Its cuz the new ones have amazons alexa built in and blue tooth. LOL No idea why so many, for sale.
I bought a non working set of wilson cubs cheap and put gorlich drivers in them (which are kinda spendy drivers) and they are pretty amazing. The cabinets on the wilsons are very well made.
To say only Wilson owners are sensitive to the differences between models is interesting as OF COURSE somebody who owns a speaker is much more aware of how it sounds, and thus might notice when the design changes. I'm not interested in owning Wilsons since I like what I have (and I'm super wealthy at least relative to somebody with no money at all), but man...after reading a zillion (yes, a zillion) reviews and comments from owners over decades, as well as beautiful tributes to Dave Wilson, I think, yeah, cool speakers with "automotive level finishes" instead of maybe interesting wood, but I digress...I remember hearing the original WATT the first time...a pair was loaned to a "designer showhouse" (interior designers take over someplace to show off their chops) in an amazing Park Avenue townhouse, and the designers of that room just stuck them on the floor because they thought they looked cool or something...at least they were hooked up to an amp...they were playing piano music and from several rooms away I thought there was an actual nice piano around...found the room with the WATTs, and thought man...amazing sound.
Everyone can bag on the Sound all you want, but people with that kind of money simply get bored or just want change - either with how they sound or how they look. If they were the size of a guitar, or a rifle, they’d be moved to a corner of the room and put on a stand waiting to be switched out and/or used/played. Even wealthy people rarely have the room to keep them and get something else. Take a look at their cars...I bet they’re not driving them everyday and putting 200k miles on them. They buy/sell/trade...and somewhere there’s someone who’s always wanted something who couldn’t afford to buy it new to be there and snatch it up and have it until they get bored with it...
The answer is almost always because of disappointment with results. You pay so much, you expect more. Reviewers don't have to pay. The can talk about the small improvement in this or that. They can change components to optimize, you generally can't. Buying a system is the best way to repeat what you hear at the dealership
@mirolab the saying translated from another language is roughly: "The teeth of a gifted horse are not for the counting"... meaning: Since the age of a horse is determined by it's teeth, you just appreciate it even if it's old and on it's last legs -> even if a gift is pretty much worthless you should still appreciate it since the intention of the gift giver is to give you a present...
"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth." I never understood the literal translation of that saying, but it seems like like an appropriate time to use it. Wilson is a high quality product that I never really liked. They are dry, clinical, and boring to me.... Having heard them about a dozen times at shows & dealers, I've been truly impressed only once (considering the price). But if you hear a pair, and like them, then buy em. In the right room with the right amp, I'm sure they can sound great, if you like the Wilson sound.
One if the most overrated speaker brands there is. Not attacking anyone but heard them so many times and was never in the slightest impressed. Heard hundreds of cheaper speakers I would buy over any Wilson.
@sfischer1 +1 However, some of us do have expensive system(s), so in this particular situation, without commenting on the Wilson sound, I can’t help but wonder about the business model. A lot of these
alexias
have been online for way over six months now. Since these are all hefty trades, and it seems like no one is buying them, I can only speculate on the actual cost of these products for such a scheme to work.
You guys with your sour grapes, envious, biased, and dismissive pronouncements are hard to take.
Kvetching about a product you can't afford and dismissing it out of hand to make yourselves feel better. I don't find them to be my personal cup of tea but they are an excellent product.
The reason dealers are selling them is they are either trade ins or demos resulting from the introduction of a new product. Unlike us Audiogon bottom feeders, new Wilson customers likely buy from dealers.
Most, if not all, that I've seen for sale are the first generation. Let's face it, if you could afford the first version, you can afford to upgrade to the second one.
I heard the Wilson Alexia on the X-Fi 2018 in Eindhoven ( The Netherlands) and also in Brussels (Belgium) and i can say one thing: It’s not my kind of speaker” He sounds not very well. It’s the name, just like B&W. You pay for the name, or ,you want a Wilson or B&W at home,for saying to familie and friend: I have this!. It costs a lot, and that’s all. Put them near a Ilumnia Magister, Gamut,Monitor Audio,..and then you clearly hear the difference.
Clinical line of product from the get go. That results in listening fatigue and eventual realization that they pale next to many other speakers in their price range.
@dobnbav
I am a fan of the Wilson sound. To what speakers in their price range are you referring? I'd love to audition some of them.
Clinical line of product from the get go. That results in listening fatigue and eventual realization that they pale next to many other speakers in their price range.
I just heard them. It is practically the same speaker, only Wilson customers can “hear” the amazing difference. The dealers take them in trade, so it is only ~$16K or so hit. But looks like they get stuck with them. Don’t understand how it works; obviously, no one is buying the old ones. They must be cheap to make.
I would think that many who buy expensive items, regardless of the hobby, are well off enough that when the urge to buy something new comes up they don't need to give it a second thought, just sell the old and buy the new. It's not necessarily a reflection of the product.
I never heard them so this is strictly speculation. Perhaps they are fatiguing over the long haul, or the wives think they are too big or don’t match the
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