You Thought YOU Had It Tough

by James Leahy

The road to Audio Utopia is never a smooth one but how far would you go to follow your heart? One of the hardest of hard luck stories I have ever uncounted was from a good customer from rural, N.S.W. in their search for the ultimate Hi-Fi experience that will astound even the most battle hardened of Audiophiles everywhere.

It all started when I was called on my mobile one day by Mr. X about an Audio Research VT200 Mk.I amplifier I had advertised on my website for a cheap price.

Mr. X had a Classé amplifier to trade-in, even so I did not hold that against him as he has seen the error of his ways and was committed to change his system for the better.

Not being in the immediate position to purchase the said equipment Mr. X decided to place the amplifier of his dreams on Lay-By to ensure the success of all his savings had not been in vain. Having now 3 months to sell his amplifier and pay the balance was just a formality and one that he was most keenly looking forward to as I am told.

After the torturously long time as it always seems when buying something new Mr. X and I finally met face to face and true to his word he paid for the VT200 Mk.I in full and told me his story of woe and of the unfortunate situation he had now found himself in.

As with the majority of my customers that buy my more expensive products their partners do not too often welcome them home with open arms afterwards and that is putting it mildly. Nevertheless, Mr. X had made up his mind and showed the commitment to his Hi-Fi system to love and cherish it till death do them part. So we can't really hold this against him as a man's Hi-Fi system is often his first love.

When I asked how much he must have be looking forward to waking up his system with one of the best stereo amplifiers in the world he told me that it would be going straight into long term high security storage with the rest of his gear for an undetermined period of time. You see Mr. X's marriage had been on the rocks for a while and now due to irreconcilable differences and going without any for quite sometime the only thing that got him off now was great sound and imaging. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt I hear you say. But why the need for high security storage? Unfortunately his estranged wife knew only too well of his unbridled passion for all things Hi-Fi and apparently when she gets cranky and in a bad mood she doesn't want him to have any fun either! Sound familiar? Well, enough is enough right? That's exactly what he thought but for his Hi-Fi to make it out from behind enemy lines without suffering massive casualties everything had to be locked down and hidden away from rebel forces less the unthinkable should happen. Yes you guessed it folks. This woman had threatened to destroy this gentleman's Hi-Fi system piece by piece without the slightest ounce of remorse or guilt purely as an act of spite and vindictiveness.

"After considering all the evidence laid before you how does the jury find the accused?" Guilty; Guilty; Guilty; your honor. Beyond all reasonable doubt on all counts!

Yes, unfortunately sometimes in this cruel world it is the innocent that are made to suffer the most and the thought of water being poured into a mint Audio Research VT200 Mk.I sets my blood on fire. Justifiable homicide would most certainly apply in cases like this and rightly so.

Sadly, Mr X. is now in the position of having to sell the family home from the infinite wisdom of our legal system, but to his credit he had already organized plans to be drafted up to build a new bachelor pad of his own with special attention given to the best listening room you have ever seen in your life. So eventually Mr. X will get his system up and running again and it will no doubt sound better than ever!  Conventional wisdom says the path to true love never runs smoothly and I guess that must be right. In this case even the darkest of dark clouds has a sliver lining and if nothing else let this be a lesson to all of you young guys out there.

After paying legal costs, court costs and dividing up his assets like a cold slab of beer on a hot day to an angry mob that just gate-crashed his party, Mr. X estimated that the whole legal experience set him back a cool $250,000.00 and this he tells me is a conservative estimate! The more assets one has the more complicated it all suddenly becomes when lawyers get involved. This seems to be the norm from other accounts also. One quarter of a m-i-l-l-i-o-n dollars obliterated into shear nothingness by lawyers and an inefficient Australian legal system is quite an achievement in generating quite possibly the worst experience in anybody's lifetime that this situation should never be allowed to be repeated on another citizen in this country. How many reading this would willingly spend this much on their Hi-Fi system? Imagine what system you could potentially build! Not many I bet would let their cheque book run wild to this extent but countless would have spent the same and even more on a messy property settlement. Value for money? I will let you answer that question for yourselves.

While this tale of hardship is terribly sad and unfortunate it is far for insolated in it's coincidence within Australia. The core of the matter is that Mr. X will never see that money back again along with his ex-wife, which is the only positive point but what an extraordinarily high price to pay. However, because it is hard to measure in pure financial terms people pay it everyday of the week, rather than put up with the alternative.

Upon reflection at my office, Mr. X confessed to me that looking back on the last 25 years of his life the amount that he had spent on his Hi-Fi equipment was but a small fraction of what he had just lost at the thieving hands of lawyers and the court system but his Hi-Fi system had given him far greater happiness then any similar priced investment he ever made. The point that Mr. X was making is that the value of good quality Hi-Fi equipment is not always obvious at the time of it's purchase. Like any investment it is in the years to come when life is becoming more and more uncertain each and everyday that his Hi-Fi system never let him down or made his life a living hell.

With Mr.X's permission he wished me tell his story in the hope that others may benefit.

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