Is "High-End" audio a scam? - Page 3  

Quote:

Originally Posted by obobskivich 


I would agree but also advise you to consider the cost of labor and R&D, as well as volume (I'm sure you probably understand all of this though). For example the engine in my car is like $5000 in a crate, but the car itself is about ten-fold that. Is that a scam? (I'd like to believe not, but then again...).
On the headphones bit - yeah I'd agree that $500-$750 range should be the ideal sweetspot. Recent price inflation has started to erode that, and move that bar up higher, but especially a few years ago that was true. STAX have always sort of stood on the side as really expensive (I think this might be because I'm in the US and see some huge importer mark-up though; I don't know what they cost in Japan, but I know that Grado and Koss headphones (which are made in the US) become VERY expensive in Japan, it isn't that absurd to assume).

As far as i know all the headphones imported to Malaysia are about 50% - 100% more expensive if converted to USD (example the HD558 is 170$ but is MYR 800, although conversion rate is only x3) stupid government and their hefty taxes 

1. I always considered Beats by DR Dre to be the most high end of all high ends (wet dreams on a weekly basis)... totally under priced for what they are and when you look at the reviews about them you will notice a tendency of lower scores but we all know this is pure because the reviewer is jealous about them.

2. If you use a home video system (Bose is absolutely the top there) please make sure you buy Monster cables because without your system will sound like... really... bad.

3. As said before... don't forget http://www.head-fi.org/t/615001/is-high-end-audio-a-scam#post_8469030.

Short and sweet: "It all relative and depends on the person's objective income."  It's like saying Porsche, Ferarri, and Bentleys are scams.  They're just way overpriced for the average folk, and yes  an average folk can pour $20K into a $20K car to make it as fast, but it will never feel or drive like those rich, mid-life crisis car trophies.  Nice thing about high-end cars and high-end audio equipment is that unless it's considered a holy grail and/or collector's item, you can save a pretty coin buying in the used market.

There's also the problem of value for money.
Regarding the hd800:
- doesn't even provide any accessories.

- brightness
I can accept that something is overpriced, but it should provide zero reasons to complain.

I really don't think such a product exist.  People will always complain about something sooner or later of whatever purchased product no matter the cost.

IT really depends on what one would call high end but really no. What one thinks of spending on a product changes per person. But is the performance increase measureable objectively and can be heard subjectively to be better increasingly? Then it is not a scam. IT is just a luxury that many can't afford, but it is not a scam. Would you call a vacation to the caribean on the best private yacht in the world with the best amenaties that money can buy a scam?

Quote:

Originally Posted by bowei006 

IT really depends on what one would call high end but really no. What one thinks of spending on a product changes per person. But is the performance increase measureable objectively and can be heard subjectively to be better increasingly? Then it is not a scam. IT is just a luxury that many can't afford, but it is not a scam. Would you call a vacation to the caribean on the best private yacht in the world with the best amenaties that money can buy a scam?

not sure if its just me, but this analogy doesnt work. say a mid level or low lvl vacation is say, camping or going to disneyland.... a vacation in the Caribbean on a yacht, is MUCH different. its tangibly different. no matter how you slice it, there is a significant distinction in your analogy.  

between hi fi and mid fi, at times, the differences are barely there... and sometimes not there except in our heads.  i think some hifi is a scam, and some is definitely not a scam, its up to the consumer to figure out which is which.  

people speak like there are night and day differences between certain components, cables, vibration management, etc but for the most part (not all hifi) the differences have been somewhat smaller than suggested by reviews and websites (in my experience).  DACs? pretty similar to me. headphones? not similar.  Amps? some are similar, some arent. cables? ill leave that one alone. 

sorry, i do not have a better analogy off the top of my head though.  

Quote:

Originally Posted by caracara08 

 

not sure if its just me, but this analogy doesnt work. say a mid level or low lvl vacation is say, camping or going to disneyland.... a vacation in the Caribbean on a yacht, is MUCH different. its tangibly different. no matter how you slice it, there is a significant distinction in your analogy.  

 

between hi fi and mid fi, at times, the differences are barely there... and sometimes not there except in our heads.  i think some hifi is a scam, and some is definitely not a scam, its up to the consumer to figure out which is which.  

 

people speak like there are night and day differences between certain components, cables, vibration management, etc but for the most part (not all hifi) the differences have been somewhat smaller than suggested by reviews and websites (in my experience).  DACs? pretty similar to me. headphones? not similar.  Amps? some are similar, some arent. cables? ill leave that one alone. 

 

sorry, i do not have a better analogy off the top of my head though.  

I do agree on that part, but the thing is, a Q701 is better than a standard apple earbud, and an LCD3 is better than a Sony XB500 and those are hifi and thus for the people that have the money to buy it, it is not a scam.

yes but you named only headphones which generally (in my expierence) are the biggest factor in changing sound signatures and quality.

Quote:

Originally Posted by caracara08 

yes but you named only headphones which generally (in my expierence) are the biggest factor in changing sound signatures and quality.

That's the point. They are hifi headphones. The question was generally if high end is a scam, and no it isn't. However that doesn't mean there are other components be it cables in high end parts that are or don't give as much a difference as one might think.

Quote:

Originally Posted by billyhightech 

I didn't mean to implay all high-end products are a scam,just most of them. I mean,how can a Krell amp cost $50,000? No amount of engenering and components can justify that!

The price of instruments at that price include marketing and amout of time it took to build it. How can the Hadron Collider cost so much or other ridiculously expensive things cost that much, because they can. They aren't scams in that they don't offer any performance gain, but that it's targeted toward different niche markets.