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Hype, Hyperbole and high price!

Okay, I understand that this site has to make money by having advertisers, but cheese and crackers, the claims that are made are just laughable if not down right criminal!  Before I attended an engineering university I too was duped into buying expensive wires and such.  Now, armed with an engineering and physics background, I can see through the BS claims made.  I try and not let it get in the way of my enjoyment of good quality stereo equipment, but when a salesman tries to sell me something based on testimonials, hype and hyperbole, I tell him politely my background and then ask him a series of questions which leaves him dumbfounded. 

Such crap as directional wires - (I used to work for both Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman) and trust me, if we had to test the miles of wires for directionality in every piece of equipment built...well you get the gist.

I have friends that are audio snobs and although they argue with me (Basically buyer's remorse) they know that what I say is true and end the conversation.  Oh well, I suppose I will continue to get a headache when I read said claims.

Sigh!
128x128kenny928
tubegb's avatar
tubegb
193 posts
 

I will never forget the day in 1979 that the “Head Monster” himself (Noel Lee) sauntered into our hi-fi store with this funny looking large gauge wire and of course donuts. What, that wire is going to “sound better” than our fabulous 18 gauge zip cord? We doubt it… It was a watershed moment/day for sure.


mapman's avatar
mapman
22,464 posts
 

’Look, let me give you some advice while we’re or least I am on the subject. If you want to be somebody and be a big star in the eyes of the Naysayers and Pseudo Skeptics and other assorted tweakaphobes, obviously something to which you aspire. Contact Better Business Bureau or Consumer Protection Agency or even AES or NASA or whoever you think the proper authorities are and report my Teleportation Tweak, the Super Intelligent Chip, Brilliant Pebbles, the Particle Accelerator, Dark Matter and/or the Quantum Temple Bell and explain to them how upset you are and that I’ve broken some unspoken rules of marketing or product naming conventions and that I’ve broken actual Laws of Science or Physics or whatever and that even though you’re not exactly sure what those laws are, there must certainly be some!
"


Geoff hate to break the news but nobody really cares about your products as evidenced by the lack of buzz.

Its simply not all about you.


Now back on topic...


jafant's avatar
jafant
19,927 posts
 
Great story on Noel Lee. Like him or not, he is a marketing genius.
Back in the 80's most of us used Monster wire.
knghifi
1,668 posts
 
In some cases, you simply can't buy a quality product at any price now- everything is disposable.
Innovation and efficiency have contributed to more disposable commodity as price drops.   Great example is computers.   Saw an ad last wknd $499 for a HP laptop with all the bells and whistles.   For me this is a positive for consumers.

I don't agree 100% simply can't buy quality at any price.
  
One of the things I like about this industry is that it is still made up of small, "cottage" type manufacturers. And, there's quality out there.

The consequence is higher prices with low volume and low demand.
whart's avatar
whart
3,064 posts
 
knghifi- I didn’t mean it as a blanket indictment ("In some cases...").
And I agree, the commodification of some products, like TV and computers, has increased performance and lowered price. The modest Marantz AV processor in our den outperforms an old Meridian that was state of the art when it was introduced two decades before. But, I replace the outdoor motion sensor spotlight fixtures on our house approximately every two years- I suppose I could go to an industrial prison level lighting system, but when I checked, I couldn’t find much in the average, consumer products realm- all the same, crappy fixtures. Ditto- a lot of clothing, short of really high end or custom stuff- it is badly made and disposable.
Apple, to me, is a prime example of hype v reality. Fashion statement, but I’m tired of the lackluster performance, the fact that the phones tank after 2 years and it really is about constantly upgrading and features I could care less about. I’m not drawing a direct parallel to hi-fi here, but my point about ’cottage industry’ is that you have a choice. In a lot of consumer products, I’m not sure you do. Then again I may just be a victim of fashion. regards,

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