[Vertigo-1]

Alright, here's the scenario:

You're an absolute newbie to headphones, but you have some minor idea of what sounds good. You are completely unfamilar with any of the headphone companies beyond Koss and Sony. You walk towards an audiophile store, looking to pick up some headphones. You've got exactly $30 in your wallet, and your own CD wallet.

You open the door and walk in, and the salesman behind the counter locks his eyes on you and greets you. "Looking for anything particular today?" You timidly reply "Umm...just looking". A couple of regulars are standing around, chatting with each other in the background about some of the displays in the room.

You notice on one shelf a row of headphones in blister packaging, and walk towards it. Prices range between $20-100, with strange names like Grado and Sennheiser on them. Underneath each package is a full sized CD player, connected to a headphone amp ("they make amps for headphones???"), connected to the headphone for auditioning.

Then you swing around, and notice on display on a nice pedestal table the following: a headphone connected to a strange looking thing with lot's of glass thingys sticking out of it with a pricetag of $16,000, and a big white CD player with a pricetag of $20,000. Various crazy looking cables are coming to and from both. You stare at the display for a moment, jaw dropping a bit. All this time the salesman is glances at you from time to time, while talking to his regulars.

Sighing, you turn back to the row of headphones, and after listening to a couple of headphones, keeping in mind what's in the wallet, choose out something that costs $25 that says Sennheiser on it that sounded pretty good, and prepare to pay for it. The salesman turns from talking to the regulars and says "good choice, it's been quite a rage lately." Then he says, "So you're into headphones? Would you like to listen to that thing on that table over there?" and points to that insanely expensive system. The room goes silent.

Would you listen to it???

 

[Wes]

Why, of course, Vertigo_1!

Partly as a matter of my own bias toward always knowing as much as possible--or, if you will, to picking at my scabs. Just irresistible. But, then too, I'd audition with more than half an expectation that the insanely expensive system isn't likely to be better in any proportion resembling its price difference. There's a low, but greater than zero, probability that it either would not be better at all or would not be more to my liking than what I just chose. Price is the easiest way to get some attention for your product, and nothing much about quality follows from a high price.

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Quote:

Originally posted by Wes Why, of course, Vertigo_1! Partly as a matter of my own bias toward always knowing as much as possible--or, if you will, to picking at my scabs. Just irresistible. But, then too, I'd audition with more than half an expectation that the insanely expensive system isn't likely to be better in any proportion resembling its price difference. There's a low, but greater than zero, probability that it either would not be better at all or would not be more to my liking than what I just chose. Price is the easiest way to get some attention for your product, and nothing much about quality follows from a high price.

You *do* know which system Vertigo is referring to, don't you?

 

[Vertigo-1]

Quote:

You *do* know which system Vertigo is referring to, don't you?

Psst hey yo, you aren't supposed to know!

Some key points:

1. This is a system you *KNOW* you will never be able to afford. Think of this as being in the car showroom of a Ferrari and the salesman just asked you "want to take her out for a ride down highway 60?" And you're first thought is pretty much

.

2. You are in a high pressure situation, with guys who all know their stuff staring at you and already had their turn at the system before you came in, and they all expect you to say a few words about what you think afterwards...

3. You're pretty much on your way out the door, and reveling in your new toy already.

 

[gaineso]

Always a dreamer, of course I'd try it. I have to try to stay up with what's the "Bleeding Edge" so I know where the "Diminishing Returns" curve starts to flatten out.

That's why I've heard Martin-Logans, Krells, Cary's etc. Maybe if I won the Lotto, but not in any other reality that I can think of. I still like to hear them though, and NO, they don't make me jealous or hate my system. I know I've got bang for buck and the best I can afford right now. I'm VERY happy with it.

 

[OneMalt]

Hell yeah!

For 36 grand, I'd want to see "what else it did to you" besides pump music into your brain!

 

[Flumpus]

No, I wouldn't listen to it... I'd make up an excuse to get out of there. Hifi stores are intimidating if you're a newbie, and even more so if you're a newbie just lookin' for a pair of $30 headphones.

Would I listen to it now? Of course, but only because I kinda know what I'm talkin' about (kinda, and not most of the time

)

 

[Audio-Me]

Despite my bias against really expensive stuff, I'd still listen to it to broadnen my experience. I've always had this mentality, yes even when I was a newbie.

BTW, if I got offered a test drive in a Ferrari, I'd probably end up in a high speed police chase, and get away with ease.

 

[Old Pa]

Now I would, but there was a time when I would not (brought up to keep my hands in my own pockets). That was before I realized the basic logic and benefits of letting somebody else pay for at least some of the R&D in this life.

 

[dhwilkin]

Sure, but only if they let me use my CDs w/ it. And given what I was listening to back when I only knew of Koss and Sony, well I doubt they'd let me. Though if they did, I'd probably just keep repeating "WOW", until the regulars got tired of asking me to snap out of it.

 

[pigmode]

No. I'm not a dreamer. I'll go maybe two or three price levels above what I can afford. Why? First, for reference. Second, because I've got great credit.

 

[DanG]

Hell yes... same thing happened to me, except it was the Grado RS-2. Not the same as an O, but I sure thought I couldn't afford it. And, well, here I am.

 

[acidtripwow]

Of course, this story is a fairy tale.

1) I've been to high end stores and nobody will even look at you much less help you unless you are white and look rich. This is why I rarely go to any of them and buy off the net.

2) Yes, they have headphones but usually in a drawer out of site.

3) When you do finally get someone to help you they usually know very little about what they sell. These are the same people that used to work at BestBuy only older.

 

[Audio-Me]

In my experience @ hi-fi audio stores, the sales people who've given me dirty looks or treated me like a schmuck, were themselves oafs, thus didn't know what the hell they were talking about, but think they know it all just because they work for a classy store. However, I have run into some friendly reps who had their knowledge together, and were able to express their opinions and recommendations without bias or ********.

I am not caucasian nor rich, dress very casual (some say I look like a criminal

), but I have not had much trouble with snobs at stores. I guess I have that intimidation thing going for me, I'm a serious person, I don't **** around much.

Restaurants are a different story, I've gotten so mad to a point I almost charged the counter to choke the living hell out of one guy, but fortunately, I can control my anger.

 

[DanG]

That is often true, but when you see the younger guys at audio stores (the audio store in my case was Goodwin's Audio on CommAve in Boston) they're on a commission (probably a small one) and they don't care to make racist prejudices like the older guys. I am white, but having been a high school student wearing jeans and a sweater I must not have looked like the person to buy the Cary 303 CD player for $2500.

But there were Beyerdynamic and Grado heapdhones on display. I asked about the Grado SR-80, and the guy offered to have me try the RS-2, so I said "Sure." I listened and liked it -- though it wasn't really broken in too much, I could feel the difference between that and my Sony 888.

I did find that these salesmen either know nothing about what's not in their store or else pretend not to. This same young salesman who pushed the RS-2 on me claimed never to have heard the name "Sennheiser." Interesting...

Also, when Vka and I came back there a few months after my first visit to hear the Cary 300SEI that same guy told us that the headphone jack was on a different circuit using plain old op-amps. Good thing we knew better and just said we want to listen anyway.