Thanks for the reply, this makes good sense and calms my fears a bit. I'd be curious to see what they come up with next in the Earsuit series (ES12?). Perhaps they already have something in the works, but haven't released any info.
Quote:
What I really find really pitiful is that the ES10 is a solid performer, highly rated by most people who try it. But it doesn't seem to be popular with many. It really pains me to see that people are not aware of this high end portable. I always see people using the Momemtum, M100, etc... In this short 2 years that I've been using the ES10, the only three pairs of ES10 that I've seen is:
1) Mine (Used Pair)
2) Mine (New Pair)
3) Someone else's (During a head-fi meet)
Not sure if it's because of the high price overseas? Or maybe the lack of marketing by AT? Or maybe the love hate relation with AT?
Much agreed, the ES10 are certainly in a higher league than the Momentum, etc.. And while they are ostensibly twice the price (i.e., MSRP $600 as opposed to $300 for the Momentum, etc.), the ES10 can be found at hugely marked down prices these days, similar in cost to the Momentums, but still you see many going for the Sennheisers instead of the higher grade Earsuits.
It seems to me that Sennheiser has higher-octane marketing and promotions, advertisements of hip-looking guys and gals with Momentum cans on their heads, clever giveaway sweepstakes promoted on the front page of head-fi.org, etc., etc.. Audio-Technica is more of an
otaku* outfit, you can expect excellent quality and obsessive attention to detail, but not so much in the way of savvy promotions that connect with western consumers**. The sound signature of AT cans is often aimed at the Japanese listener, who has a distinct taste (although the ES10 certainly don't qualify as a Japanese-sound). Also, as you mentioned it seems clear that Sennheiser is able to get their cans into every international market without huge mark-ups along the way, unlike Audio-Technica whose prices vary by more than a factor of 2 depending on the country. In fact, I probably wouldn't know anything about AT's lineup if it weren't for the fact that I live in Tokyo, and all the stores have great AT displays which got me hooked into their lineup (eventually leading to the ES10 for portable).
Audio-Technica Earsuits seem to have a few issues with comfort for some ear sizes and shapes, the biggest complaint you hear about the ES10 is that they are extremely uncomfortable after wearing for a relatively short time, and these reports are all over the internet and very likely ward off potential customers. They could upgrade a couple things, making the ES10 just slightly more expensive, but having a huge influence on over all quality and reputation…here is a potential list of upgrades for a proposed ES12 model that could swing the high-end portable market in Audio-Technica's favor:
1) The ESW11LTD lambskin replacement pads sell for JPY3500 in Japan…I'm really not sure why they weren't stock on the ES10 at this price point (probably only ~JPY1500 increase in cost from the pleather pads at the retail end). Lambskins need to be stock on the ES12s.
2) With the ear pads, they might consider making them slightly larger circumference and take some of the clamping force away from the inner radius of the pads by increasing the slope/angle of the inner frame just a tad and/or thickening the padding toward the outer circumference (the inside clamping force seems to be the main source of the discomfort for many).
3) The ES10 have a flimsy-looking and -feeling cable, they could spend a tiny bit more and have something that inspires more confidence. Detachable cable seems like a no-brainer for future upgrades.
4) Detachable cable also allows the possibility to sell an additional accessorized swappable cable that includes a microphone for those customers where a mic is a must-have. Momentums have mics, I'll bet many consumers would choose them over the ES for this reason alone (as silly as it may seem to the audio purist).
Anyways, one can only hope that maybe Audio-Technica reads threads like this one, and learns about potential ideas for upgrading the ES series, and getting them over the hump in terms of reputation and marketing.
*
otaku is Japanese for
geek
**a common problem among many small-size Japanese firms
