Same here. I had to fund home and auto repairs and taxes that blew my budget for the next few years.
I joined the NGNY thing in March. Yes, it’s like cheating because I bought some stuffs during January and February but I really needed to put me on the mindset of not buying more stuffs.
It has been though, but really worth it since my wat of thinking in gear has changed a lot.
Now, whenever I think in buying something I first think : If I move away from home today, do I really want to take it with me? And suddenly the GAS dissapears.
Not only has worked for audio gear, but I’ve been buying fewer things than ever. Also I cleaned up my room for things that I kept with the excuse of “Well, sometime I’ll need this”. I’ve been selling a lot of gear also, cause I don’t want to carry the guilty of not using it the way I should, or the guilty of having something expensive feeling that I don’t deserve it.
I hope it lasts at least 6 months, since I need to save for a new computer for work. When the time comes to buy some gear, I’ll be concious about what can improve my creativity and workflow, since now I can feel when things could be better with X gear, instead of filling gaps that doesn’t exists.
I admire everyone that has survived the challenge hahaha and the ones that sinned too, because just taking the decision of not buying stuffs for a while is hard nowadays.
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It’s a shame that the world is rarely this black and white, because that’s 100% how my brain works. On or off, do it or not, 100mph or nothing. It causes me problems all the time!
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So yesterday I had the opportunity to do a masterclass at a conservatory about hybrid setups. I used my modular and Ableton for that and explained Bitwig a bit. It went great and had some talks with students afterwards. They made me realize that with a small set up and a tight budget you can do amazing things. The GAS that I had for some new modules vanished instantly. Still rocking my set up. Sold nothing and bought nothing (other then my little sin at the beginning of the year)
I see this thread as a mentally great read. Lots of respect and no fingerpointing to the sinners. Because it is all about realizing what you have and what you are doing with it. Thanks for that.
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I can only see a small computer keyboard, is that the sin?
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It’s my jungle machine 
thought it’d better look the part… 
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This is related, but maybe more of a way of not seeing black and white.
I “stopped drinking” on July 14th 2021. Since then I have had a couple of beers with a friend when his mum died. A beer with another friend in December that I hadn’t seen for 4 years. And finally a bottle of beer in Spain on vacation in February.
I used to drink every single day. I don’t see those beers as a failure. I still “don’t drink”.
I guess related, the only think I’ve bought has been an a4, and I sold it again. It isn’t a failure to fall off the wagon. The change is lifestyle/long term. Not black and white success/fail.
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That’s a good way of seeing it. I think I have to train myself to see that some is better than none/black, and some is also better than too much/white.
I do manage to view music gear like that now, basically as a result of this thread - just the entire rest of my life to go then 
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Update: cancelled the op-z. Too worried about the build quality and I really Don’t need it
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This is the way…
you really want the OP-1 instead. I love my OP-1 and went with that last year. Best portable battery powered beat machine. I will use it on the road at airports in the future if I ever get another travel based job.
Hey, this is the #NGNY thread, no gear buying seductions allowed here 
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so sorry! did not mean to tempt anyone
I have been good on my No Gear plan. I may even compete in next year’s NGNY 23 too.
Do we get a prize for winning multiple years of no gear? That would be awesome!
Yes, thank you for sharing and I must admit I admire your wife.
I have two sons, 9 and 11, both diagnosed with Asperger and my ex-wife decided 5 yrs ago that she had to manage everything without my contribution, well in a sense of not managing everything together as a family under one roof anymore, Things like those can easily be overstraining, at least it was for me. I often took the easy way out, communication is everything and both of us were incapable of doing so.
Reading about your kid making its way in their late teens gives me hope. I honestly thank you for that. Here it is still a long long way to go but I have hopes again.
Regarding GAS: Yeah whatever and I do not even take part of NGNY … nothing out there to raise my interest.
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No competition when you consider that some subsistence farmer from Tibet is going to beat you year after year. The poor are making this challenge totally unfair!
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No worries all in jest of course. Home and car ownership allow me to complete the no gear challenge.
Yeah, looks like a lovely machine, but the price is a bit steep. Besides, I came to my senses and decided against purchasing any other gear 
Edit: in fact I am down to one box now…
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Hi there, I just wanted to share my GAS-related experience this year. I’ve just realized it is my first post on Elektronauts and I’m a bit disappointed that it’s about gear addiction:D
I still haven’t sinned and hope I’ll stay strong throughout the year; I’m looking forward to my long-planned purchase of Linnstrument 128 (which is the only allowed purchase this year). Still, after a brief period of calm at the beginning of the year, I’ve found myself searching and thinking about gear nearly every day. It’s always something different; this week I’ve come to realize that I’ve been considering three different synths, a delay pedal, a cheap microphone and a MIDI controller. And let’s not forget that my first purchase would still be Linnstrument so this is fantasizing about the future after that. Sick! I also know that I don’t need any of that gear as I already have the stuff that I like and want to delve much deeper into.
So, do you have any advice/methods on how to cope with that huge waste of time and mental energy? I guess that being exposed to content about gear makes one focus on buying and I noticed that I forced myself not to watch gear-related content on YT at the beginning of the year and it may have been a positive factor that helped with GAS. I wonder, what else would you recommend?
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There’s nothing wrong with watching stuff on YouTube but I found that by only subscribing to content related to the gear I already own and use that I fell back in love with what I already have, try searching for tips and trick for your existing gear and or performance vids that will help you appreciate them and acquire a deeper knowledge… and practice with it, once you start back down the road of having fun with it all the gas will abate, worked for me…
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I’m in the same Linnstrument boat with you, although I’m looking at the full size one. In my mind I would finally learn everything about music theory, harmony and chords if I only had that. I would instantly also learn to play the guitar better. Those are all 100% lies I tell myself to justify the purchase for myself.
Still staying strong but there’s one for sale second hand locally and I’m biting my knuckles and hoping for it to go away.
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