No New Gear Year (2023)

[littletinymonkey]

Grrr...
Ok, here's a new one that also "should" never expire:
https://discord.gg/XsUg3tevuS

Thanks!

[aevai]

Updated link in the main post and below. This one should never expire

https://discord.gg/SmCHfWev

Dang. "Invite Invalid" "This invite may be expired, or you might not have permission to join."

Grrr...
Ok, here's a new one that also "should" never expire:
https://discord.gg/XsUg3tevuS

That's annoying!

Thanks, I'll update the one in the original post.

[22tape]

Overall, I think the healthy way to approach this challenge is as an exercise in enjoyment rather than deprivation.

I’m not part of the ‘no new gear year’ club, but I like your approach.

+1

The only caveat is if the "deprivation" stems from the addiction. It's difficult for an addict to enjoy their come-down, let alone kicking the habit all together.

[Del-Uks]

I'm in !

…with one small bend in the rule : I promised myself that I wouldn't take a penny out of my pocket to buy new equipment in 2023.
So, if I want a new toy at a certain price, I will have to sell some of my equipment for at least the same amount.

Sorry guys… I already failed… I just got my hands on an almost new SYNTRX MkI (bought 8 months ago and therefore under warranty) for about $1'500.00.

Shame on me.

[Kosmikos]

I'm in !

…with one small bend in the rule : I promised myself that I wouldn't take a penny out of my pocket to buy new equipment in 2023.
So, if I want a new toy at a certain price, I will have to sell some of my equipment for at least the same amount.

Sorry guys… I already failed… I just got my hands on an almost new SYNTRX MkI (bought 8 months ago and therefore under warranty) for about $1'500.00.

Shame on me.

You can bounce back and reset the clock!
The Syntrx should also help keeping you busy and fulfilled for some time.
I’m very jealous by the way…

[Del-Uks]

I do not regret this “unexpected” purchase at all but I will put on sale some devices to relieve my conscience... ;-p

[eimhin]

I like the idea but I wouldn't want to put small-scale module makers out of business.

[Kosmikos]

I like the idea but I wouldn't want to put small-scale module makers out of business.

Chip shortages put them out of business, not people rationalising their gear.
The rules are those you set to yourself. I initially thought like you, but then I also started to see that getting more gear was getting in the way of my personal enjoyment, and that I’d probably wouldn’t slow down without some help.
I personally think that the Discord group is very understanding and works very well in that respect.

[nickerz]

Absolutely not.

You don't know what you don't know. And when you learn something new, you'll discover something you should sell and buy instead. Case in point, I just kinda went full circle with wavefolder\shapers and ended up almost selling an angle grinder only to realize I had a purpose for it. This would only work for someone IMO who has completely stopped learning and growing who has more gear than they even want ever. And I just don't know who that person is.

But I can entirely get behind the idea of forced constraints.

[paterursus]

I'm in !

…with one small bend in the rule : I promised myself that I wouldn't take a penny out of my pocket to buy new equipment in 2023.
So, if I want a new toy at a certain price, I will have to sell some of my equipment for at least the same amount.

Sorry guys… I already failed… I just got my hands on an almost new SYNTRX MkI (bought 8 months ago and therefore under warranty) for about $1'500.00.

Shame on me.

If you think about it as an experiment and a learning process, it puts it in a whole different light. Beating yourself up about it isn't going to help. You've made a conscious decision, you've learned something from it, and you can adjust in the future. And you have some new gear that you can spend the rest of the year learning.

[paterursus]

Absolutely not.

You don't know what you don't know. And when you learn something new, you'll discover something you should sell and buy instead. Case in point, I just kinda went full circle with wavefolder\shapers and ended up almost selling an angle grinder only to realize I had a purpose for it. This would only work for someone IMO who has completely stopped learning and growing who has more gear than they even want ever. And I just don't know who that person is.

But I can entirely get behind the idea of forced constraints.

Why would this make sense only for someone who has stopped learning? That makes no sense whatsoever. What we are about is taking time to learn and master what we have. How that would equate to not learning escapes me completely.

[paterursus]

I like the idea but I wouldn't want to put small-scale module makers out of business.

So I'll put this in more direct terms since I've stated it in a more roundabout way before:
1) We love module manufacturers and don't want them out of business any more than you do. Some of us have probably supported module makers to a much greater degree than you have.
2) We are not personally obligated to spend our money on modules
3) We are making a conscious decision to slow down and learn our gear better
4) We're not asking you to support us
5) Our group isn't going to put anyone out of business. If it did, that business wouldn't have been viable anyway.

[nickerz]

Absolutely not.

You don't know what you don't know. And when you learn something new, you'll discover something you should sell and buy instead. Case in point, I just kinda went full circle with wavefolder\shapers and ended up almost selling an angle grinder only to realize I had a purpose for it. This would only work for someone IMO who has completely stopped learning and growing who has more gear than they even want ever. And I just don't know who that person is.

But I can entirely get behind the idea of forced constraints.

Why would this make sense only for someone who has stopped learning? That makes no sense whatsoever. What we are about is taking time to learn and master what we have. How that would equate to not learning escapes me completely.

Well let me give you the perfect example again. Imagine I had sold my only wavefolder because, not knowing what I don't know, I suddenly lose my ability to wavefold. Which didn't seem like that big of a deal until I was reverse engineering a sound I liked and realize all the hair on it was from a wavefolder.

I guess I can understand creating a ficticious constraint for yourself here where you say "well, I don't have a wavefolder, how can I do something like that without a wavefolder?" But me, personally, I just don't think that's helpful, it's more of a coping mechanism. Me, personally, I am always A\B testing and honing. For literally years it's been an essentually full\part time job, and I can't imagine needing to make my life any harder in that regard.

[crowleywaltz]

Conversely if you weren't constantly buying and selling to trade out gear you would've probably not sold that wave folder in the first place before you realized you actually did need it. And I for one am tired of the 'full time job' of trading stuff out to find what works best, I just want to make music for a while, not worry about gear. It's fine if you feel differently, but the concept should at least make sense.

[littletinymonkey]

And I for one am tired of the 'full time job' of trading stuff out to find what works best, I just want to make music for a while, not worry about gear.

Ugh. Yep. Since starting this hobby 6 years ago, who knew how good I'd become at properly listing and packing up large synthesizers. My packing skills are far superior to my music-making skills.

[transistorresistor]

It is frightfully amazing that there is a thread on the internet which says "my goals for the next year is to use the equipment I spent ten thousand dollars on and become proficient on a system I saved so many years to afford" and there are people whose response to this is to create an argument for any reason under the sun.

For many people, having the funds to purchase the tools of their dreams and then have peace to focusing on using them either professionally or even better, for the luxury of enjoying a hobby, is a lifetime fantasy. Some people here have made that a reality and they get criticized. Honestly just an amazing thing to see.

Like honestly, how is there is single person pushing back on this idea for any reason in the universe?

[Orange]

Ugh. Yep. Since starting this hobby 6 years ago, who knew how good I'd become at properly listing and packing up large synthesizers. My packing skills are far superior to my music-making skills.

[paterursus]

Conversely if you weren't constantly buying and selling to trade out gear you would've probably not sold that wave folder in the first place before you realized you actually did need it. And I for one am tired of the 'full time job' of trading stuff out to find what works best, I just want to make music for a while, not worry about gear. It's fine if you feel differently, but the concept should at least make sense.

This.

[paterursus]

Absolutely not.

You don't know what you don't know. And when you learn something new, you'll discover something you should sell and buy instead. Case in point, I just kinda went full circle with wavefolder\shapers and ended up almost selling an angle grinder only to realize I had a purpose for it. This would only work for someone IMO who has completely stopped learning and growing who has more gear than they even want ever. And I just don't know who that person is.

But I can entirely get behind the idea of forced constraints.

Why would this make sense only for someone who has stopped learning? That makes no sense whatsoever. What we are about is taking time to learn and master what we have. How that would equate to not learning escapes me completely.

Well let me give you the perfect example again. Imagine I had sold my only wavefolder because, not knowing what I don't know, I suddenly lose my ability to wavefold. Which didn't seem like that big of a deal until I was reverse engineering a sound I liked and realize all the hair on it was from a wavefolder.

I guess I can understand creating a ficticious constraint for yourself here where you say "well, I don't have a wavefolder, how can I do something like that without a wavefolder?" But me, personally, I just don't think that's helpful, it's more of a coping mechanism. Me, personally, I am always A\B testing and honing. For literally years it's been an essentually full\part time job, and I can't imagine needing to make my life any harder in that regard.

Sounds like you have different needs and priorities than we do.

[TYGTRFB]

But me, personally, I just don't think that's helpful, it's more of a coping mechanism. Me, personally, I am always A\B testing and honing. For literally years it's been an essentually full\part time job, and I can't imagine needing to make my life any harder in that regard.

Well then maybe just move on down the trail to a different thread...?

[TYGTRFB]

It is frightfully amazing that there is a thread on the internet which says "my goals for the next year is to use the equipment I spent ten thousand dollars on and become proficient on a system I saved so many years to afford" and there are people whose response to this is to create an argument for any reason under the sun.

For many people, having the funds to purchase the tools of their dreams and then have peace to focusing on using them either professionally or even better, for the luxury of enjoying a hobby, is a lifetime fantasy. Some people here have made that a reality and they get criticized. Honestly just an amazing thing to see.

Like honestly, how is there is single person pushing back on this idea for any reason in the universe?

What a reasonable, thoughtful perspective. Well said.

[paterursus]

It is frightfully amazing that there is a thread on the internet which says "my goals for the next year is to use the equipment I spent ten thousand dollars on and become proficient on a system I saved so many years to afford" and there are people whose response to this is to create an argument for any reason under the sun.

For many people, having the funds to purchase the tools of their dreams and then have peace to focusing on using them either professionally or even better, for the luxury of enjoying a hobby, is a lifetime fantasy. Some people here have made that a reality and they get criticized. Honestly just an amazing thing to see.

Like honestly, how is there is single person pushing back on this idea for any reason in the universe?

You put that a lot better than I could have.

[nickerz]

But me, personally, I just don't think that's helpful, it's more of a coping mechanism. Me, personally, I am always A\B testing and honing. For literally years it's been an essentually full\part time job, and I can't imagine needing to make my life any harder in that regard.

Well then maybe just move on down the trail to a different thread...?

I did but it's one of those trails where everything kinda comes back here.

[littletinymonkey]

I didn't realize when I hopped into this thread a couple weeks ago that it was in the '1U & 3U Eurorack Modules' forum. Oops. I'm an outsider, folks. I own zero Eurorack stuff. I've got a bi-timbral synth, a drum machine, sampler, some FX, and a couple MIDI controllers. Anyway...

The SP-404mkii that I picked up in December has seen zero use and I've started to imagine trading it for something else. I'm browsing the typical trade-friendly websites and the dopamine reward is pulsing through my veins. There's an unspoken, "The next thing will SURELY be what I need to accomplish whatever it is I'm doing," but all I'd be doing is letting go of something extremely useful and losing money.

Well... Instead of doing that, I'm going to buckle down, gather up some learnin' resources and if nothing happens sooner, in about a month I'll have 5 days of uninterrupted interaction with this thing while I'm, yes, this is from left field, stuck at a medical research facility getting paid to dose LSD minus the hallucinogenic component for migraine relief research. Dropping beats. Dropping acid. The actual drug portion lasts about 3 hours, so I'll have LOTS of spare time since I'm there 5 days. Yay science!

[shockletit]

Do buying headphones and speakers count? Got too much gear and a crappy set of headphones. Figure it's time to hear those sounds properly.