I guess the answer is that whatever we find that inspires us will cause us to dig in and learn more. I just started out in a world of hardware synths around the time MIDI was first introduced. And I spent countless hours dealing with latency issues, hardware issues, etc. So when softsynths and DAWs came out, with impeccable timing, low cost, no limits on physical space or even money really, it was a real turning point for me. Reintroducing hardware synths into my life basically also reminded me of a lot of hassles in the past. Look at all the posts about USB integration with the Virus on this forum for example. My old Juno 106 spontaneously lost an oscillator, I had to practically give it away to a guy who had a shot at fixing it.
I still like hardware and am inspired by it, but I think it takes access to a lot of hardware and dozens of physical synths to get the same learning opportunity that softsynths provide. But yeah, I fully understand about the physical interaction of working with knobs and faders directly on the board, its inspiring to me too. Even just having blinking lights around me seems to inspire
