[rpgman1]

Quote:

The LAu is being talked about so much because its new.  The BA has a long thread, the WA5 has multiples, and the HP-4 was talked about a lot in HF's early years.  
 
I see two main reasons for all the LAu talk right now.  One is that it is solid state but competes with some of the best tube amps out there. The other is its versatility and power output, as the HE-6/LCD-3 crowds are very large and some are quite insistent on wanting a powerful amp to drive their heapdhones. Other considerations are a big plus as well (assuming no degradation in quality), it being a one-box with a smallish footprint opens up a lot of possibilities - less rack space, can fit on a desk at home or work with looks nondescript enough to not make people think you're insane (they'd find other ways to do that.) 
 
Of course, the third thing that is talked about is price, but that will all settle down (or flare up) as more people get to hear the amp at more shows or meets (I think Alex is going to the LA meet in the summer?)

New this year, solid-state amp against the best tube amps, versatility and power output, and the hefty price tag. So the LAu is the new kid on the block going against the established headphone tube amps? I wonder if it does sound great but that will happen later when more people listen to the LAu. 

 

[Greed]

I feel like Alex is pricing his products as a boutique-esque market. His company is small, but delivers some outstanding sound, some of the best IMO. With that being said, people who love his products aren't going to worry much about the price/performance ratio or in this case price/parts ratio. That rationalization went out the window a few thousand dollars ago. They know that Alex is using top shelf parts and designs his amps to the perfection we all want. I'm not saying the LAu is going to be a "perfect" amp, but that is how I justify the cost. 

 

[mwilson]

Quote:

I'm rather interested in the parts to 'justify' the costs more than anything.

 
I hear you, but you just can't look at parts alone. On small production runs, they're minority costs. 

 

[mwilson]

The more I look at the Liquid Gold amp, and understand it better in what it does and how it goes about it, the more I feel like I want one. It really comes across as a no-nonsense, take-no-prisoners beast of an amp with looks that are classy and functional at the same time. Like a precision tool watch.
 
Unfortunately, the new photos on Cavalli's home page don't help controlling the urge to get the amp. The problem though is that I have the excellent Liquid Glass and almost no time to listen. What to do...

 

[Radio_head]

I will say I enjoyed the sound of the LAu (particularly soundstage and tone) more than the GS-X 1 I had, but I have heard the V2 makes improvements so I'm not certain how the two would compare.
 
As for parts cost, are you including build/chassis costs? Because that usually far outweighs whatever is inside the box.  Alex uses a premo production house and his new style of chassis is not cheap either.
 
To a DIY'er, commercial amps really aren't worth it.  Some companies charge what they need to continue, some charge whatever they can get away with.  Those who know Alex understand that he is part of the first category.

 

[paradoxper]

Quote:

 
 
As for parts cost, are you including build/chassis costs? Because that usually far outweighs whatever is inside the box.  Alex uses a premo production house and his new style of chassis is not cheap either.
 
To a DIY'er, commercial amps really aren't worth it.  Some companies charge what they need to continue, some charge whatever they can get away with.  Those who know Alex understand that he is part of the first category.

Everything is up for consideration. Alex hasn't divulged any of LAu's parts, etc.
 
Alex can charge whatever he wants, I am just curious as to his decision making. Obviously knowing more about its innards
would help in understanding more about the amp.

 

[Radio_head]

Are you looking for its innards to gauge the amp's quality or the amp's cost?  If you want to know about the inside of the Tauntaun to get an idea of the amp's abilities, this gives a lot of info on the amp's design, and from what I understand some of the design is quite unique in the headphone world.
 
If you just want to take a running total of cost of custom boards, heatsinks, resistors and capacitors, the cost of the offset detection board etc to come up with a rudimentary price/parts ratio, I'm not sure many manufacturers would be obliging in that regard, particularly because it can be so misleading.

 

[paradoxper]

Quote:

Are you looking for its innards to gauge the amp's quality or the amp's cost?  If you want to know about the inside of the Tauntaun to get an idea of the amp's abilities, this gives a lot of info on the amp's design, and from what I understand some of the design is quite unique in the headphone world.
 
If you just want to take a running total of cost of custom boards, heatsinks, resistors and capacitors, the cost of the offset detection board etc to come up with a rudimentary price/parts ratio, I'm not sure many manufacturers would be obliging in that regard, particularly because it can be so misleading.

I've missed that link previously. And no, I wouldn't want to take an inventory of the LAu. I wanted to be able to gauge the amps quality.

 

[MorbidToaster]

Something nobody has touched on is this right here...
 
"30 LAu amplifiers will be made on this production run and are being made available to dealers and distributors."
 
This is a first for Alex (for the most part). If he's going to over seas dealers & distributors his actual profit is MUCH lower than a product that's sold completely direct.
 
I think he's trying to branch out in a big way with LAu...
 
EDIT: As mentioned before the new case work is NOT cheap. The blasting on the front panel alone is quite expensive (if my eyes don't deceive me anyway).
 
Little higher than I expected, but I'm not sure what people were expecting...

 

[rpgman1]

Quote:

Something nobody has touched on is this right here...
 
"30 LAu amplifiers will be made on this production run and are being made available to dealers and distributors."
 
This is a first for Alex (for the most part). If he's going to over seas dealers & distributors his actual profit is MUCH lower than a product that's sold completely direct.
 
I think he's trying to branch out in a big way with LAu...

I think those 30 LAu amps will probably end up being at US dealers and distributors. There is no way he can sell them overseas unless he has plenty of capital and sales for his products. I wouldn't mind seeing the LAu at my local dealer/distributor here in GA.

 

[MuppetFace]

Yup. Cavalli Audio is changing their business model to include overseas vendors. Vendors want a cut. Prices go up more.
 
 
Quote:

I think those 30 LAu amps will probably end up being at US dealers and distributors. There is no way he can sell them overseas unless he has plenty of capital and sales for his products. I wouldn't mind seeing the LAu at my local dealer/distributor here in GA.

 
Nope. To my understanding, these are primarily overseas vendors. The LAu is actually getting noticed quite a bit in Asia. The market for amps like this is actually bigger over there at the moment.

 

[MorbidToaster]

Yup.
 
Quote:

Yup. Cavalli Audio is changing their business model to include overseas vendors. Vendors want a cut. Prices go up more.
 
 
 
Nope. To my understanding, these are primarily overseas vendors. The LAu is actually getting noticed quite a bit in Asia. The market for amps like this is actually bigger over there at the moment.

 

[rpgman1]

Ah, well if the products are successful overseas then Cavalli Audio can recoup their losses, expand into other countries, and develop or improve their headphone amps.

 

[MorbidToaster]

Look at it this way...
 

 
It's all for the greater good.
 
Quote:

Ah, well if the products are successful overseas then Cavalli Audio can recoup their losses, expand into other countries, and develop or improve their headphone amps.

 

[rpgman1]

Quote:

Look at it this way...
 

 
It's all for the greater good.
 

I hope Cavalli Audio isn't commericialized, but still the same company that develops their headphone amps with interest and passion. I know their products are still considered niche, but audio-minded people appreciate what Cavalli Audio has to offer.