I'm talking about wood trim on amps or preamps? Some of the wood appears to be quite beautiful, but I think that it looks "wrong" and I dislike wood trim! I'm taking an informal poll:
Hate= Would NEVER own with wood trim Dislike= Would prefer no wood trim Neutral= I could care less Like= Would prefer wood trim Love= MUST have wood trim
Also, if you live outside of the USA, would you please indicate so and your country, [if you feel comfortable giving this info]?
I'm just curious about preferences, and also to see if they vary in other countries!
Here's something to fuel the fire both figuratively and possibly literally if I don't like the way it sounds. I'll be receiving this preamp in a couple weeks:
http://www.exemplaraudio.com/exception.htm
I liked that it looks like a recently washed ashore piece of driftwood. Funky!
On a general note I DO like the way some components looked in the late '60s to early '70s with the chassis surrounded by a walnut case.
I remember when the wood case was an extra cost option. When your audio equipment consisted of a receiver or preamp on a bookshelf and a power amp hidden away on a low shelf the wood case looked good. Today, with a rack full of stuff, and a crazy tangle of wires, the wood case is a waste of time.
pehaps the question should be- how much does the appearance of a piece of gear affect the buyer's desire to lay out the money. plus, i'm not running out to buy a new rack system every time i see components that are too large or complicated to set up on what i have-i.e.- two m.greene justaracks (adjustable 2in. thick shelves, cheap-finish black mdf). i'm just not buying a three-piece preamp no matter how good it is. speakers- they HAVE to look good, end of story. hats off to my friend with quads with the grills ripped off, crossovers laying out on the floor, linty wires everywhere, a thorens with a broken motor/outboard motor assembly of his own design, no cd's, only vinyl, etc. yes, his system sounds good. so does mine, only i paid 5x as much- good for the economy, right?....
Hate is my vote, but I like very contemporary things. I am in the process of painting the wood on my Arcici rack gloss black (which has proven to be a pain in my butt...but it is almost done). It looks great!!!
I'm surprised that the prevailing opinion here is against wood. Being a woodworker, I'm all for wood IF it is tastefully done. Same goes for pretty much any material, as long as it is aesthetically pleasing TO ME (not my wife, she has no input on audio related matters, as it should be!).
Having built my Teres in cocobolo, macassar ebony, and owned a Supratek in jarrah & copper, and built a stand out of hard rock maple, red coconut palm and copper, you can see I likes my wood. But, being an Audio Note fan shows I likes some black glass also.
I'm still looking for those wood lps. But never a Grado!
Hey Slappy;----Don't be slammin' my car. It took a while but I finally got it pad off.----Over the years I've had various pieces, Sophia amp most recently, and they add nothing to the sound so why waste a tree for that???---Count me as " strongly-dislike". I live in a foreign country called California.
I am neutral - if it is done tastefully I have no problem with it; then again, those that have looked at my system know I have more than a little wood "in" my house.
Love it UNDERNEATH some gear (those bautifully finished maple platforms from Mapleshade) and on my 1962-era Empire turntable. Don't much like it otherwise, and there's no wood on my last two pairs of speakers (Gallo Ultimates and Gallo Reference 3s). Interesting thread. Dave
I love the look of wood trim when done right; my kid's old Kyocera CD player look great with the wood side-pieces, as does my Opera Consonnance Cyber 10 tube integrated with the wood top I use in my office system. To my eye it adds something to the gear when done tastefuly, breaks up the boring/industrial lines of most audio equipment. Looks like I'm in the minority.
I once owned an A&R Cambridge (now Arcam) A60 integrated amp (30w) which had an all-wood casing. Mine was in rimu, a fine native wood of New Zealand. I loved that amp as far as sight and sound were concerned, and it was only the need for more power that caused me to abandon it in favor of Plinius products, also native to New Zealand. I've always worried about metal casework vibrations in these and other conventional amps, so I applied some sorbothane strips to the interior surfaces. But there was no audible change, so maybe the preference for wood was aesthetic only.
As I have learned, besides being subjective it is highly dependent on your room decor. Too much wood in your room can look tacky especially when the wood colours don't match well. If your room is light-coloured contemporary look with no wood in your room, sticking a dark coloured wood gear alongside your silver gear might stick out. I like contemporary decor but also like the warmth that wood gives to the room. Only problem I see is if your styles are mixed and matched all over the place.
Dislike it - I certainly wood prefer no wood trim on an amplifier or CD player. I am very particular about matching wood (kind, color) in our living area. We already use wooden boards to support the amp/CDP: any additional wood trim would probably just clash. Furthermore, just using a wooden logo (as e.g. on the Unison Unico) seems kind of pointless. However, if the sound is good, I guess, I could be convinced.
Very interesting question though: From the above answers it seems that more people dislike wood. This begs for the question where the current trend for wooden amps is coming from?
Like it. Pathos does a nice job with the use of wood. IMO the wood needs to be integrated into the design - some amps look like the wood is just thrown on and this doesn't work. However, wood that is nicely done on an amp can help blend it into the decor of a room that has a lot of wood. My home has a lot of wood and has Craftsmen (Greene and Greene) style elements. My amp, which does not have wood trim, doesn't fit the style and sticks out. I like the sound of the amp, but would have preferred some wood. Some metal amps (like my DK) are stark and industrial looking, and this could be softened with the use of wood.
HATE IT. Seen some amps that pull it off, but all in all, wood trim on an amp/pre reminds me of those lame ass station wagons of yesteryear with the wood trim paneling on the sides. barf.
Except for vintage receivers and amps like Luxman, I hate the use of wood as I see it now on components. I am Canadian so I know the right wing stateside will disregard whatever I say,that's ok, I consider the source.
Funny that you bring this up today; I was just looking at some Chinese built amplifier yesterday that mixed wood and metal the way Unison, Pathos and other manufacturers have done and thinking just how stupid it looks. I do like a well implemented mix of wood and metal, but I cannot think of any audio applications where I've seen it done well. I think it can be quite stunning when done well, but the audio manufacturers seem to be throwing it in as a design novelty rather than something that is well-integrated and thought out as an integral part of a design. Also, it seems like the trend is to make the wood look as if it were a blob of Play-Doh™, all rounded and amorphous looking. Personally I don't care as much how components look as I do how they sound, but to answer your question, well, I guess I already did!
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