WHY IS THERE SO MUCH HATE FOR THE HIGH END GEAR ON AUDIO GEAR?

Some people are desperate to be relevant. They’re latched on to ab element where they have some level of familiarity with a subject and can express the "right" words to appear to have credibility. Being a "giant killer" is the most rewarding for those desperate to be relevant. Being the "David" in a world filled with "Goliaths" is the ultimate high (actually low?) for this individual. The bigger the target to publicly humiliate, the greater the adrenaline rush. Excellent, high performance, beautifully constructed, commercially successful products, that have earned a high satisfaction and adoption rate with their owners, thus generating referrals, get batted around by the highly passionate dude aiming to protect the world from, in his view, bad sound or poor price/performance ratio.

Another possible explanation may be these are, indeed, not very nice people. They have undetected crimes against their fellow man in which they have not accepted responsibility for. This creates an (almost) uncontrollable desire to find others more devious, sinister, and morally corrupt than they are. So, if THEIR crime is an 8 on the 10 scale, they are looking for a 9, or higher out there. Unable to locate the "9" they are looking for, they only find a "4" -- the company that makes gear that does not align with their value structure. So, to cleanse themselves of their personal transgressions and find a more dispicable individual(s), they elevate the status of the "4" to a ’9" and "educate" the world about it in the most energetic means possible. Hence, gross exaggerations, profound blanket statements, general devaluation, and invalidation of a product, and everything connected to it.

I think some of us fail to acknowledge the intangibles associated with a purchase. These could include esthetics, build quality, manufacturer’s story/history, prestige, or fear of being embarrassed if they don’t own "the right stuff". In this regard, there are no right or wrong answers if, in owner’s mind, they got what they paid for.

Many times "upgrades" are geometrically proportional. A speaker at 2x the price of a $400 pair of speakers is $800. A speaker a 2x the price of a $40k speaker is $80k. In BOTH cases the price was twice as much. Did performance improve by a factor of 2? I think we’ll find some consistency here and the math didn’t work in either case to provide 2x the SQ.

In a world of free enterprise, markets will dictate the success of a commercial product. If it’s successful there is some acknowledged and measurable value there.

@calvinj

Hope you received the answers/responses related to the topic you were looking for?

Thanks to A’Gon moderators for allowing us to get a little "off topic" and keep this discussion going. Probably not going to see too many people change their opinions on the topics discussed. But, the value of the exchange of ideas and viewpoints from very smart, often humorous, and definitely unique individuals on a variety of subjects is immeasurable -- IMHO.

@calvinj 

We've come a long way from the opening synopsis. Your last comment was an excellent recap of the various conversations.  

I couldn't have said it better myself.  No, really, I couldn't have.

@calvinj 

Yes, music can impact us in ways we may not fully understand.

Back in the days when life was chaotic (dumpster fire would have been an upgrade), I found that at the end of the day, music was 100% predictable.  Sit down in the listening chair, strap myself in and queue up something.  In the Beatle's Martha My Dear, those horns would always arrive at the right place, at the right time, EVERY time.  Gave me hope, and a little tranquility.  And, peace.  My investment was probably a "little above my pay grade."  But, worth every penny.