Just read this whole thread. I'm a Savant guy so I must have gotten jobbed as it only has two per side. I read every Noble thread with amazement. I often feel that there are shills from other companies who come to the Noble threads just to mess with folks and try and devalue the wonderfully sounding CIEM's and IEM"s that Noble makes and sells.
I've been a high end audiophile since the late 60's and have very high end home system that keeps getting better and better. I'm new the the head fi game I guess, although I used Stax Lambda Pro's since the 80's (sold them last year as I hated their lack of true deep bass) and then Sennheiser 580's and a few others of theirs. I felt they too lacked true bass so I sold them. It was around that time I found this board and have been learning about headphones and IEM's. I went back and forth on which to get as I couldn't listen to them anywhere and it's difficult for me to get devices without listening as it goes against what I love to do (audition) and I hear so differently than most folks do. I ended up with Savant Wizards (in a cool blue swirl) over JH, Campfire and all the rest of the named IEM's. I was in Osaka visiting family and found a great store that had nearly everything I read about on this board. They didn't have Noble though (that I remember), but when the Savant's came out, I eventually bit. I'm glad I did. I have loved using them. Do I want the K10's (Yes, I'd get the 10's site unseen over the Savant's and the new Katana's since I like bass (not a bass head, but I do like real, live sounding bass as well as lush mids and extended highs). I want it all. I am able to purchase most of the reference, over the ear, can's at or near cost , but I haven't done that yet. I was close on a pair of LCD-3's a few weeks ago, but just didn't as I knew Focal and a few others were coming out with new toys over the next few months.
The other thing is that I have reached for the Savant's over my PSB's (have an ad up still I think and I will sell them even though they are awesome for the price). They are simpler for me to travel with. I have an Ayre QX-5 DAC/amp that will be here within the next month or so and it has balanced outputs for cans. I will want to get the proper cable for the Savant's, but now I'm thinking I need to sell the Savants and just get the K10's.
That was the long story as to my time with the head fi community. What I laugh at is people thinking it's their right to right any manufacture and how they price their products. If you don't like what someone charges and feel that you aren't getting the sound you paid for, then don't purchase. Say you didn't like the sound. That's what audio has always been about. Any product you purchase in your life is purchased because you feel you got true value for your money. If you don't feel that way, move onto the next product.
Audio is subjective and the companies run themselves as business's or they couldn't give you a warrantee. Even those cost money and must be accounted for. They're in the business to make money. We have become spoiled because so many folks love the business and want to give the best value to the customer. I wish auto manufacture's felt this way as we'd get a Porsche for the price of a BMW.
For John, or Bannon to come on a public forum and post so many of the true business costs to make their products seems like an insult to me. Yes, they are the seller, but it's amazing to me that they will do this. They make a quality product as do many others and their sound is loved or not. It's the same as JH, Campfire or any other company out there making IEM's or headphones. I don't know any of the folks on these board for the most part, but I know some of the big as well as smaller names in high end audio. I'm talking having personal relationships with some of the name folks as they will call me and email me regularly to get a pulse on something, or often just to ask how I'm doing or how the kids are doing and to get away from work. I don't have that in the head fi area, but when I share some of these threads with other manufacturer's they cringe. They understand why the Noble folks do what they do as much of their business probably rests on these boards, but they can't believe the justification that goes into why something costs what it does. Often a speaker company will do an ad breaking down the use of exotic materials and careful matching of components and the special caps it may use in a difficult to carry out cross over, but folks just listen to music and make a decision to buy or not. Some still look at how many speakers a speaker has and want bigger thinking it's better. Heck, a company like Wilson uses paper cones still and have plenty of low end distortion, but can charge $250k for a pair of speakers, because they have a following and advertise a lot. No one calls them on the true cost of their products as they put inexpensive driver into a proprietary cabinet that they make you think is very very expensive to make (it's not cheap, but they could charge half of what they do and still make plenty). I don't begrudge them because ti's a business and they have put themselves in this position for being a strong reliable company who has carved out a following. No, I don't like their sound, but if I did and I had the bucks, I'd purchase them if that's what I felt was best.
Do any of the nay sayers even listen to the IEM's? Obviously, the one's putting down the Katana and their price don't since NONE have ever even heard them. They just haven't, so how can they say they are overpriced. The tone of the posts says that even if the words don't, so when I get flamed, please flame because Noble isn't give folks the sound they deserver for the cost of the product. I just own Savant's and have no dog in the fight. I just laugh and then wonder why folks feel the need to rip someone or call them out on cost when they don't know the true cost of doing business and making the product. R&D is also supposed to go into the cost of something. I bet that Noble will sell plenty of these Katana's to many soon to be happy customers and that's all that matters. As for me, I'll still try to figure out if and when it's time to jump into the CIEM world and bite on a pair of K10's since the sound signature that has been shared if probably more to my liking. Just don't know the difference in price jump from an IEM to a CIEM and if it's worth it, but I won't begrudge the Noble folks for charging what they do as they sure seem to give us all a lot for our money (as do many others in the industry and that's the best part). Sorry for the rant, but after reading through 7 or so pages on a new release and most of the post's deal with cost vs number of drivers, I was kind of shocked.
I'm glad companies are able to have custom drivers as that will benefit each and every one on us in the present and future, even those who feel the need to call out a company about the number of drivers and the cost of something.