'm more judicious in how I spend my money, and am getting back into audio/HT, and especially into 'affordable gear' or good gear that is affordable. I can't justify spending $10,000 on a projector, or exorbitant $ on a piece of equipment, but I suppose if I came across a windfall of $, I may...

**Bob_99** · **01-11-08, 07:20 AM**

Quote:

Of course her birthday is less than 2 weeks away, so this became her birthday present

IMHO and after 32 years of marriage I would suggest that if you really care about this person, get her a real birthday present. It doesn't have to be expensive because of the cost of the washer but I think she'll appreciate you more in the end. Just my 2 cents.

Bob

**n737nc** · **01-11-08, 07:47 AM**

Ok, the comment about the washer being her birthday present was a joke

She will not be getting this washer as a birthday present, I believe that all of my HT gear would be in the garage if I ever did that.

She has always been well taken care of on her birthday, and this year will not be any different.

Nick

**Bob_99** · **01-11-08, 08:00 AM**

Quote:

Ok, the comment about the washer being her birthday present was a joke She will not be getting this washer as a birthday present, I believe that all of my HT gear would be in the garage if I ever did that

My apologies for not recognizing that you were joking and I should have recognized the big grin at the end of the paragraph. I'm not always the fastest boat in the fleet.

Bob

**rrpete49** · **01-11-08, 08:45 AM**

Quote:

n737nc wrote:

Thanks for the advice(on the washer)

her birthday is less than 2 weeks away, so this became her birthday present

Speaking of gifts;I gave my wife a Nike 12.5`Driver [thats a golf club in case you didn`t know] and now I got 12" driver,only difference being mine is SVS version.PB12/Plus.

**ArtVandalay7** · **01-11-08, 09:49 AM**

Quote:

drf wrote:

washing is over rated anyway!!

If you have a good HT system, you won't care that you're enjoying it in dirty clothes.

**drf** · **01-11-08, 03:05 PM**

Quote:

Bob_99 wrote:

My apologies for not recognizing that you were joking and I should have recognized the big grin at the end of the paragraph. I'm not always the fastest boat in the fleet.

Bob

Ditto, ecxcept I porbably didn't realise because it's something that I would do

.

**daniel** · **01-13-08, 12:32 AM**

I'm a teacher. I used to teach for children with learning disabilities. Before that I was a phys. ed teacher. Now I teach English as a second language(elementary school).

**Funkmonkey** · **01-13-08, 03:44 PM**

I am a carpenter/welder and have graduated from headphone obsession to HT obsession when my old TV died a couple of months ago. Not sure how it happened but rather than buying a $1000 TV from Costco I did a bunch of research and spent a lot more than that. Now, I need to get the Audio up to scratch. More research, reviews, and auditions in my future... Not sure when I will have time to work, so I can actually afford it though.

**PhotoByMark** · **01-13-08, 09:59 PM**

Spent the last 6.5 year owning my own business (pet shop/specializing in reef) but recently shut it down and now I am back doing software development. Currently doing contract work. I can see that getting to the ultimate goal of a full blown HT might take awhile but I can also see how this can into a full-blown obsession and eventually I can achieve that goal.

**solarscreen** · **01-15-08, 08:47 AM**

I'm a network/systems administrator. I've got one in college and another going to college next year. My primary source of HT money comes from the annual IRS refund. I know I should probably recalculate to keep all the money instead of giving them a free loan, but, I don't use coupons either so I could be saving a lot more money everywhere.

You can actually go HT very affordably. You won't have the theater replica pictured in the highend magazines but you will still have a dedicated area with everything needed for the cinema experience. It may take you some time but you can do all the work, even if you have never picked up a tool. Many videos are now online to show you how to do the work and there are howto classes at the home improvement stores.

Beyond that, even new the equipment and furniture is very affordable these days. But, if you can't even afford that, Craigs List, Audiogon, and Videogon are places you can find the things you need to get your HT done.

**Ricci** · **01-15-08, 01:26 PM**

Quote:

eugovector wrote:

Quick aside on washers:

My parents had a 12 year old Maytag. It was working fine, but they decided they "needed" a new one (kind of like audiophiles with their equipment). 3 months out of warranty (2 years), the new one breaks. The repair guys comes out, says he's been repairing washers for decades, and they should have keep their 12-year old machine. It was overbuilt. Every new machine, regardless of cost, is built to last no more than 5 years, so if it does, it's a miracle.

Buy the cheapest washer you can, save the rest for HT equipment. Believe it or not, your HT equipment may last longer than your washer.

Our 6 or 7 year old whirlpool dryer died and we were getting ready to buy a new one. My grandfather had an old one in his garage that had been there since one of his sisters died years ago and he gave it to us. It is a 1977 Maytag that is puke green. We've been running it like a dog for the past year and it is a champ that dries way quicker than the 30 year newer whirlpool ever did. It doesn't have any bells and whistles. It does 2 things...spin and get really hot.

**hyghwayman** · **02-20-08, 09:38 AM**

I was an Auto Mechanic for almost 20yrs. doing Brake and Steering/Suspension work which = long days and LOW pay, if I had only learned Drivability I could have made a lot more $$$. I made enough to support my family so wife could be a stay at home Mom while kids were growing up

. I did what I loved though until Sept. 15th, 2004

. Got rear-ended on the way to work, 50 weeks later I got T-boned. I was out of work for nearly 2yrs., wife had to go out and get a job

and we also got a little help from Gov.

. While recovering is when I got hooked into the world of HT A/V & Gaming. I'm back to work now selling Tires and Repair sevices with a very large retailer, which again means long days and low pay

. The 1st piece of gear was bought as a Christmas gift for whole family in 2005, a $69.oo Curtis HTiB. With no real extra $$ it has taken some time, below is my progress so far;

Xbox - 2003
Pioneer VSX-816k 7.1 receiver - mid 2006
Powered Subwoofer - 2006
JVC 27F577 SD CRT DTV - late 2006 (now in bedroom - replaced 19&qu

Advertisement