That's what I like to hear

[mdlbear]

Silence. From my speakers, when no music is playing. Even more silence from my sound-isolating headphones. Blessed silence. I could get used to this really fast.

My loot for the day consisted of: a pair of M-Audio DX4 studio monitors (little, bookshelf-sized self-powered speakers, $150 at Starving Musician), a pair of Vic Firth SIH1 "stereo isolation headphones", and a MagnaCart folding hand-truck (both from Guitar Showcase). The phones are a bit of a tight fit -- I probably won't be able to wear them all day, which is a damned pity. They advertise about 24dB of isolation, which is believable. They completely block the fan noise in the computer room; they're basically hearing protectors with little speakers in them.

Both speakers and phones sound damned good with music, too. I can now do serious mixing and editing in the computer room, which after all was the goal of this little expedition.