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Art Dudley Calls B.S. but without naming names - PLEASE DO!

Hey all,

As someone who hasn't been reading the audiophile press for all that long, I stumbled upon this article that I'm sure it lit up these airwaves when it was first published: https://www.stereophile.com/content/skin-deep

It's a great article and one that any knowledgeable person would most likely agree with, but hey, spending your own hard-earned (or inherited) money is a right and a privilege.  Art does call out some brands that he perceives to give great value:  AMVR, VPL, Conrad-Johnson, DeVore and Harbeth and Kimber and Peachtree and Quicksilver and Rega and Rogue and Spendor and Wavelength.  Shouldn't NAD be on this list?  

But what he doesn't do and I think is warranted, is name the companies that are most egregious in selling high-end products where the performance is far below the cost.  

I, for one, would love to see a list of those manufacturers from the people who read this forum.  You can group them by what they manufacture or just put them in order as you see fit.  I think it would be most helpful in calling b.s. but with "added-value", which is what this whole article was all about.  Right?

lgoler

Showing 1 response by twoleftears

twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,320 posts
 

It's so difficult to judge value in audio products, especially speakers.

OK, so we know that the actual cost of wood (or other materials), drivers, and a few electronic components is nothing like the retail cost of the speaker.

But... production has to be set up, with all that that entails.  And then there's the question of how you amortize all the preparatory work (some would call it research) that went into finalizing the design.  There are all kinds of costs everywhere.  Employees, buildings, packaging, advertising, distribution, the dealer (up to 50%), to say nothing of profit for the maker.

It would be fascinating to see a pie chart, provided by a real speaker manufacturer, of how the retail price is divided up.  Then we might be better equipped to judge value.

That being said, there are plenty of instances where, to the outsider at least, there are two speakers that seem to belong in the same bracket yet have radically different prices.  That's what leaves me scratching my head.

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