Why so expensive??

It may be what a high-end manufacturer told me once: the vast majority of people, even audiophiles, could never afford a $5000.00 amplifier. The two or so percent who can, can also afford a $10,000 amplifier. In that market, he will sell more of them at $10,000 than if he priced the same amp at $5000. Using that logic, perhaps those that can afford even $100,000 for an amp will not even look at anything priced closer to where mere mortals can afford.

But it cannot be just a matter of surviving as a business. The particular manufacturer I spoke to was know for wearing primarily expensive Italian suits, shoes, and even had a Ferrari or two. And he came from nothing and his hifi business was the only (known) source of income.

Nothing wrong with that. In fact, I wish I had the talent, vision, and fortitude to have done the same thing. But if his analogy is correct, it tells me that if people did not buy mega-buck equipment and cables, then that same equipment and cables would cost much less.

Personally I cannot afford those prices...but I don't concern myself with how others spend their money. As long as they don't dip into my funds to finance it, I could care less. Here's a question for you. Ever spend time developing a product for market? If you have, and its been successful then you know it takes time and resources. Time and resources cost money. And I'm sure you don't donate your time to your employer. If you still can't comprehend it then as long as it doesn't affect your cashflow, go concern yourself with something 'closer to home.'

Expensive = elite limited, an ostentatious display of profligerate spending on something totally unnecessary => it goes back to the basic male drive to demonstrate wealth, accumulate resources and power, and to differentiate versus other males (this may continue long after being happily married, as it is programmed into our very nature). This drive is primarily in order to attract females, however, the drive can become perverted when men build audio systems in basement caves - as it does little to attract females in this case(generous behaviour, attention to children, boats, luxury cars, big houses, social status rank much higher with females in terms of evaluating men). It is the same reason that multi-millionaires want to become billionaires...they must satisfy their drive and can't stop, as it is in their nature.

The next time you think of buying the $15,000 amp, do a blind listening with a $2,000-$3,000 of similar topology and power (Class A, Tube, Triode, SS) and if you can consistently tell which is which, and consistently prefer the $15,000 amp, buy it, it is worth it if you can afford it. You may find this type of evaluation might save you some money more often then you think, unless you simply need to spend more and there is nothing wrong with that if it makes you happy - it does feed the manufacturer's family, children and employees.

Manufacturing equipment costs a LOT OF MONEY. Research and design cost a lot of money. I have been in two high end manufacturer's facilities. Boulder Amplifiers and Dunlavy Speakers when they were in business.

As I remember, Boulder had several CNC machines, these cost megga bucks and you have to have one before you can build any product. So, you finance one, now you have to design a product to build, engineers, designers, CAD workstations... The first design is not always successful, it may not test very well, using the mega bucks test equipment you financed...

Dunlavy's facility had a anechoic chamber! again big bucks, Lots of test equipment. Every componet that was bought from outside vendors was tested before use. Sub assemblies were tested with results logged. Speaker pairs were built using componets that tested similar...

I worked as an engineer for a company that designed and built indutrial robotic manufacuring systems for manufacturers. We had some robotic movement controllers that were the size of an amplifier (and basicly the same thing with a lot of servo loops), that sold for $15,000.00 . A complete system, one built for Johnson Controls ( a HVAC equipment company), cost 3.5 million and took two years to design, build, test, and install.

Just because a product is electronic does not mean it is cheap.

From what I have seen, true high end audio equipment is on the same level of design sophistication as the space program, avionics, medical, really is some of the best product available in the world at any cost.

Jim G.