Hype, Hyperbole and high price!

ihor
16 posts
05-07-2016 9:41am
"Regardless how one feels about expensive cables and such and all the stated claims of audio nirvana (although I do find the Brilliant Pebbles appalling and amusing at the same time - how soon before we start seeing $100 plus ’audiophile’ grade Scotch tape for attaching the pebbles (take a look at their website!!!) (Pet Rocks for the audio crowd!), such items pose major concern to our ’hobby.’"

While I can certainly understand your angst and disquiet regarding Brilliant Pebbles as well as your well-meaning concern for our hobby, however I think it’s only fair to point out the success of Brilliant Pebbles in terms of sales over the ten or more years since it was introduced as well as the apparent fact that Brilliant Pebbles and similar audiophile products actually seem to have helped our hobby in a terms of improving the sound of audiophiles' systems and being excellent conversation starters and subjects for debate.

For those unfamiliar, Brilliant Pebbles is the first and only audiophile mineral crystal based product to address a broad range of audiophile issues comprehensively. Brilliant Pebbles was introduced at the Hi Fi Show in London about 12 years ago.

geoff kait
machina dynamica
Advanced Audio Concepts
no goats no glory

Uncledemp 5-7-2016
If engineering expertise can be applied in a factual manner to audio, why does a company not dominate as a result?

Seriously, I often read what doesn’t work. But what does? I assume electrical engineers are designing at least some of the available equipment. Is it just the nature of audio that lends itself to this differing of application and result?

There are a multitude of factors that are involved, some of which have been well stated in the previous responses to your question. I would say simply that as in many other technical fields, for example medicine, audio is an inexact science.

And I’ll add that a good engineer is open-minded enough to recognize that while circuits and systems can be analyzed and measured, some things inherently have little or no predictability. One example, among countless others that could be cited, being the effects of electrical noise that may be coupled into a circuit. Or the effects involving digital cables that I referred to in my post near the top of this page.

Also, just as in the case of, for example, an automobile, any design represents a unique combination of a vast number of tradeoffs. And as with automobiles, no matter how perfect the net result of those tradeoffs may be, no one company will dominate because different people have different tastes, different practical requirements, and different budgets.

Regards,
-- Al

     I would never claim that companies that design moon gear have no audio knowledge. Where do you guys think low noise electronics cam from? You know, they did send an analog signal to the moon and back.
     Just look at the number of audio engineers who immediately used these parts when they came available to us, in really good designs, and/or built their own companies: Julius Siksnius (Apollo rocket scientist, Audire), Mark Levinson, Stuart Taylor (Any electronics from several companies, including Adcom and Bryston, with a model number that begins with "ST"),  John Curl (Any Mark Levinson gear with a model number beginning with (JC), etc.
    Let's us also not forget that the reason we have such great tubes/valves-for-the-aficionado,  is that the USSR was so far behind us in electronics that they perfected their tubes for use in MIG radar. That is why tubes come from Russia and China.
     TRIVIA: When turning and firing  their cannons, MIG pilots had to compensate for the gravitational forces on the stretching elements in the tube radar. 

For me the big issue with all these incredibly priced products is the impact they have on bringing new folks into the fold.  I can't tell you how many folks, both young with good-paying jobs and older with disposable income, that just roll their eyes about investing in quality audio systems after browsing ads, magazines, and websites and seeing $1,000+ cables, $2,000 plus cartridges, $3,000K DACs and other such costly items.  Between the ridiculous (at least to them) cost and claims, this completely turns many interested folks off to our hobby.  To me this is the biggest problem with such items.  Granted there are much less expensive but really good products out there, but that is not what the general public really gets exposed to.  

Super cars and mansions in magazines and TV shows don't prevent anyone from buying cars or homes.   Just buy what you can afford?    You can build a very nice system on a budget especially internet age.   Used market or home base retailers with lower operating expenses.

I don't buy the argument expensive components is the reason for lack of interest in the hobby.