I totally agree 
For the record, from April 19th the number of users went up big time, from 150% to 200%. Some of the regular users were also attracted by the dark whirlpools…
But we are already seing the sun through the clouds! 
As a moderator as well as a regular user, such thread and a few others are quite a solace for the heart 
Been away from the forum for a few months as I’m trying to manage my exposure to social media and gear related stuff, and I’m not sure if it helped a lot, the same questions and worries lingered even though I was gear ads and discussion free.
In the meantime, got covid too after 2 years avoiding it, and saw a big rise in my anxiety due to stuff happening in my professional life and personal life as well. It’s been nearly impossible to do any sort of music since a few months due to this and the immense fear of not living up to my own way too high expectations.
During all this, I’ve managed to not buy any more new gear, so I’m pretty proud of that, even though at times it felt like a pretty artificial and empty limitation between me and my goal of building an electronica-jamesholdenish-lukeabbottish kind of live setup.
Anyway, going through a lot, not on here very much, some GAS but manageable. The day before yesterday I finally started my treatment for anxiety and lack of sleep and managed to focus a lot more on the pleasure of just doing some music and a lot less on the super intimidating idea of building an ambitious live set and setup.
Good luck to you all my fellow NGNYers, we can do it!
I had a horrible period of this last year, a good 6 months or so of 2-3-4hrs a night and then mind whizzing at 100 miles an hour all the time. Hope it gets better for you, I found CBD really helpful.
I’m well and truly out of NGNY… 
Tomorrow I’m taking delivery of a Syntakt and a Tascam Model 12 mixer.
I’m planning to use the Syntakt with my Digitone going into the Model 12 for a compact setup for some gigs I’ve got coming up… no excuse really, but there it is, my self-justification/enabling.
Next week I’m going to make an effort to start selling.
I’m out too, just got a good deal on a kontrol s25, damned eBay gets me every time… Ah well I’m proud I lasted this long… kudos to y’all that make it all the way…
I have kind of bollocksed this up by buying a new iPad, but I’d like to have this stricken from the record on the grounds that my old one is a security risk and I’m also going to use it for serious things like keeping track of my various debts and obligations, watching DIY instructional videos and such. So really it’s a bit like buying a new pair of shoes that I might occasionally wear while programming synths.
Recently I’ve had a couple of epiphanies about my past as a gear hoarder. One day I was thinking how much I like my MPC Live 2 Retro edition. I was full of love for that machine. I looked around and realized how many pieces of gear I had bought after the MPC, and it was a lot. Almost all of my gear. Only a few pieces had stayed with me longer than that. And it was alarming as the MPC felt like a very recent acquisition.
This morning my Facebook’s ”memories” -department reminded me that it has been one year today since I bought my Roland V-Synth. What the actual f**k? But I’ve had it for years! It was here before the MPC. It is old as the hills!
Being four months ”sober” has really cleared my head to see the frequency with which I bought gear before deciding to jump out of the rat race. I bet if I looked at one of my own posts in the ”Your setups” thread from two or three years back I would have maybe two or three pieces that have stayed, everything else around them would’ve changed. It’s insane.
I feel like I’ve been sitting in AA meetings with you guys and finally seen the stupidity of my old ways. It’s really hard to see anything wrong until you take a step or two away from it and see it from afar.
I’ve had a GAS crisis around the Hydra Deluxe those last days…Delays on the Osmose are partly responsible I guess…A few days off have been really good to tame it down…
The time has come. I broke my celibacy. Thank you Syntakt!
It feels great to explore a new instrument but i don’t really need it. I will sell some other gear for it though. And i’ll definitely try to hold back more gas to come. Maybe i can buy one device a year. That would be ok i guess.
So shame on me and good luck to you!
Posting in this thread with absolutely no justification as i’ve been trading in and out of stuff for most of the year (in prep for NGNY 23, ha)- it’s difficult to find the tools that complement your brain best.
If MPC is that for you, then do everything you can to prioritize that. I’ve realized ableton is really the only compositional tool that I will make music I’m happy with for the goal I need (fairly structured, dance oriented), but hardware as an expansion of sonic potential (destroying with distortion and analog processing), to move within the Ableton sandbox later, is what i’m chasing right now.
Hey fellas! It’s been four months today! One third of the challenge done. Congratulations us!
I waited for @joebas to make the announcement. He’s the original poster and our ”NGNY -messiah” but as day turns slowly to night I realized that he’s probably forgotten. So pat yourselves on the back if you’re still going strong. Well done everybody!
Thank you! Feels so appropriate for you to do the announcement. All of us remaining are all equals in this, and I’m proud of all of us. Sorry for being gone from the thread for a while. Lots going on, but I always check in and read, even if I don’t write. I have updated the list.
Here is to four months! Congrats everybody 
I bought a polyend tracker this year, and a decksaver for my microfreak.
That’s it!
But: I deleted my amazon account. That was the best decision I ever made.
I just search for stuff (whatever that is) in my city, heck if i can’t get it here, bad luck!
Your initiative of starting this challenge has been one of the best things in the recent years. I have a history of trying to restrict my life in different ways. I was 23 when I drank alcohol for the first time, I’ve never done any drugs, I’ve never even tasted coffee and naturally being vegan for a couple of years now. My whole life is basically one big No **** **** year, every year.
So in the beginning this thing appealed to my personality. I took it as yet another challenge of self discipline. ”I can do this.”
After four months I’ve realized the other benefits. I’ve saved quite a bit of money which has gone to other, healthier purposes. I’ve started to actually play with the stuff I own and watch videos of the gear on my table. I also aspire to learn a lot more about music theory and playing guitar. As my focus is not on the next hot piece of gear anymore, it’s a lot easier to achieve.
Thank you for writing that. Knowing that this project, is making a meaningful difference for others, big or small, has been a really great experience, and it truly warms my heart. Has had a really big impact for me as well, in various, non-gear-related ways too. I’m so happy to know, that we are sharing this.
Free if you have a MacBook Air
Perhaps, or you could just take home the general idea that you can pursue your own creative alternative free solutions
Yes, the general idea is a good one. I don’t know why anyone who would have heard of the Syntakt needs to be told that they can use a DAW if they own a computer.
Is there a reason for the “989” in the title of this thread? I don’t think it was there before.
