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RE: One thing that struck me is too was the $60,000 budget

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In Reply to: RE: One thing that struck me is too was the $60,000 budget posted by josh358 on September 21, 2010 at 15:13:08

I know it is kind of a kill joy. We like to think, us middle-class types, that everyone no matter their income, is pretty much like everyone else. A very middle-class but incorrect perspective of the world.

We like to think that the guy that shells out $300K for a new car, or $200K for a new hi-fi system, has a great passion for those things. Thought about it at great length, tried all kinds of alternatives to what they actually bought. Sorry to say this is not the case.

That is not to say there are not wealthy audiophiles that do want to hear the gear before purchasing. But this is the exception rather than the rule.

Don't think that every Wilson Alexandria or Audio Research Reference amplifier went to a loving audiophile home. Some do, most don't. Wilson would go broke waiting for audiophiles to buy their products.

Fortunately excellent marketing, good dealer network in upscale markets and plenty of rich people in the world to keep companys like Wilson afloat. This is not a dig against Wilson. Great company, great products, but few Alexandria or MAXX3 will make it to an audiophile home. For us mere mortals we will have to settle for a Sasha!

Follow Ups:

RE: One thing that struck me is too was the $60,000 budget - Satie 04:49:03 09/22/10 (1)
There is dealer bias against Maggies if they don't carry them. In my neck of the woods there is one Maggie dealer and then there are all the rest. If you want to be ignored when looking to have a speaker audition there is nothing like saying you have a big magnepan.

The one thing the dealer knows is that he won't be selling you any speakers. Because they would all seem horrendously over priced.

The then Apogee and Martin Logan dealer had less of a problem with this. Though they did not have a competitive price, they had a better sounding product.

The non-Vandersteen dealers were always in the same position, but were more willing to give it a try.

Re wealthy folks. The one thing that the wealthy person has less of is time to spend researching, setting up and DIYing. The dealer is absolutely necessary to assemble and install the system. The buyer has little time for listening, not to speak of optimizing his system.

I had a discussion of this with the original owner of my Melos tube gear. He was a West Coast system optimizer. He went to rich folks' homes and set them up with component selection, proper setup and tweaks and coordinated sending equipment to modders. His clients would not have liked to deal with all the tweaking themselves, they just want to have things running and sounding their best when the odd time comes around and they can actually listen to music. Others don't even care for that, they just don't want to seem careless about their setup when actual audiophiles visit - yes even audiophiles might have friends.
- RE: One thing that struck me is too was the $60,000 budget - kentaja 07:03:56 09/22/10 (0)
  Agreed. I did not intend to be so rough on the 'rich'.
  
  Certainly one can have money and a great passion for music, hi-fi, etc., but little desire for testing all kinds of equipment to find just the right mix. That is what a good dealer can do and why good dealers are so important.
  
  A good dealer has a broader exposure and experience with all kinds of equipment and environments. This is a level of experience that is rare for most people, even audiophiles.
  
  As an example, if I were rich and looking to assemble a SOTA home theater system I would not have any idea where to start. And honestly zero desire to learn about the gear, set-up, performance, etc. I just want a kick-butt home theater and have $100K to blow on the project. I would be looking for a good dealer and let him/her do the work for me.
  
  I think a good dealer is also able to identify the needs and wants of his clients or prospective client. Your example of the Magnepan is great. Those that own them are generally quite attached to them. Much like Quads. So if you walk into the door and say that you own Magnepans or Quads, unless you specifically tell me you want to listen to speakers I would not steer you in that direction.
  
  Even if you told me that you were unhappy with the Magnepans, or Quads, and wanted to look at speakers, I would probably explore further why you are unhappy with the Magnepan. What don't you like about them? What do you like? Perhaps the speakers are not the issue and the problems are elsewhere in the system/room. Lets start there.
  
  A good dealer is also going to know when he cannot meet your needs and suggest something that will, perhaps something he does not represent. I have seen this occur many times over the years.
  
  Like anything, there are good dealers and bad dealers. A good dealer can be a wonderful resource no matter one's exposure or experience.
RE: One thing that struck me is too was the $60,000 budget - josh358 18:19:58 09/21/10 (2)
While my family was middle class, I went to a "Gossip Girl" school in Manhattan and grew up surrounded by wealth. So I've noticed the same thing you have -- that many middle class people don't know just how much some people have, or what it means to be so wealthy that a $60,000 purchase means less to you than the cost of a cut of meat does to the typical supermarket shopper.

Fortunately, I also learned that that kind of wealth adds very little to the sum of happiness. In the end, I think it really is more about getting there than being there.
- RE: One thing that struck me is too was the $60,000 budget - kentaja 20:20:43 09/21/10 (1)
  Many times, perhaps most times, wanting is more fun than having.
  
  Fortunately we live in a world were nothing is too exotic or expensive. It makes for some wonderful toys. I am fine with playing with those toys for brief moments before they move on to their permanent homes!
  
  I think it is time to hop on down to the BMW dealership for a weekend loaner test drive.
  - RE: One thing that struck me is too was the $60,000 budget - josh358 06:02:39 09/22/10 (0)
    LOL, yeah, I first noticed the "wanting is more fun than having" thing when I was a kid. My personal definition of a great piece of gear is something that gives you even more pleasure once you've bought it than it did when you were thinking of buying it. And that, in my experience, doesn't have much to do with price, or whether something is absolutely state of the art. I spent a lot of time tooling around in a friend's Porsche, but my father's little Triumph was always more fun.
    
    I know what you mean about being satisfied with playing with rather than owning the toys, in fact when I was working in pro audio and video I lost interest in my home setup because I could play with all the toys I could ever want.

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