Why so expensive??

it's all relative. if you have a billion dollars , 350k for an amp may be worth it. if you have 1 million dollars, a 350k amp is probably overpriced.

Has anyone heard this 350K amp?

What was the model # and manufacturer of the $350000 amp again?

What speakers is this used with?

How big is the room it is used in?

What is the sensitivity of the speakers used?

Not that any of this really matters for me. I doubt I could afford to even rent a listen!

Still, I am curious!

i presume he's talking about the wavac SH-833 monoblocks.

http://www.wavac-audio.jp/sh833_e.html

They are probably referring to the Wavac SH-833 monoblocks.

150 wpc. Monster SET's.

That'd be about $1167 per watt.

Reviewed by Michael Fremer in Stereophile 2004

Just read the Stereophile review of the Wavac.

Man, I gotta get me a pair of these babys!

Just not quite sure how!!!!!

I love the car analogies. The car and audio hobbies are usually very similar, but not in this case. There are no $350,000 superchargers or $100,000 turbochargers. Even the most cutting edge components are not even close to these costs. Why? Because the performance or benefit of said $350,000 supercharger will be put to the test on an engine dynomometer or the racetrack and measured. If it doesn't perform it simply will not sell. The word will get out very quickly that it doesn't work. Audio is not like this at all.

I may get flammed for this, but I think that one reason there's is a $350,000 amp is because most of us believe that you can't measure what the high dollar amp is doing... but it must be doing something, it costs $350,000!

Another reason some of this gear is so expensive is because it's so overbuilt. Do you think the amp needs that sweet curved piece of glass mounted to the front of it? What about the chrome plated transformers or the polished aluminum chassis? How about the elegant curved pieces of polished copper, meticulously cut by hand or on some very expensive machine, that tie all of the positive and negative capacitor leads together, conveniently on display under that plexiglass cover? Does it really have to be 1/2" thick CNC machined aluminum to sound the way it does? Doubt it.

I think beauty is when form follows function. That being said, I really do appreciate the machine work and craftsmanship that goes into some audio components, however, I can't afford most of it (although my amp does have a 1/2" thick aluminum faceplate!). If you can afford to buy this stuff, most likely you are buying it for the looks and the good sound is just a perk (IMHO, of course).

If you can afford to buy this stuff, most likely you are buying it for the looks and the good sound is just a perk (IMHO, of course).

Agreed. The big effort goes into industrial design. The other challenge is to market and sell perhaps only 50 models ever and to provide 10 years of support for parts. The advantage is that the cost is probably negligible compared to the price (perhaps 5% may be 10% max) - so the markup is huge when a sale occurs.

The end result is more akin to rare and high-end "art" than a purely functional instrument to reproduce music. Sound reproduction is clearly secondary, just as keeping time is not the primary objective of a Rolex (although they pretend it is) => primarily it is jewelery/fashion/image/life style apparel.

i believe wisdom audio manufacturers a stereo system including amplifiers and speakers costing about 1 million.

how many cars can you buy for 1 million dollars (excluding taxes) ?

i think bill gates and warren buffet can order several pairs without concern for the cost.

It's likely that the only people buying at this level are either reviewers purchasing direct from manufacturer at accommodation prices or financial wizzards with lots of practice driving hard bargains.

My interest in the WAVAC would be if it indeed offered performance that no other amp could approach, if it showed the potential of what could be done if price were no object and that the result was really a leap forward in sound quality, a new, significant approach to circuit design, or impentation of new parts that truly made a signficant improvement in amplifier design. If that were the case, then over time we would figure out how to get that level of performance at real world prices. I can't help but suspect that the WAVAC does not really do this, but I've never heard it. Now, it may also serve the purpose of audio jewelry, but I have little interest on that side of the ledger.