As long as I dont get sacked from my job I'll be buying gear, but if I do get the sack I'll probably consider how much it would have cost me to get there and spend that on gear.

ORIGINAL: aaronk

Is your hobby music, or shopping?

Both, actually! How'd you guess?

Like others, I just got back into it earlier this year (Feb'ish), after long hiatus, the last 7 years of which have been dedicated to creating a company, and I could still have a heart attack any day now, because my business is one of those bigger risk for a longer term bigger reward (hopefully.) I'd completely given up any life at all, no friends, no family, no women, no nothing. So I had to have some sort of outlet.

I don't feel about a hobby that involves the development of skills and the generation of beautiful and/or useful output. It's not like a pure sloth type of expense or pure ego expense (Ferrari.) It's something that will challenge me for the rest of my life to be creative and to learn and grow. I have very little money to spend, since it all has to go back into the business, and I've paid myself probably around $15K a year on average for the last 5 years (not counting the $45K of my saving I invested into it.) But, I had a few bits already (Les Paul, studio monitors, and computer which I had for work anyway), so it wasn't a huge expense to get the other bits into place. And I also sold some other things to help finance it.

Relative to dying of a stress related heart attack, and the expenses that would involve, it's definitely cheap. And, as someone else has already mentioned, in addition to the challenge and growth, there's also the great benefits to self esteem and sense of self-worth, something that I'm way too light on. Also, I'd played guitar seriously from 13 up into my early 30s and studied classical for a year at the college level. So I'd put so much time into it and it would have been such a waste to waste all that effort.

The great thing about the modern digital home studio is that you don't have to be a super-duper instrumentalist. You can be a composer and song writer and use the tools to put not terribly huge music skills to maximum effect to create great music in a more ensemble type of way, but without the ensemble. Otherwise, you'd either have to be a band, something that many of us just couldn't practically do, or you had to be a great solo performer of some sort, or you had to try to build up your songs on limited equipment that didn't sound that great. Now, you can create radio-ready content in your bedroom, and do it all yourself and make up for a lot of lackings in the playing skills department by understanding how to use the tools and by building up songs out of smaller, simpler parts and still have them sound great.

And of course all of us probably dream about finally doing that song that just takes the world by storm, or at least gets a huge amount of respect from fellow musicians. It's not usual that you get to do something fun and fulfilling, in your bedroom by yourself, that has the possibility of making you rich and/or famous. Software entrepreneurship is another one of those where you can do that, and I do both of those, so I'm hopefully doubling my chances.

Great topic!

I was buying all kinds of software thinking I needed it. Turns out I didn't. Most of it is gathering virtual dust now. I found I was making less and less music and spending more time fiddling with new software, reading reviews, and playing with demos. I realized that back in my 4-track days I had to squeeze every ounce of functionality out of what little gear I had and I was much more productive. So, I made a conscious decision to simplify. Now I have just a few pieces of gear, some essential software (Sonar of course) and I'm finally getting writing again. Now if I'm even considering a purchase it has to pass the "what essential function does this provide that I don't already have" test. I want to spend more time making music than learning new software! So far, nothing has passed muster so now I'm spending very little money on my music hobby.

Oh, and back to the original question: I guess I convinced myself the money isn't the point.

--JD

Just go out and price what it takes to play golf once or twice a week. Recording is cheap in many apects nowadays

Dead on, some couses i play at cost over $100 for a round of 18. Prices are seasonal, durring the summer months it goes down to 50 - 60 bucks, wich is still alot for 4-6 hours of pure aggravation.
Cj

You bet! I could make all the noise I wanted 60 miles offshore

And of course you can't eat a song after you've finished it.

Tiger Woods doesn't spend his time shopping for golf clubs, he spends it practicing his game.

Come to think of it, he probably doesn't spend too much time in golf forums, either.

I like all the comments about a mid-life crisis. I occasionally get together with some guys I played with back in the 80s. We just jam, maybe with a dream to play out again some time, but not the collective time to make it work. But it sure is fun to get together a few times a year just to play. Anyway, I'd been wanting to get a nicer bass - and to go to five strings - for a while, but found it hard to justify in the family budget. Then I just figured "what the heck" and got one. I was beaming the next time we got together. One of the guys said, "For their mid-life crisis some guys have an affair, other guys get a convertible - you got an extra string."

I agree with many of the comments here. Compared to almost any hobby out there, home recording really isn't that expensive. Once you buy something, you have it. There aren't really any recurring expenses. I know a lady who's involved in knitting. She can spend hundreds of dollars a month on specialty yarns. Once she uses them, they need to be replaced. Once I record a song, I don't have to stock up on supplies to record another. People spend a fortune on photography, aquariums, doll collecting, vintage wines, and any number of other things. Anything that gives you satisfaction and a sense of well-being is worth it.

If I can lose track of time because I'm immersed in something, that thing is worth it. I used to be that way about computer programming, until I started making a living at it - now music fills that void. I'm not good enough at recording to go pro, or even support my hobby, and I suspect that if I ever did, it would stop being fun for me.

Hm - did I just talk myself into justifying finally buying Dimension Pro?

I must admit I really enjoy having such a Hobby I tried so many things before but I realise that I may not be the best musician but I have always been a lyricist. So now whether I am happy or sitting next to the gutter I can now write a song about it and put it into Sonar (or even not write a song about it and just put it into sonar.

I am known in my circles regarding song writing it is a personal achievement for me. When I become more accomplished maybe just maybe I will be able to share more often with others the expression of my Heart.

GB.

I convince myself it's worth the money when I realise that I've spent mountains on inferior products over the years.

This is what i try and avoid doing.

Many pieces of gear lose value quickly. Mostly electronics and stuff. Although there are exceptions to this - such as Yamaha NS-10 speakers which still command a pretty high price.

As far as instruments go, many INCREASE in value over the years - especially Guitars. For instance, my Martin 12-String - I already see that selling on eBay for a couple hundred more than I paid for mine a few years ago. Same with my Martin D-16 and my Les Paul Custom. I wouldn't go as far as calling these things an investment, but I do believe if you purchase good stuff it will retain it's value and even increase it's value over time. Especially acoustic guitars.

On the other hand, I don't believe my Mexican Strat will ever be worth more than the $360 I paid for it - even though it's my favorite Guitar.

I think any change in gear influences the creative process which is a positive. I read that on each project he does, The RZA buys a new piece of gear and tries to incorporate it into his composing. BT another great composer does the same thing. So the question really is, what's it worth to become a better musician, performer, or composer?

my other hobby sadly is theology, that costs nowt (bar the books)

ORIGINAL: hellogoodbye

Now I've recently started making music again, I suddenly remember one other reason for not doing it for some time: the cost of it all. Well, not so much the real cost of it all, but the cost of all the things I'd like to have or the stuff I think I need to have... How do you convince yourself that drum addon is worth the 250 euro while you are only making music for fun? Do you really NEED it? No. Do you really WANT is? Hell, yes.


I was just browsing and after reading your post, I couldn't help but remember how many times I've asked myself that same question. Having started my first studio in '85 maybe you can imagine just how much I've accumulated. I've given tons away to aspiring musicians and still have tons left. That said I wouldn't trade what I do for all the tea in China. Sometimes all you need to inspire a new song is that new piece of gear. Once you hear what it'll do you find yourself waking in the middle of the night pumping out new music. Maybe it works. Maybe it doesn't. I've even found myself reaching back to a piece of gear I laid to rest years ago just because it fit what I was working on at the time. The thing to remember is never use the mortgage money to get it or you'll wind up looking at it with disdain when the foreclosure comes. Once you start looking at it as all the money spent, it's usually because you're not satisfied with what you've done with it. When you feel stagnated, start listening to others to expand your musical vision. Remember, it was listening to others that made you feel YOU could do it.

I'm never one to be disagreeable but it ain't about the money. It's about the MUSIC! You do this long enough you find you buy things that are supposed to be the rave everywhere you ask, only to find after you've spent your hard earned money it's either full of bugs or doesn't suit your purpose. Been there. Done that. Got the T-shirt.

ORIGINAL: bitflipper

Ask yourself if you're really getting the most out of what you have. I've got lots of stuff that I've never even read the manual for, much less understood all their capabilities. I could stop buying gear now and it would be two years before I mastered everything I've currently got. I could stop buying products based solely on glowing catalog descriptions. Yes, I could stop any time I wanted to. Maybe next year.

Very well said. An old habit was only using the manual to learn about what I wanted to do right then.