May Book Update: yet another big one...

Actually apparently that's been in me and waiting to come out. I just sat down and wrote a little chapter about it and I'll copy-paste it here... TLDR I think the issue isn't out of control GAS but rather mustering up the will to sell what you don't use. Unfortunately the patreon comment system doesn't let me hit "enter" so it's one big text dump. I might tweak it a bit but here goes: 9 Tips for Dealing with Gear Acquisition Syndrome. The title to this section is “dealing with”, which immediately positions buying new gear as a bad thing - but I don’t think that’s the case at all. I think new gear is an opportunity for new forms of creativity and fun, and I am opposed to depriving myself or you of either of those things. New gear has the potential of getting something out of you creatively that just wasn’t happening before. Besides, it’s not GAS - it’s setup optimization ;) However, and you knew there was going to be a “but” here, I wanted to share a few thoughts with you: 1. Where are you going to put it? As if the time of this writing I’m on the verge of bidding on a Juno 106 on eBay. I’ll probably be able to sell it for what I buy it for, so what’s stopping me? Well, it’s a 5 octave keyboard and it’s no good to me sitting in the basement, and I have no place to put it. … And the TAL plugin sounds damn close too… so lack of space alone is keeping my finger off the buy button. Before you buy something, have a look around you and see if you have somewhere to put it. Which brings me to my next point…. 2. Sell before you buy: Sell something of equal value or that takes up the same amount of space. If you can’t bring yourself to sell something because of emotional attachment, ask yourself what’s the amount of time that needs to pass after which you’re never going to touch that piece of gear again. For me it’s two years. If I haven’t touched something in two years, it might be time to say goodbye. To borrow from Marie Kondo, after two years, does it really “spark joy” in you…? Look at it this way - you’re helping someone else solve their GAS problem - which is quite generous of you and thus fulfilling your role in the circle of gear life. The secondary advantage of selling before you buy is that now you have guilt free cash to spend on something new. Worried about sellers remorse? Don’t - you’ll probably be able to buy it again for the same price or less, perhaps even from the same person you sold it to as they get over their GAS… 3. Borrow instead of buy (& get synth friends): This has been my #1 way of dealing with GAS. If you don’t have synth friends already you should, not just because you can borrow (and lend them) gear, but mainly because otherwise you’ll be surrounded with “regular” family/non synth friends who think you’re crazy. Problem: many synth lovers are crazy too and may make GAS worse. 4. Synths are NOT a good investment: If you have a time machine, and you go back to 2001 (“the analog synth depression”) and buy a Juno 106 and CS80 instead of Microsoft and Apple stock, I’ll be very disappointed in you. The S&P 500 has proven to be a much better investment than synths and takes up way less space. 5. Buy used: Electronic music gear tends to hold its value quite nicely. Go to eBay or reverb.com and look at past sale prices as the benchmark for what to pay, and the overall trend will show you where the price is going. As long as you have the discipline to sell, used gear is essentially free (except for the alternative cost of buying and holding the S&P 500….) 6. Rediscover your old gear: That’s an easy one - go back to what made you “fall in love” in the first place, or find new things you can do with what you already have. If the thrill is gone - sell it! 7. The Kickstarter problem: This is a particularly tough one - I love supporting kickstarter projects but the time constraint issue does apply additional pressure. So far I’ve not had any issues with kickstarter projects not happening (though they have been delayed), and I’ve been able to sell things that didn’t “spark joy” for more than what I bought them. My recommendation is to just give it thought even if it means missing out on the “super early bird” price, which brings me to my next points, which is: 8. Wait a week: That’s not too much to ask I think, and ultimately the excitement may just fade away. 9. Look at it as a rental (rationalization alert!): Like I said, I don’t think avoiding new gear is something to aspire to or either possible, but if you’re diligent about selling gear you don’t use (and you prove it by actually selling something) - I prefer to treat buying gear as a rental, with the price diffference between the purchase and sale as the rental fee. Looking at it that way (again assuming you sell!) Makes buying new gear and especially used gear a relatively inexpensive way to have creative fun. So… If I had to sum it up in one sentence, in my opinion, the real challenge isn’t GAS but rather identifying the stuff you no longer use and letting it go so someone else can deal with the problem of detaching themselves from it!

Also I don’t suppose I could get you to think about adding a section discussing when someone’s Gear Acquisition Syndrome has gotten out of control. Alternatively mine is about to make me get a Microvolt 3900 just to start learning how the functions it has in common with the Voltage Research Lab work so either or would be awesome... but probably more the GAS one...

Jason Hoffman

thanks Ziv