Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#371

Post by woudsma » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:11 PM UTC

I bought a Pioneer DJM-750MK2 (a 4-channel mixer). I'm super happy with it.

Also bought a second 27-inch monitor to have a 3-monitor setup (macbook + 2x 27' monitors), which is fantastic, especially when using Ableton Live on two screens.

COVID made me spend less in general, so I invested in music. Made lockdown more bearable. Quality music gear usually doesn't lose it's value.

Other recent purchases I'm very happy with: - Roland TR-8S - Ableton Push 2 - Tascam 16x8 multitrack interface - Jomox T-Resonator MK2 and Jomox M-Resonator - Quality cables - New earpads for my AIAIAI TMA-2 headphone

Music and programming is a good lockdown strategy for me.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#372

Post by ldrndll » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:12 PM UTC

cdubzzz wrote: post #126

Garmin Forerunner 245[0] Got it as a birthday gift about a year ago and I have since finally moved on from struggling to get past 5Ks to running multiple 10Ks and now training for a half marathon. It has also helped me be more health conscious generally and I've lost 25lbs to get from high overweight to the top of end of normal (BMI-wise). The Garmin ecosystem for workout planning/recording/stats/etc. is surprisingly…

Just wanted to say well done on losing all that weight!

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#373

Post by lancesells » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:12 PM UTC

nfoz wrote: post #219

Light Dims! http://www.lightdims.com/index.php Little sticky cellophane pieces, that you can put on the little LED lights on all modern electronics, so that you can still see them but they're not so bright. Because I hate being surrounded by blinkenlights that are a bit too bright and hurt my eyes in the dark.

Nice. I had an idea about making the same sort of product but with gels to change the color of the LED and dim it as well. Haven't gotten around to testing it out but might do it now that I see this.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#374

Post by anon776 » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:13 PM UTC

mrfusion wrote: post #44

giles wrote: post #18

Onewheel Pint! It was the ultimate quarantine toy. I saw so much of my city I hadn't seen before and it did a great job of getting me outside in general.

How far does it go? How is the safety? Is it fun?

On a charge, 15 miles but depends on your weight and the terrain. My son put 22 miles on one once on a single charge.

Safety wise, yeah wrecks on onewheels can be bad. If you are a speed demon you will break something. If you are careful you should be fine. A set of fangs on the board and a pair of wrist guards are highly recommended. And a helmet at all times.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#375

Post by mayormcmatt » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:14 PM UTC

A bug net backpacking hammock!

I love to backpack, but have never, ever found a good solution for comfortable sleep, so I dread the nights. A hammock setup changed all that. Sleep better out there than at home, in some cases.

The model I have is a Hammock Gear Zippered Bug Net Hammock for $129. Basic and functional. I think with all the clips and slings, etc. it probably set me back $200 in total. Saved money on the underquilt by repurposing an old sleeping bag or using an insulated pad inside the hammock, but that can be an extra couple hundred depending on the brand and quality.

Anyway, great purchase and I'm oh so happy about it.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#376

Post by anon776 » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:14 PM UTC

mlni wrote: post #277

giles wrote: post #18

Onewheel Pint! It was the ultimate quarantine toy. I saw so much of my city I hadn't seen before and it did a great job of getting me outside in general.

Same here. It's absolutely amazing for exploring an urban environment. Floating around in a large open space like a plaza is serene. It's not too fast and it doesn't go very far, but this hasn't been limiting so far. My legs get tired before the battery runs out.

If you get calf pain, look into the kush foot pads. Worth every penny.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#377

Post by thom » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:14 PM UTC

kaybe wrote: post #17

- Noise-cancelling headphones (Sony 1000X-M3) are totally saving the rest of my productivity in home office. (The bluetooth does not work with my current Linux version, but I will not update that until my work is done just in case something else stops working. It does however work with my 10-year-old Nokia phone. But hey, there is an audio cable which also works fine. The next time I will probably buy Bose, but only…

Everyone once in a while I'll realise I've still not listened to some favourite song on my pair of WH-1000XM3s, and it brings me new joy every time.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#378

Post by imwally » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:15 PM UTC

AirPods Pro: Noise cancellation in earbuds alone is worth the price but with the introduction of spatial audio in Apple Music, the price is even more justified. Listen to Radiohead's Live from the Basement!

MacBook Air M1: Dumb fast and dead silent. Everything I want from a computer.

Fellow Stagg EKG Electric Kettle: Great design and simple controls. Slowly weened myself off coffee and started drinking Yorkshire Gold tea at home. I use this every day, multiple times a day.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#379

Post by martindbp » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:15 PM UTC

Remarkable 2, I use it for at least an hour every day, reading, taking notes, exploring ideas etc. I had a notebook before but I just scribbled in it when I needed to think visually, but it wasn't something I'd do very often.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#380

Post by tgv » Thu, May 20, 2021, 4:16 PM UTC

An NAD C368 amplifier, with a Bluesound Node 2i. The amp sounds good, and the Node thing can stream almost anything. However, before you buy an amp, listen to it, preferably with your own speakers, and in your own room. Otherwise, listen to it in the store in combination with similar speakers.

A Korg Monologue, an small, simple and versatile analog single voice synthesizer. I've grown up with digital synthesis and analog emulation, but to have all the knobs in front of you is really different, also since you can't just undo.

A Philips automatic espresso machine. It's not high end (at all), and looks rather average, but it makes a fine espresso, and is easy to clean and maintain.