Why is DIY better than factory-made?

[Jezz-the-Fezz]

I get what you're all saying; I love the idea of building a rig to compete with high end systems I could never aspire to. The fact is, I couldn't afford to get the components necessary to do that either, if you want to go to the "n'th" degree. One thing that DIY'ing does allow you to do, however, is avoid compromise. Commercial manufacturers have to appeal to more than one potential customer; the diy'er does not. The DIY builder has the opportunity to emphasise all of the aspects of his build or design that he (or she) finds paramount and perhaps lacking in commercial products. Incidently, I've got my late dads John Lindsey Hood PA; does anyone have a clue how it compares to the latest Gainclones?

Cheers, Jezz

 

[soongsc]

When companies plan for a market, they need to figure out the worst sales, the predicted sales, and the optimistic sales. Since no matter how much a company loves audio just for the sake of it, no one wants to lose money on it in the process of sharing the results with conumers. I'm sure that each DIYer would do the same if they sold their products. There are lots of parts suppliers for DIY here, and I'm sure they do not want to lose money either.

If you actually count the hours you spent on DIY and factor it with your salary on an hourly basis, you migh find that DIY most cases are not cheaper. But you can customize to your own requirements without compromise.

 

[ervington]

I'm in it for the customizability. If I go to Best Buy or start to look around on the web for an amp, virtually everything I see is "5.1 surround sound, Dolby Digital, 1 trillion watts!, UltraBassBoost!, 18 audio inputs (with no LP input still) etc, etc..." All I need is an amp that drives 2 speakers in stereo and can reproduce the signal from my record player. So I find on the internet some simple stereo receivers and they're so freaking expensive I might as well make a learning experience out of it and just build my own. Because for me, virtually anything I buy is going to have something I don't need, won't use, or won't like. If I make it, I'll love every resistor and capacitor (as long as it's not in the signal path).

But in the end, DIY is an enjoyable hobby. If I knew how to make millions a year doing it, that would be nice, but then it would be a job. I could save time buying what the guy at Best Buy thinks I should, or I can waste some time and end up with something personal.

PS: the first time I heard how loud and clean 8W from a tube amp could drive my speakers over my 50W/channel solid state it changed my world. Not saying one is better than the other, just that in DIY I'm not being fed a line (You NEED those 50W/channel) just to get me to buy something.