Enough is enough, but how much is enough? 

Yes, dear reader, this is one question that most music-lovers cringe at responding to, for the common answer is that one can never have too many records. Yet, it’s fair to say that none of us wishes to become a hoarder, but the collections we cherish seem to have a mind of their own and expand, piece by piece, until we question how we obtained so many pieces of music that we need another trip to IKEA for more KALLAX and GNEDBY storage units because we’ve run out of space; a predicament I was recently facing. 

No matter how I rearranged the collection, I simply couldn’t fit the new arrivals, many purchased out of the fear of missing out (FOMO), due primarily to artificial rarities. Hence, if FOMO was partially responsible for getting me into this mess then would the minimalist mantra, less is more, shift my mindset and once again allow me to enjoy a physical music library consisting of only my favourite albums?

I had hoped so because as my music collection continued to grow, the joy and happiness I had once experienced started to wane. Instead, I began to feel anxiety and frustration. Streaming distracted me from the physical clutter, so all was not lost, but I quickly cluttered up the digital library with music that was enjoyable when I listened to it, but was far from memorable. It was the strangest thing and I couldn’t help but wonder if I was simply addicted to collecting the newest thing as my hobby moved, unintentionally, into monomania territory. 

Acknowledging these factors, I knew that it wasn’t only the physical library that needed to be culled, but the continually expanding digital library. In fact, it may not be an exaggeration when I suggest that digital clutter is now, and likely will continue to be, a far greater issue than the physical counterpart for it is largely invisible, especially if you stream; but that shall be the focus of a future feature article here at Subjective Sounds.

No matter which angle I approached this issue from, however, clutter itself got in the way of musical bliss and while I may be able to temporarily ignore digital clutter, the physical untidiness grew out of hand with a collection of Blu-ray Audio, SACD, and CD, along with vinyl, that numbered into the hundreds. Modest, by some collector’s standards, but excessive for mine. It wasn’t going to be, nor has it been an easy task, but as I continue to refine the collection, I’m once again finding joy and happiness in the music that has survived the cull. 

Initially, I had to decide which format/s should remain. This, of course, was challenging but the decision resulted in incredible freedom for I no longer needed to decide which format to purchase an album on. Yes, dear reader, I culled my entire collection down to a single physical format. I was tired of asking myself upon each purchase if the vinyl release was worth three times that of the CD or if the SACD was going to sound superior to both? In part, questions such as this drove me to a state of discontent. 

Even when I compared multiple copies of the same album, across different formats, unless there was a truly bad mastering, the differences were minimal and highly subjective, often dependent on the gear or merely how I was feeling on any given day. While masterings most certainly vary, depending on the format and style applied by the mastering engineer, I couldn’t help but wonder if I was experiencing confirmation bias as a result of a placebo effect. Even if I wasn’t, were the comparisons I was making amplifying psychological factors? 

While I can neither confirm nor deny these possibilities, the comparisons I was making delved me even further into the abyss as I began to focus on other aspects of my hobby. Yes, this is the moment when I declare that I once spent an entire weekend researching cables; RCA interconnects to be precise. For some unknown reason, I had made myself believe that I was missing out on sonic perfection and that better cables would transform my music listening experience. I had, of course, forgotten to ask myself if I was enjoying music on the existing interconnects, but by the time I was prepared to ask myself that very question, it was too late. I had purchased the replacement cables and went about installing them. Moments later, I cried. Not tears of joy because the music moved me so much more than before but because at that moment I realised that these new cables were neither quantifiably better or worse, just different. If I had to put a subjective spin on it, they sounded worse to me than the cables that I had been using for several years.

So what does an audiophile do? Yes, they, and I, assume the new cables need time to burn-in. Again, I can’t quantifiably offer a position on cable burn-in but I lean more to the assumption that over time you’ll grow accustomed to the change in sound. Two years on, from installing those cables, I’m still not overjoyed by the reproduction of the Compact Disc. I had considered updating the CD player, but the Oppo BDP-103 was no slouch when it came to other audio formats such as Blu-ray Audio and SACD. 

Granted, a dedicated CD player would be superior as I had found out many years ago while auditioning gear and comparing the multifaceted Oppo BDP-105 to the incredible Marantz SA8005, but I was too distracted with various formats to seriously consider the more humble, but equally expensive Marantz SA8005. It was at the same listening session that my dealer suggested that I should focus on a single format, and put all my effort, and as much as I could afford, into a single format in order to get the most enjoyment out of my collection and the components I was interested in purchasing. Exceptional advice, yes, but naturally I didn’t listen to him at the time. Almost seven years later his advice finally began to sink in. Truth be told, it had been percolating for years but I just wasn’t willing to accept that I couldn’t have it all; an unlimited music collection without restrictions. 

Despite growing up with the Compact Disc, I’ve always had an appreciation for the vinyl record and the culling of my collection came easily when out of nowhere, my Project Debut Carbon developed a hum throughout that required it to go in for service. It turned out to be a problem with the integrated circuit preamplifier and while it was repairable, I was naturally distraught. First world problems, I admit, but it had brought so much joy and happiness to me over the years and was a 10th-anniversary gift from my beloved and I simply couldn’t imagine being without it. To say I acted like a child with a broken toy would be an accurate, albeit embarrassing, assessment. What it did prove to me, however, was how important the turntable and the vinyl record was to my life. 

The CD and optical discs, in general, just weren’t as impactful. In a way, streaming, especially lossless CD-quality, has eroded the need for the optical disc container, but despite having a few releases that I cherished, for the most part, I was never truly satisfied with the overall sound reproduction of those silver discs. Of course, there isn’t a perfect format. Vinyl and streaming both have their flaws, but they feel, and more importantly, sound right to me. It is subjective, of course!

Although, IKEA was not going to get another KALLAX purchase out of me so I made the decision, at the same time, to cull my vinyl collection of those titles that were not memorable. If I couldn’t remember the songs off an album, or what type of music was on the record, then I reasoned that it should go. Naturally, I’d listen to the record before making a final decision, but in most cases, the album I pulled from the shelves was good, but not vinyl worthy in my new, well-curated, vinyl collection. The result is I now have a couple of empty cubes that can be repurposed for those new records that I will most certainly be picking up. 

I wasn’t, however, as deliberate with the optical discs. As I had decided to move away from the shiny disc formats, I made sure that those albums I was getting rid of were also available via Apple Music. Thankfully, that transition was rather easy as most were already in the virtual library and those that weren’t were easily added with Apple’s ‌iCloud‌ Music Library feature, ensuring that no song, or album, was left behind.

Collectors may ask if one can ever be truly satisfied with renting music vs owning and my answer is yes; especially when lossless streaming is now at our fingertips. Plus, it isn’t as if I’m not owning any music for my most treasured albums will remain on vinyl henceforth. The other thing I consciously do is download the lossless albums that are dear and near to me; not everything, of course. I do this because I know that despite being constantly connected to the Internet, things can go wrong and while no one likes buffering, it is an aspect that I can’t stand when out and about if I drop into a less than desirable service area. There is also a level of additional control to having the albums downloaded and that is you can guarantee that the version you’re listening to is the version you’ve downloaded. For instance, I was recently listening to a Dolby Atmos album via Apple Music and upon streaming the third track, I was delivered the CD-lossless edition instead. Frustrating, yes, but by downloading the album, I was then able to listen to every track in Dolby Atmos – I checked! A similar thing can happen with a lossless track being delivered as lossy if your connection isn’t perfect. The algorithm aims to never have the music stop, but that can cause fluctuations in quality. Hence, my recommendation is if you choose to go down this path, download the albums that you want, in the quality you desire, and then you’re set for uninterrupted listening as if you had the CD with you at all times. 

For those of you wondering, I utilised not only eBay but Discogs to cull the collection and priced the individual items at prices that were not only fair but what they were valued at. Unlike a similar binge, a couple of decades ago, I was fortunate to not require quick sales so I could hold out for other collectors that would cherish and add these formerly prized possessions to their collection. Of course, there were moments when the process was emotionally draining, for you’re giving up part of the collection you’ve worked on for years, but as more and more albums were sent out, freeing the physical space, the negativity that had once clouded my enjoyment began to lift and I was listening to music with renewed vigour knowing that I would only add those albums to my vinyl collection that I simply couldn’t live without; the ones that if the Internet stopped working tomorrow, and we were thrust back into the dark ages, would be essential listening. 

While the process is still ongoing, I’m no longer listening to music for impurities within formats but for the enjoyment that one is meant to feel when the combination of notes collectively touches one’s soul. Perhaps best of all, I adore my Project Debut Carbon with an Ortofon OM20 needle and am not at all interested in updating any aspect of my vinyl setup. It is my version of perfect and the sense of harmony I now feel cannot be understated. It won’t be enough for everyone, but I can now get back to enjoying the music, for that is all that matters.