Your response seems to general.Manufacturers look at it differently.Some of the real expensive stuff is costly to upgrade. I remember reading of a Levinson piece, where the upgrade is 4k.Dunlavy sure devaluated the IV,when they came out with the IVa.Res.Ref;same when they went from 50 to 55.However there are lots of pieces where a 500 or less upgrade makes a lot of dif.The biggest upgrade to me was the $300; 24/96 mod to my Theta5a.So,I guess I'm saying/sometimes yes/and others, no. Some are just happy with what they bought....Just not me.
Is Component "Upgradability" Important ?
I have always been concerned when buying a component that it can be upgraded by the manufacturer at a later date if a new version comes out but I am starting to wonder if this is really that important. I say this because manufacturers are hardly willing to give away upgrades just because you may have purchased an earlier version of their product. It seems as though you will end up spending the same amount of money whether you pay for the conversion to the new model or you sell your old component and put the money towards the cost of a completely new model. I am not sure what is the best way to go for the manufacturer but I am also not sure that having one model physically converted into another model is always the less costly way to go for the consumer.