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johnnyblotter · 30th April 2004

Hoping to get a little feedback on the issue of listening carefully before buying, and letting your ears be the judge.

Of course we all know this, but my experience with any piece of gear I've owned (and admittedly I haven't owned a ton) is that it takes quite a while with a new piece, in your own place, to really get a sense of whether it is right for you. I've gone over to people's places and listened to things, but even messing with something for a day or two in someone else's place just isn't enough information. Other times I've been able to borrow things from people for a few days, but I feel like I need lots of time using a piece to see whether it's really right. That throws the gear rental idea out the window, cause it's not worth the expense to NOT figure out what you need to figure out.

Being a guy with a bit of a budget, enough to get a few decent pieces anyway, my strategy has been to listen as much as I can, but also consider what more experienced people have to say about gear choices. The thing is I'm picky as hell about what I like. But since I can't borrow things for weeks, my strategy is just
to buy pieces that I'm fairly confident hold a good resale value, even if I sometimes haven't listened to them. This way I figure I'll get to try more stuff, and not be waiting forevor to make decisions. Like I got a pair of Averill 312 API's (the old ones) on the recommendation of a trusted friend (I'm a drummer) and they've been just great on drums. What they aren't so spectacular on is guitar, and also when running samples through them, you can crank up them up but you'll also get a lot of noise.

How long does it take for you guys to figure out whether something is a keeper? Can you tell right away, or does it happen gradually? And what do you think of the strategy of sometimes just buying things without hearing them?

30th April 2004	#1
johnnyblotter Gear maniac Joined: Jan 2004 Location: NYC Posts: 205 Thread Starter	listen, try, buy, sell, trade, listen Hoping to get a little feedback on the issue of listening carefully before buying, and letting your ears be the judge. Of course we all know this, but my experience with any piece of gear I've owned (and admittedly I haven't owned a ton) is that it takes quite a while with a new piece, in your own place, to really get a sense of whether it is right for you. I've gone over to people's places and listened to things, but even messing with something for a day or two in someone else's place just isn't enough information. Other times I've been able to borrow things from people for a few days, but I feel like I need lots of time using a piece to see whether it's really right. That throws the gear rental idea out the window, cause it's not worth the expense to NOT figure out what you need to figure out. Being a guy with a bit of a budget, enough to get a few decent pieces anyway, my strategy has been to listen as much as I can, but also consider what more experienced people have to say about gear choices. The thing is I'm picky as hell about what I like. But since I can't borrow things for weeks, my strategy is just to buy pieces that I'm fairly confident hold a good resale value, even if I sometimes haven't listened to them. This way I figure I'll get to try more stuff, and not be waiting forevor to make decisions. Like I got a pair of Averill 312 API's (the old ones) on the recommendation of a trusted friend (I'm a drummer) and they've been just great on drums. What they aren't so spectacular on is guitar, and also when running samples through them, you can crank up them up but you'll also get a lot of noise. How long does it take for you guys to figure out whether something is a keeper? Can you tell right away, or does it happen gradually? And what do you think of the strategy of sometimes just buying things without hearing them?