The death of ultra hiend audio


Verity and DarTzeel last year, now MBL, ultra high end audio manufacturers are facing their demise and they have nobody but themselves to blame. What do these companies have in common: too much investment in creating the very best and when that fails raising their prices bottom up to recover their losses and inevitably charging 2x what the same product cost just a few years ago. Ego, greed and poor management can only result in one thing!

hiendmmoe

Showing 1 response by ddgtt

We have certainly seen some ultra-high-end audio manufacturers struggle a good bit, but there are also just as many mid-fi manufacturers that have struggled or closed as well. 

It's true that in many cases the cost of ultra-high-end products has gone crazy, but there are a goodly number of ultra-high-end (and expensive) products that are actually a value for the money.  Most people don't equate value with something that sells for $500K, but when you know what goes into some of these high-priced products you'll be amazed at the list of billable materials, not to mention the [very expensive] machinery that is necessary to build them.  And yes, on the other side of the argument, there are many products that can't justify their crazy high prices. 

Having said that, the ultra-high-end as a whole is doing quite well (most notably with sonically amazing and groundbreaking products).  In the lower high-end to mid-fi category of products, the same principle holds true - some are a rip-off, and some are truly worth it, regardless of their price.  So, to say that the ultra-high-end is dying, NO, I don't buy it.  And I work in the middle of it.