Quote:

skylab said:

Sony did announce a new high end speaker at CES, for sure, it's at the bottom of this page:

http://www.stereophile.com/category/ces-2011?page=5

But since it is not done, maybe that is why no press release.

$27k per pair, so better be good!

Click to expand...

For a pair of Wilson speakers...maybe....Sony though?

Yeah...and like the MDR-R10, one has to wonder how committed they are to staying in the high end.

Great point. Wilson is certainly in it for the long haul (its their core business after all). I would question Sony's commitment too.

Quote:

skylab said:

Sony did announce a new high end speaker at CES, for sure, it's at the bottom of this page:

http://www.stereophile.com/category/ces-2011?page=5

But since it is not done, maybe that is why no press release.

$27k per pair, so better be good!

Click to expand...

Oh, wow.  I never would have thought that Sony in 2011 would make a pair of speakers that expensive, and they don't seem to look like anything special for that kind of price.  Ultimately though, it's how they sound that matters.  But until they are actually for sale and the final product is displayed, it's rather irrelevant.

 
Quote:

ipodpj said:

Quote:

skylab said:

Sony did announce a new high end speaker at CES, for sure, it's at the bottom of this page:

http://www.stereophile.com/category/ces-2011?page=5

But since it is not done, maybe that is why no press release.

$27k per pair, so better be good!

Click to expand...

Oh, wow.  I never would have thought that Sony in 2011 would make a pair of speakers that expensive, and they don't seem to look like anything special for that kind of price.  Ultimately though, it's how they sound that matters.  But until they are actually for sale and the final product is displayed, it's rather irrelevant.

Click to expand...

 
Every few years sony makes a crazy expensive speaker. They make great budget buys a few years down the road when they are worth pennies on original MSRP.
 
One has to wonder how much R&D small shops can afford to do with tweaking drivers, and all that jazz... 
 
There is an old story about some large japanese company (I think technics, maybe sony) making a push into high-end speakers in the 80's. An audiophile reviewer went over to the factory to see them. Like your standard reviewer he asked the designer why he didnt use whatever the FOTM tweeters were at the time. The designer pulled a pair of the exact FOTM tweeters the reviewer asked about out of his desk, said he didnt like how they sounded, and threw them back in. These guys have money to burn on experimenting with different junk. For sure other companies do it too, but the big japanese audio companies usually get it right when they put some honest effort into it. They just get slagged for building gear that actually pays the bills.

Yep, they are very capable people.  I'm still lusting over their Sony TA-ER1, CDP-R1, R1A, R3, and R10 series.   

People who have heard the new Sony speakers have said they sound great.  That said, I'm not going to rush out and trade in my B&W N800 Signatures...

Sony has the capability and research dollars to make the finest products in the world. That is what they tried to do with the the Qualia line. But it failed miserably because audiophiles make up 1/50th of the consumer market. They can make umpteen more dollars selling 100,000 MDR EXSL51's and 71's than they can making 1000 R-10's or 010's. Same thing with Sennheiser. They lost a ton of money with the Orpheus line even though they were better than anything else they ever made. John Grado can sell 10 million dollars or the SR-60's over a 10 year period, than 1 million dollars on the PS1000's in the same period of time.
The Qualia line was second to none, but the average consumer would prefer a pair of MDR-V600's over the 010's. That's just life and economics.
 
It is a shame, really, but it is reality. 

Sony used to understand the importance of positioning itself as a design and technology leader. The Sony lifestyle stores and products like the Aibo weren't intended to be huge Apple-scale moneymakers, but serve as commercial showcases -- make Sony a covetable brand by putting top-of-the-line stuff on display next to more accessible products, so the people who today could only afford a cheap Walkman or MDR-V6 will someday come back for room-filling home theater.
 
Hopefully Sony's trying to get back to Akio Morita's passion for boundaries-pushing gadgets, because that's what made it an interesting company to watch back in the day.

Quote:

skylab said:

Sony did announce a new high end speaker at CES, for sure, it's at the bottom of this page:
http://www.stereophile.com/category/ces-2011?page=5
But since it is not done, maybe that is why no press release.
$27k per pair, so better be good!

Click to expand...

hmmm, ultrasone is making a statement headphone that's 10% of that cost. given the grumblings of many who've bought it, i gotta wonder what the statement they're trying to make is. i have a feeling if i posted that it'd be deleted.

Quote:

skylab said:

Sony did announce a new high end speaker at CES, for sure, it's at the bottom of this page:

http://www.stereophile.com/category/ces-2011?page=5

But since it is not done, maybe that is why no press release.

$27k per pair, so better be good!

Click to expand...

exactly what I was talking about. thanks
 

 
Quote:

immtbiker said:

 But it failed miserably because audiophiles make up 1/50th of the consumer market.

Click to expand...

 I think you are being very generous their.

The Sony R10 has piqued my interest. It seems like the only other headphone to get for my preferences. If I ever have enough disposable income, I might buy one. Descriptions and reviews of the R10 sound character seem very similar to my experience with the ATH W11R...
 
Interestingly enough, system dependence, soundstage, sound character, all look similar from descriptions...
 

Quote:

skylab said:

People who have heard the new Sony speakers have said they sound great.  That said, I'm not going to rush out and trade in my B&W N800 Signatures...

Click to expand...

I think your a Magicro kind of guy Rob but I have heard and like the 800 you have. That said you may want to listen to the new maggie 3.7 coming out as you have amps to drive them. I have yet to hear any speaker at any price as transparent as Maggie. But you have a world class speaker and you probably use it sparingly as I was doing with my maggie since I got hooked on low wattage amps and headphones. I would rather not buy Sony products if I can help it.

 
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frank i said:

Quote:

skylab said:

People who have heard the new Sony speakers have said they sound great.  That said, I'm not going to rush out and trade in my B&W N800 Signatures...

Click to expand...

I think your a Magicro kind of guy Rob but I have heard and like the 800 you have. That said you may want to listen to the new maggie 3.7 coming out as you have amps to drive them. I have yet to hear any speaker at any price as transparent as Maggie. But you have a world class speaker and you probably use it sparingly as I was doing with my maggie since I got hooked on low wattage amps and headphones. I would rather not buy Sony products if I can help it.

Click to expand...

I'm sure the Maggie 3.7 are going to be phenomenal...but I learned my lesson...I love the N800, and I'm never going to replace them voluntarily