Light Harmonic GEEK

[tomscy2000]

The Geek isn't meant to exist in the guise of traditional hi-fi, however. It was developed and marketed as a mass consumer product, without the values of it lasting for decades like our fathers' stereos were; besides, the modernl landscape of the DAC market evolves so quickly that even the Geek will be left to obsolescence in a few years, especially with audiophiles' rate of consumption.

 

[miceblue]

Is any hi-fi product meant to last years? XD
Even with headphones nowadays, people have them for a year before they move on to a better one.

 

[money4me247]

Is any hi-fi product meant to last years? XD
Even with headphones nowadays, people have them for a year before they move on to a better one.

mmm... i dunno about that. like the hd600 & h650 have been around for quite a while. if you just get a nice pair of headphones, there is really no need to upgrade. the headphone market isn't like the computer/smartphone/electronics market where every new generation has a markedly significant improvement or better specs or revolutionary new tech.
 
a good pair of headphones released 10 years ago is still a really good pair of headphones now.

 

[CharlesC]

The Geek isn't meant to exist in the guise of traditional hi-fi, however. It was developed and marketed as a mass consumer product ......

 
I think the price of the Geek Out reflects the inclusion of HD and DSD support, features that the mass consumer market doesn't care about. For mass market they should scrap the bells and whistles and get the price down to $125 or so.
 
Will it really be better than everything else for 16/44 tracks playing on 25 ohm headphones? It's hard for me to imagine but I'm ready to be surprised.

 

[tomscy2000]

  I think the price of the Geek Out reflects the inclusion of HD and DSD support, features that the mass consumer market doesn't care about. For mass market they should scrap the bells and whistles and get the price down to $125 or so. Will it really be better than everything else for 16/44 tracks playing on 25 ohm headphones? It's hard for me to imagine but I'm ready to be surprised.

At its core, the Geek is still an audiophile product --- the majority of its backers are audiophiles; it merely doesn't have the traditional values of one. While most audiophile products get replaced quickly anyway due to the fickle nature of this hobby, they're still marketed as though they'd last a hundred years. Not so the Geek. It panders to consumerism just like every other electronic device these days.

 

[CharlesC]

 
At its core, the Geek is still an audiophile product --- the majority of its backers are audiophiles; it merely doesn't have the traditional values of one. While most audiophile products get replaced quickly anyway due to the fickle nature of this hobby, they're still marketed as though they'd last a hundred years. Not so the Geek. It panders to consumerism just like every other electronic device these days.

 
I guess you mean something different by "panders to consumerism" than just creating a consumer product. 
 
What I think is that once you've explained to the average consumer what the difference is between the Geek, the Super Geek and the Super Duper Geek they will be reaching for the Audioquest D-3. And that is even before you explain to them that the Geek has two headphone jacks but they are different from one another. I'm not sure you will even get the salespeople at Best Buy to understand this stuff. None of this is intended as a criticism of Geek. I just think the product is way to complicated to ever have mass market appeal. 

 

[AxelCloris]

 
I guess you mean something different by "panders to consumerism" than just creating a consumer product. 
 
What I think is that once you've explained to the average consumer what the difference is between the Geek, the Super Geek and the Super Duper Geek they will be reaching for the Audioquest D-3. And that is even before you explain to them that the Geek has two headphone jacks but they are different from one another. I'm not sure you will even get the salespeople at Best Buy to understand this stuff. None of this is intended as a criticism of Geek. I just think the product is way to complicated to ever have mass market appeal. 

 
Honestly to sell it properly you'd want to focus on a couple key points before even going into the different power ratings. You have to sell them on the device itself before you sell them on a specific model of the Geek. As a former salesman, I'd focus first on the fact that the Geek has the 3D Awesomifier and explain how crossfeed makes many songs better. Give the customer a demo side by side with and without crossfeed. Then you focus on the fact that it can handle much higher resolutions than the others. Show them a high PCM or DSD recording next to the same song in 48khz.
 
It would be at this point that I would help sell the product further by explaining that it's meant to share music with friends and has the second headphone out. To cap it off, you'd find out what headphones they plan to use with the Geek and recommend the strength based on that. In a retail environment most people won't be walking into a store and asking about the device if they're wanting to drive something like Audeze or HD800 cans; they'll already have done research so they know what they're going to get. You'll get the customers who buy headphones readily available in most stores: Audio Technica, Sony, Pioneer, Bose, Beats, etc... Those are the customers who will need the demos.
 
In short, it's something that's really easy to sell if you understand what it brings to the table. Show what it does that others can't and what it does better. Sell the value. Don't even look at the price first, make them want/need it before price comes into it.
 
Experience: former lead sales rep for Magnolia Home Theater.

 

[kugino]

I think I'm going to pick up an ifi idsd while I wait for the geek.

 

[sling5s]

Any update on these?  Possible ship date for pre-orders?

 

[AxelCloris]

Most recent update is that they're testing different USB connectors. I forget the brand name but I remember some people were happy about the brand choice. I know very little about that sort of thing.

 

[sling5s]

If you pre-ordered (rather than backing kickstarter), is it possible to get a refund?

 

[Mr H]

  If you pre-ordered (rather than backing kickstarter), is it possible to get a refund?

oh I'd like to know this too cause I went insane in the membrane and got the O2 and ODAC so I don't think i'll need the geek now. if not isn't a big deal cause someone will want to buy it on a forum **** is i'd have to sell it by less than what I paid so, it's a lose lose situation

 

[BenF]

http://lhlabs.com/stop says the GEEK will ship in February.

 

[sling5s]

I think that means end of February and not beginning.  Could be wrong. 

 

[kugino]

  http://lhlabs.com/stop says the GEEK will ship in February.

was this updated since the hardware issue?