Why DIY? (was Re: [sdiy] Another new hard to find part....)

[Roy J. Tellason]

On Wednesday 07 July 2004 04:32 pm, The Peasant wrote:
> > Pretty much all of the tech I encountered was tubes,  back when I started
> > with this stuff.  I can see where it might be "just the thing" for some
> > applications,  or where you want to get just "that sound" and there
> > really isn't any better way to get it.  Somehow,  though,  I don't
> > personally feel like I want to be bothered with tubes any more.

> Good, then maybe you can understand how I "don't personally feel like I
> want to be bothered with computers any more".

Sure,  I've felt that way at times.  :-)  But I do continue,  finding them 
just too useful for what I want to do here.  Please don't take my comment as 
being disparaging,  it wasn't meant that way.

> There is a whole lot more to working with tubes than what you state above,
> for one there is the opportunity to learn things that don't apply anywhere
> else (computers are like this as well, but different), there is the
> opportunity to first-hand explore basic physics, and there is nothing with
> so much "physical presence" as a tube rig.

No doubt about that!  Which is one of the reasons I have a problem with it, as 
the "physical presensce" of what I've got now occupies way too much of this 
room,  the hallway in front of my bookshelves,  and most of a 10x20 storage 
unit!  :-)

> I really enjoy building hardware, there is NOTHING that I can do with a
> computer that even comes close for me in terms of satisfaction. YMMV

Yep,  it does vary.

I agree that there's a certain real satisfaction to building something where 
you start out with a concept and realize it,  make that physical reality 
happen from something that's in your head.  But I also find it a bit of a 
hassle.  And the bigger and more complicated the project is,  the more of a 
hassle I find it.  Maybe that'll change,  I dunno -- maybe part of it is me 
not having a real work area to do stuff in at this point in time,  and for 
the past several years.  We'll see.