Amp design logic


I hope you'll excuse my absolute and obvious ignorance...but this is a sincere question.

I don't get why one company is selling a new tube amp for ~$1000, and another is selling one for ~$50,000. What is one paying for? The proprietary circuit design?

Surely if one adds up the cost of the parts, trannies, chassis, etc. it's not worth $50K.

I accept that the more expensive one sounds lots, lots better. But what makes the price so high? Demand?

I think given a circuit diagram from a repair manual, I could eventually build most tube amps from scratch, using the absolute best of each part available. After I learn to solder. For less than $50K, just buying the best cap, resistor, wire, etc. made, for each part, I could slowly build an amp equal to the best in the world. So I don't get it.

What makes an amp worth $50K? It can only be the proprietary tube amp design.

Maybe another factor is the transformers. Each company seems to have their own iron, but that can't be a significant part of $50K?

Thanks, just really wondering about this. And wondering why don't I just make my own? If I buy one part at a time, eventually I can have the best amp there can be.

Jim
river251
I am surprising myself by asking the same sort of question lately about vintage after dragging an HK Citation 16 out of the closet manufactured in around 1975. A google search tells me that some audiophiles buying vintage and upgrading or having upgrades are very happy with the result. I don't know that I'm completely sold but I'm sure I've been undervalueing vintage. We might not need all the new amps, let alone a $50,000 one.
Take your own advice, just build your own. After you learn to solder, of course. I'm sure it will sound stellar. Hell, start your own business and grab a piece of the highend pie.
Look at car prices; a Kia, Mercedes and Rolls Royce all have 4 wheels, a seat and will get you there but the price differential is enormous. Remember that construction cost usually equals 10% of selling price; the rest is overhead and profit. If this seems excessive look at the mortality among high end companies. The best product in the world requires distribution and advertising; things do not sell themselves. Also when you build your own gear your time is free; don't forget to factor that in.
So the parts (I am guessing) are 10% and a retailer marks up double in most cases. How much is the manufacturers and distributors profit? Isn't overhead part of construction costs?
Thank you all for the great discourse.

I don't know that starting an amp from scratch is better than getting something like a CJ MV-55 and trying to make it sound like the way high end.