[Rchandra]

Why would anyone want to buy a expensive audiophile headphone with a terrible warranty? How important is a warranty to you?

 

[The Dutch Guy]

I've always wondered about this. It's pretty shocking to see headphone manufacturers'  claims of superior technology and materials  "backed up" by a warranty that doesn't cover a day more than the legally required minimum warranty time.
 
 
A premium product should come with a premium warranty to reflect the quality of the product and it's manufacturer, and that's where the problem lies: A lot of expensive headphones (And other audio gear) are not actually premium/quality products, they are just very expensive mediocre products. There have been some pretty spectacular failure rates and design flaws with some insanely expensive stuff: Audeze driver failures, Stax Channel imbalances, Fostex loose screws, Sennheiser chipped paint etc etc.
Why would they spend a dime covering stuff like this with a warranty if the customers put up with paying yet another premium amount to have it fixed one or two years down the line?
 
 
A 1000€+ headphone should come with a 10 year warranty, at least on drivers and structural problems. (Cable and pads excluded)
If Koss can manage a lifetime warranty on a set of Portapro's there's no excuse for the current "bare minimum" policy of all the expensive boutique brands. (Besides the obvious "bottom line" excuse, which amounts to a big middle finger to the customer IMHO)

 

[Rchandra]

I absolutely agree, how on earth can a consumer feel comfortable spending a thousand plus dollars and get a bad warranty in return? And how on earth can a headphone company be so cheap when the product itself already has a HUGE markup.

 

[Hutnicks]

Buy the ESP950 and be done with it
 
Koss are still the only folks who got their head around warranty.

 

[Rchandra]

Haha koss is great.

 

[Blinxat]

While I do believe manufacturers should make durable and reliable long lived products I don't think the warranty needs to longer than the 2 years by law (here in EU), or 3 years offered by some retailers.
 
If the warranty lasts a long time some people start to treat their gear poorly and abuse it "oh I can get a fix or new one for free"

 

[The Dutch Guy]

  While I do believe manufacturers should make durable and reliable long lived products I don't think the warranty needs to longer than the 2 years by law (here in EU), or 3 years offered by some retailers.
 
If the warranty lasts a long time some people start to treat their gear poorly and abuse it "oh I can get a fix or new one for free"

 
I don't think there's any evidence to support that thought: Bryston has been providing a 20 year transferable warranty for decades and I never got the idea that Bryston owners are less carefull with their stuff.
 
By providing a long warranty period you provide security for your customers, and as a manufacturer set a bar for yourself to make your equipment as durable as possible.
Whereas sticking to the legal standard 1-2 year warranty (depending on where you live) basically gives no incentive to make a product that will remain reliable throughout the years: To the contrary, it is actually profitable when your product fails outside the warranty period, as it provides a second chance to overcharge people for parts/labour.
I've seen it countless times: A 4000€ CD player stops reading discs after 2 years, the manufacturer charges 500€ for repairs, but when you check the service manual against the repair bill it turns out that all they did was replace a 30€ standard Pioneer/Sony laser which probably takes about 45 minutes for a trained professional.
Limited warranty is to high end audio what payed DLC is to modern videogames: charging your customers for what should have been provided all along.
 
And it's not like it's extremely complicated or expensive to ensure (most) of your products last for years and years: Just spend a little more on a better optical transport (Instead of the standard ubiqutous low budget Teac drive), use high quality Panasonic or Nichicon/Rubycon etc. capacitors instead of "Audio Grade" Elna Silmic , or worse, made in Taiwan junk capacitors, use quality PCB's, suffcient thermal control (heatsinks),do a little more testing, use overspecced/oversized components, invest the the highest quality foam/pleather/leather etc etc. We are talking about  what amounts to petty change on a multi 1000$ component.
 
Even if you disagree with the above, the aforementioned problems with multiple expensive headphones are of a whole new order: Both the customer and the manufacturer KNOW their 2 year old 5000€ Stax' channel imbalance , or 2000€ Audeze's driver failure is NOT caused by abuse or carelessness. It is a design/manufacturing flaw, which should be recognised as such and remedied ASAP, including a heartfelt apology and assurance that should said problem ever rear its ugly head again.... EVER (!!!)....., it will be fixed no questions asked.
 
I am not a manufacturer of high end audio, and I probably wouldn't be cut out for it: I can't even imagine the shame of charging someone that just bought a 1000-5000€ pair of headphones a single dime for fixing a known issue.

 

[boiledelephant]

I suppose the model of extended warranties is designed to give us the best of both worlds: keep the cost down if you're not bothered, or pay the premium price for the peace of mind if you are. But I've only seen it offered on phones and laptops, really, not on audio gear.
 
I must say, it seems ridiculous given that my Noctua cooling fans have 6-year warranties on them, and they're active moving parts that are left turned on all day and all night in many normal uses, but my headphones, which basically just sit on my head and make noise occasionally, would have had a 1-year warranty if I'd bought them new.
 
I didn't buy them new, I bought them second-hand. Because I've decided that's actually the most cost-effective way of owning things like this, rather than paying full price and trusting warranties.

 

[The Dutch Guy]

  I suppose the model of extended warranties is designed to give us the best of both worlds: keep the cost down if you're not bothered, or pay the premium price for the peace of mind if you are. But I've only seen it offered on phones and laptops, really, not on audio gear.
 
I must say, it seems ridiculous given that my Noctua cooling fans have 6-year warranties on them, and they're active moving parts that are left turned on all day and all night in many normal uses, but my headphones, which basically just sit on my head and make noise occasionally, would have had a 1-year warranty if I'd bought them new.
 
I didn't buy them new, I bought them second-hand. Because I've decided that's actually the most cost-effective way of owning things like this, rather than paying full price and trusting warranties.

"Keeping the cost down" is a valid point when discussing mass produced "built on a budget" products in a higly competetive environment (Phones and Laptops). When it comes to 1000-5000€ headphones this just shouldn't be an issue.
With all of the marketing hyperbole and the ludcirous pricing strategies (We are talking 10-100 times the price of a "regular", very competent pair of headphones, think of it as a 10.000€ mobile phone or laptop) it is not a stretch for customers to expect a certain degree of extra reliablilty and extra service.
Why on earth even bother with all the Aluminium, Magnesium, Lambskin, protein leather,  Memoryfoam etc etc. I dont'buy into that crap because of the feel of luxury alone, I expect these things (And the inflated price) to actually contribute to a reliable and dependable product with impeccable service/aftersales.
Some trepidation is required when dipping you toe into the world of high end.... anything, but with most other products, from cars to furniture, the exorbitant prices of top of the line products are at least partially justified by exquisite aftersales and customer service.
 
Again: a 35€ Koss Porta Pro comes with a lifetime warranty, but Stax charges 1000€+ to replace a driver on a 2 year old 5000€ pair of headphones? Thats not luxury, that's not premium service or even customer friendly... I can't even think of a word that accurately describes a policy like that without stooping to name calling.
 
I bought a 15€ coffee machine 2.5 years ago , it broke down 3 months after the warranty expired and the store just gave me a new one, including a batch of coffee and an sincere apology, but with a 1000€+ pair of cans I have to beg for even the tiniest bit of consideration?

 

[Hutnicks]

@Dutch Guy.
 
 Spot on there. With a few caveats. Premium priced headphones are still (dear gawd, I hope) considered to be a lifetime investment. They should carry warranties that reflect that at the very least. Your cell phone and your laptop carry warranties that reflect their expected lifecycle. Usually 2 to 3 years.
 
 As consumers we need to step back a few decades and adjust our value systems. There was a time when buying a product and seeing a warranty way out of perspective with it's projected lifespan set of alarm bells in peoples minds. We are now asked and outright goaded into accepting miserable and usurious support for premium items.
 
 Were the shennanigans practiced regularly in the audio industry done in any other industry it would collapse in a year.

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

This is a great reason why Koss needs to make another great flagship. Also as much as the product failure and variation has marred Audeze's reputation, their warranty support is very accommodating should you run into any of those problems. We nee more of that.