Nothing cheap comes out of Switzerland.
These seem a bit pricey $$$
Saw Steve Guttenberg’s review of the Credo 900’s the other day. I realize there is a lot more involved in the cost of a speaker than parts costs - labor, insurance shipping, dealer margins. OK, that’s called business. But 12K for these?
Just seems a bit out of line.
No, I never heard them. Maybe they're worth it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aj4C3swagpk
Just seems a bit out of line.
No, I never heard them. Maybe they're worth it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aj4C3swagpk
77 responses Add your response
stereo5 Steve Gutenberg knows more about high end audio than most of us. Your comments about him have no place here ...I kinda like Steve, but he's no sacred cow. He should be as subject to criticism here as any of the professional reviewers. |
I find Steve Gutenberg to be one of the most experienced honest real world reviewers out there, easily. However Steve is, like the rest of us I hope, also human. He like all of us has to live in the real world with all its social interaction issues. How many of us are able to be truly blunt with all of our friends? Not many, and I don't think Steve is immune either. Besides, all reviewers should be there to be disagreed with - until our senses can demonstrate otherwise. |
I watched the whole review. I like Steve personally, and I enjoy his reviews, but as far as this speaker is concerned, I would have to say that it looks like just one more small, boutique brand overpriced also-ran. Very ordinary looks with a nice finish, (should be!) and some revolutionary hybrid crossover and 2 tweeked Scanspeak drivers. It really images well...yes of course; all speakers that look like that do. I really can't see how a product like that can make it unless the buyer wants a brand that no one they know owns. Nice as he is, even Steve couldn't really convince himself about this one. |
Just wondering why OP decided to pick on this brand/speaker? There are so many examples of over-priced products regardless of where they made in HiFi. Is their a set criteria to determine a product is over-priced? A company puts a higher price on a product and expects customers to think it’s somehow better than the other ones on the market. And at the same time low cost mean low quality but it also means good value for the customers. We pay premium prices all day on items like,
I always take in account the premium price on products that are hand built and produced in limited numbers. I do not know about anyone else, but to me there is a elevated sense of ownership pride with items that are hand built vs mass produced items built by robots. |
You people crack me up. Maybe $12K seems expensive but the proof comes in the sound not the price tag (most don’t pay list price anyway). People pay more than that on cables and IMO that is a waste of time also. I just heard a digital cable that lists for $7990. Yep it sounded better but not $$$$$ better. The guy spent all kinds of money on that digital cable, interconnects from the same company, and $1500 on speaker cables. Swapped out his amps for my kit amp that was rebuilt with basic speaker cables, and interconnects and it sounded better than what he had. I can make a better change with a resistor in any component than most cables can make! On this subject, I did not really look at the drivers or what is in the cross-over but someone mentioned that they should be $3K. Hey if you can make a speaker and market it for $3K I would love to hear it! The shipping box alone will cost over $100, cross-over parts add another $100 to $200, cabinet say $300 for the MDF and wood all around maybe $400 or more. Dealer market-up, time to test, shipping, etc. what you are left with is a buck three eighty profit! Happy Listening. |
+1, bigkidz. BTW.....Credo uses HDF not MDF. Steve G. nails the most important virtues of the Credo speakers which is how it sounds and voice your favorite musicians. Even a idiot like Kenjit can put together a speaker from off the shelf parts....but to ‘sound’ it heavenly and marketing it to audiophiles across the world is whole different ball game. |
I think you guys are forgetting; for every (ok not everyone as they sell away more Chevy's) corvette buyer out there is a person who buys a Ferrari they do close enough to he same thing as its splitting hairs. its all a social status thing and well when you got it spend it. Just because you can not afford it doesn't make it bad or wrong. just maybe better looking haha. Now don't get me going on Over priced cartridges. |
Kenjit First there is no way that a Magico could ever be sold at $400. I had a pair of ls50 and they are good speakers but they are not anywhere near the level of my Magico S1MKII. This is in regards to build quality and sound. What toy are saying is that if you sold a chord TT2 FOR $100 and a topping dac for 5K then they would sell the topping to the same folks as the ones that would buy the TT2???? |
Wow, that is an expensive speaker. Really expensive.. Two drivers, XO (with xtra binding post), port, box, stuffing, finish and a little mod on the bottom. Yes that is a lot of money. It may sound like heaven, but I'd have a hard time at any price. Just looks like a speaker at Parts Express competition every year. Not even the unlimited category. 12k, I don't think so... Regards |
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Hello, They are a little unusual. They have a side firing sub and only play down to 30Hz at -3db. Also the efficiency is 87.6. They handle up-to 200W including the sub. Last but not least they are in a rectangle or square box. If you charge that much at least change the angle of the box to disrupt the internal sound waves like Sonas Faber line. I would say no more than $6k. The plinth is nice to isolate the bass. I would love to hear them maybe at Axpona in the late summer or fall. PS Audio has a speaker at that price range but will probably blow it out of the water. Also they developed a bookshelf speaker that plays down to 30Hz that will probably cost half of what the 900s cost. Maybe the dampening material is toilet paper. That stuff is very difficult to find now. |
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I was slightly surprised at the pricetag (I say slightly because there are so many very expensive audio products out there that nothing shocks me). Before he mentioned the price I was guessing around $3 - 4k. Best of luck to the company. As far as SG goes, I enjoy his videos. Mostly because of his enthusiasm for our hobby in general. I think he does a great job of conveying a 'try it for yourself' attitude and just having a good time listening to music and gear. Something lacking in many posts IMO. |
One of the things I like about my oft mentioned Klipsch Heresy IIIs is they’re NOT another "tower with drivers and a tweeter in a box" 89db or so speaker. I’m simply bored with the sameness of the thousands of these things out there (and I’ve owned my share) so it’s high efficiency horns for me for the foreseeable future, with the ability to use pretty much any amp regardless of its output. |
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Good read on what to expect when paying more for speakers and why: https://gearpatrol.com/2020/03/26/whats-the-difference-between-300-and-1000-bookshelf-speakers/ |