Latest purchases (non-music)

[jetflag]

 

[jetflag]

^ zat puppy

 

[Archon]

A pair of these bad boys. Prepping for my next hiking holiday which is in a month's time. We're going to the same national park as we did last year (which was the vacation of a lifetime), but we're exploring other (potentially more stunning and remote) areas, staying a day or two longer this time.

I wanted high-cut boots because rolling my ankle was an issue last year, especially downhill, in tall grass where you don't see the ground beneath you. Could've gotten really bad. Plus, these will most certainly be my snow boots in moderately cold environments. My mids were just not high enough to avoid getting wet ankles.

After this purchase, I've got Salomon trail runners, Merrell mid-cut boots (which I absolutely love and regard as one of the best purchases ever) and these. I secretly lust after a pair of LTRs from Salomon because they look so good, but that's gonna have to wait for now.

Up next - definitely a good 20-30 l backpack, which has better back cooling. My back gets wet in 5 minutes after wearing a backpack, that is very annoying as I have to bring many shirts. I'm also gonna try and pack more effectively. Besides that, before going to the mountain I plan on getting a pair of hiking pants, some merino wool socks, underwear and Tees, and that will probably be my budget for this trip.

 

[Archon]

I've also bought new (summer) tires for my car - that brings just the cost of the tires I've bought in the past 3 months an eye-watering 1000 Euros. Will still try to replace the brakes completely, but that will have to wait for at least two months.

These are supposed to be good - will mount them this Saturday! Can't wait for the test drive.

 

[Archon]

Today was a hugely expensive day.

The mechanic was more expensive than I thought and took like 20 Euros more to change my tires (as compared to 3 months ago). A couple of more changes and it pays off much more to buy second-hand rims, have tires on them all the time and then just switch them myself.

But besides, that, I bought a couple of things.

The backpack feels very much overengineered, and it has all the features I need. During my hikes, I found that for a day's hike 30L of space is enough; besides that I need some venting at the back, space for my hiking poles, water bottles, water bladder (with a hole for the straw), also a waterproof cover and some small pockets to separate stuff. It has all of that, plus a lot more little details that do not matter, but are nice (such as elastic bands which take care of loose straps etc).

The pants are very light and stretchy. Not for cold or rainy weather but definitely light and (hopefully) breathable enough to not cause any discomfort.

Then I got a merino wool T-shirt, which was something I also wanted. It's very light and has some breathable mesh on the sides and at the back, which is great. Can't wait to try it out.

And then I saw a hoodie on the clearance rack which looked cool. Didn't need it, but fuck it.

 

[BS_BlackScout]

RTX 3060 12GB. It's unacceptable that the rumors spreading around say that the new 60 cards for the RTX 4000 series may only feature 8GB, it's such a ripoff.
Unless NVIDIA comes with a magical VRAM saving algorithm these cards are already DOA and have just begun to stuggle with the latest titles. Going for a higher VRAM card will at least allow for better compute task capability, better textures in current and future titles and more.
I'm glad people have at least some choice with AMD and Intel. Shame that AMD isn't as feature complete like DLSS, CUDA and well... good HWRT acceleration. Though Intel fills that gap (except for the drivers that aren't fully optimized for older titles so ehh)

Overall, a great choice.

 

[dmgtz96]

I've also bought new (summer) tires for my car - that brings just the cost of the tires I've bought in the past 3 months an eye-watering 1000 Euros. Will still try to replace the brakes completely, but that will have to wait for at least two months.

These are supposed to be good - will mount them this Saturday! Can't wait for the test drive.

I've heard of the pilot sport s 4, but had no idea the 5 existed.
Congrats! It's probably one of the best tires you can get in the market

 

[Archon]

I've heard of the pilot sport s 4, but had no idea the 5 existed.
Congrats! It's probably one of the best tires you can get in the market

PS 5s are a bit of an overkill for my car, but I just wanted a sportier tire and I wouldn't look at any other or let anyone convince me otherwise. They are at the top of their segment - Ultra High Performance (UHP) tyres, but then there's UUHPs and proper track tires - Michelin themselves make PS 4S, PS Cup 2 etc.

Unfortunately haven't had the chance to give them a proper go, but I have the entire spring to look forward to for that.

 

[dmgtz96]

I will take a road trip halfway across the country in about a month, so I just booked my hotels in Alabama and Louisiana. It'll be 3 days of driving ~10 hrs (technically, 8.5 hours driving and 1.5 hours charging). I've never visited Tennessee, Alabama, or Mississippi, and I've only been to Louisiana once.

On the way back later in May I'll take an alternative route that passes through north Texas and Arkansas. I'll spend a night in Sulphur Springs, TX and then spend 2 nights in Nashville, since I'm attending a pop concert over there. Then I'll head back to Virginia. I haven't booked the hotels for this one yet.

I've only been driving on my own for about two years, and my family never really did road trips, so I'm excited and a little nervous about spending so much time on the road. Autopilot and autosteer will likely do most of my highway driving. I'd like to see what the US has to offer!

 

[Archon]

I will take a road trip halfway across the country in about a month, so I just booked my hotels in Alabama and Louisiana. It'll be 3 days of driving ~10 hrs (technically, 8.5 hours driving and 1.5 hours charging). I've never visited Tennessee, Alabama, or Mississippi, and I've only been to Louisiana once.

On the way back later in May I'll take an alternative route that passes through north Texas and Arkansas. I'll spend a night in Sulphur Springs, TX and then spend 2 nights in Nashville, since I'm attending a pop concert over there. Then I'll head back to Virginia. I haven't booked the hotels for this one yet.

I've only been driving on my own for about two years, and my family never really did road trips, so I'm excited and a little nervous about spending so much time on the road. Autopilot and autosteer will likely do most of my highway driving. I'd like to see what the US has to offer!

Nothing to be nervous about TBH. Is it 10h straight driving from A to B or will you also take some detours along the road? Do you plan on exploring the areas where you'll be staying, or are you just staying because you need to sleep somewhere?

10h (or even 8.5) is not that much to be honest - my "record" is around 6-7, with some small breaks along the way. I remember when I was little and we were going to the seaside, my dad could drive through the night basically, 1000 km in one way.

In any case, have fun!

And don't do this.

 

[dmgtz96]

Nothing to be nervous about TBH. Is it 10h straight driving from A to B or will you also take some detours along the road? Do you plan on exploring the areas where you'll be staying, or are you just staying because you need to sleep somewhere?

10h (or even 8.5) is not that much to be honest - my "record" is around 6-7, with some small breaks along the way. I remember when I was little and we were going to the seaside, my dad could drive through the night basically, 1000 km in one way.

In any case, have fun!

And don't do this.

It'll mostly be from point A to point B and just spending the night because I need somewhere to stay. I might actually study while at the hotel, since the final exam for my class will happen that same weekend :/ but if I get bored I'll definitely explore the area!
And yeah, I've heard of people driving 12+hrs in a day, which is pretty crazy. The most I've done so far is 2 hours, so 8.5 will be a big jump.

And yup, I've seen that video hahahaha they immediately got a bad vibe from Alabama people. I've seen cars here in VA loaded with very liberal stickers that would definitely not be welcomed there. If there's anywhere I have a chance of being coal rolled it'll definitely be there or in Mississippi.

 

[unitedtrancedivision]

I crazy bastard bought an Amiga 500 ... Gonna restore it and make it running. Then OctaMED and lets go! New world for me.

 

[unitedtrancedivision]

I crazy bastard bought an Amiga 500 ... Gonna restore it and make it running. Then OctaMED and lets go! New world for me.

 

[Magnevi]

I forgot this topic is purchases "without music". I'm affraid the last thing I bought was a sextoy. \0/

Quickshot Vantage, if anyone is curious.

 

[unitedtrancedivision]

I forgot this topic is purchases "without music". I'm affraid the last thing I bought was a sextoy. \0/

Quickshot Vantage, if anyone is curious.

Thanks for the info ... Have fun! I guess?

 

[jetflag]

I forgot this topic is purchases "without music". I'm affraid the last thing I bought was a sextoy. \0/

Quickshot Vantage, if anyone is curious.

Am I the only one who is just that bit slightly dissapointed that the object in question isn’t a massive black dildo?

 

[Bobby Summa]

I forgot this topic is purchases "without music". I'm affraid the last thing I bought was a sextoy. \0/

Quickshot Vantage, if anyone is curious.

Sounds more like an old Aston Martin

 

[Bobby Summa]

Am I the only one who is just that bit slightly dissapointed that the object in question isn’t a massive black dildo?

To know its not that, you must have googled it! Or… you just knew somehow

 

[Archon]

While my car is in the shop, I figured I'd order some things to sort out the music and phone charging.

My car has USB (type A) and AUX input (both hidden in the glovebox), and my phone only has USB (type C) input. The car also has Bluetooth, but only for phone calls.

So I had a couple of choices. The obvious one was to purchase an FM transmitter (with a USB slot for charging the phone). That would've been the most convenient choice, however with 2 wireless transmissions (BT and FM), I would've lost audio quality, although I'd have less cables.

The second one was to purchase a BT adapter which plugs into the AUX socket. But that required charging as it had a small battery. So I would lose the USB socket as well, and need to purchase a phone charger which goes in the 12V socket.

So I opted for a third choice. I bought an adapter: one end goes into my phone (type C), the other has 2 inputs: type C and AUX. So I purchased the AUX cable. Because I only have type C - type C cable for charging, I also bought a type C - type A adapter. Sound quality-wise, it's the best choice (of the available), but more messy overall.

I also got some sticky cable holders/organizers, not to have them dangling around, bothering me. Would've been best if I could tuck them in behind the dashboard, but that would mean I'd have to break or drill through something.

Can't wait to try it out!

 

[LostLegend]

It's a well known scientific fact that rock bands make the best t-shirts!