I just paid $4.39 a gallon for premium
I think at the time I drove down to San Jose to buy my DAC from Ori, I paid $4.19, so that pretty much slapped another $60 onto the price of the DAC, but I can't blame Ori for that, lol...
I was aware that the price was going up (Ori was up front about that, and it wasn't a ploy to get me to jump now), and I really wanted this DAC right away anyway, so I had to jump through some hoops to be able to purchase it when I did. My main motivation wasn't to avoid the price increase, it was because of the possibility that he wouldn't be making them by the time I could realistically afford it. It's not as if there are not other options out there for my dollar, but it's sort of like collecting classic cars. Sure, there are plenty of old Mustangs out there, but there sure as hell aren't too many AC Cobras...
As for the price increase, I can totally understand where Ori's coming from. After meeting him, I realized that he really pours his heart and time into his designs, and his passion for great sound is something he COULD keep to himself, but would rather share with the world. He's definitely not in it for the money, as he has a "real" job in addition to a family and other interests besides churning out DACs and cables. The return on investment for the materials, the time spend improving the design of the DAC, build times, answering emails, shipping, etc. has to be very minimal (the return, NOT the time spent...just want that to be clear). Besides, the market is such that I can't imagine he's got a huge backlog of orders to fill...it must be pretty spotty. Nothing wrong with making it worth the time! I definitely got what I paid for. So would anyone else moving forward...
But well deserved!
