The Cyclicality of Black Vs Silver

This is somewhat of a tangent to the main question and a rant, besides, but one of the things that drives me nuts about faceplates, both black and silver, is that in the pursuit of nice 'design,' the labeling of controls often seems to be designed to frustrate the user.

I have a Peachtree Decco which is a very nice piece of gear except that all the lettering on the brushed silver faceplate is in gray. It's not an exaggeration that you have to get down on your knees with a flashlight to read the labels. I've had the same problem with gold script lettering on black faceplates.

Why do they do that? I don't want to have to wear a headlamp to operate my gear.

I have to jump in here, as I only have black pieces in my system and feel silver is a distraction. The rack is between the spkrs, so it's right there in full view.

I've tried to compromise by having silver gear w/black knobs & handles (ARC) and wooden knobs (BC) but eventually let the stuff go.

Additionally, my TV, DVD & VCR are next to the rack in its own rack & all that stuff is black too. I'm looking for a replacement TV & it has to have a black cabinet.

Timelessly stylish audio components? In a way, the not so stylish black box is, because it just sits there & doesn't attract any attention to itself. Maybe that's more a definition of class? One of my all time favorite stylish looks is the Pass Aleph amp.

I have chrome bumpers on my pickup but it's an '86. Chrome on motorcycles is great.

Paisley

No!...Fred Kaplan

I hope I don't get flogged for this, but I think that an Arc component listed on Audiogon with the silver faceplate will sell a lot faster than the same component with a black faceplate.