Hi, Is this what's right or wrong with hifi? [MEDIA=youtube]ZCBe7-6rw4M[/MEDIA] SCIDB
its whats wrong. a great sketch.. I also thought ''if only people cared enough about sound quality to even buy a bose wave radio" the home audio /video budget 40" plasma - £500 home stereo - £30 ipod dock
This argument has been played out since the beginning of hi-fi. I wrote this in an interview 20 years ago, just substitute Bose wave radio for cheap rack system. Crap has always appealed to 90% of your potential customers or potential fellow hobbyists, so put up with it. "Most people, even though they may be in it, don't seem to understand the Hi Fi market. To draw an analogy, most people are happy to own a Kodak or Polaroid camera to take holiday snaps. Conversely most people are happy to have a mini or rack system at home, just to make a noise as background music, you know to use at Christmas or for parties etc. I don't think they are stupid people, it just means music is not as important to them as it is to me. Other people buy flash separates or systems, all flashing lights and controls, it impresses the neighbours but it doesn't sound any better than a portable radio (the Japanese are masters of perceived value and the American marketing concept of "don't sell the meat sell the sizzle" just reinforces it). The equivalent in the photographic market is the camera with automatic focus, in fact automatic everything (by trying to not do something wrong, you do nothing right!). In both the Hi Fi and Photographic markets you have got enthusiastic people who wish to get as close to reality as they can, but they only represent a small proportion of the market. What they buy is like a Leica, on the outside it doesn't look impressive, the money is spent on the lens, on the shot system, and if you notice it is a simple system but with nice quality. So we are looking for a small portion of market, we are looking for people whose hobby in life is to enjoy music. I get mad when I hear people say: `Why can't you get everyone to buy your amplifiers?' You cannot, the same as you cannot get people to buy a Leica, different things appeal to different people. I've got my own ideas, but I am no so conceited to think I have all the answers to everybody's needs. If somebody would like to have an amplifier to impress their neighbours, or to compete with their hi-fi friend by saying: `Look at this frequency chart, look at that distortion analysis', if they want to do that, that's what they want to do."
Friends come to me knowing I like my hi-fi and ask for advice.... I usually just say don't listen too much to the sales guy, just go in, listen to some kit, and use your ears to judge....listen to kit you can afford and shop around. Don't get blinded by science, just take along some music and make sure you can tell the differences, remembering that high cost does not always equate to high sound quality !
Good advice. A couple of my friends wanted to buy Bose speakers. I advised them to listen to Bose and other speakers in the same price range and then decide. Neither of them bought Bose. Unfortunately the sketch is just too close to the truth to be funny. I know several people who bought Bose believing they were the buying the "best" and still believe they made the right decision. If they genuinely like the Bose sound, good luck to them, but I guess most of them were taken in by marketing and have never listened to other makes.
It's not easy. Most people don't know what they want and are not interested in spending time to find out what they want. They get taken in by all the hype. Terms like flat earth, PRaT etc. wouldn't exist otherwise.
The marketing works at the other end too. People trapped on the high end ladder of perpetual upgrading and persuaded to spend small fortunes. There are sharks swimming in the shallow and deep ends of the pool.
Sort of, just (appear to have) had such an experience. Looking for an upgrade for my current amp ('AVI'), I contacted a local dealer whose website clearly said that 1-2 'McIntosh' in stock (AND STILL SAYS SO). Then eventually worked out a date to hear one, plus 1-2 others including 'Chord' which he was particularly suggesting. Then I double-checked about the 'Mc' as I heard from a mate that 'Mc' had dropped some dealers cos of being messed around. The dealer wrote back "Nothing in stock - McIntosh is quite hard to come by at the moment." No point going, if my expectations are skirted around...
So if you want to try something and not take any or much of a risk, then buy on-line. With new product, by law, you have 30 days to decide if you keep it, that is plenty long enough for a proper decision. If you are unhappy just send or deliver it back for a full refund. With second hand product you can always sell it on for minimal or no loss (sometimes even profit), it involves a little hassle in listing it at ebay or on the forums. Shop dems can be and are manipulated, if a flatty (a flat earther) they are brainwashed and will try to do the same to you, if not they will try to sell the most expensive item and with the most profit margin they can. The number one selling training for all salesmen is "qualify the punter" is he serious, how much money does he have, will he buy today!!! then squeeze until they get the sale they want.
