A convenient if unpalatable scapegoat?

[Neil McCauley]

It’s my belief that many sectors of the audiophile industry (and I include the audio magazines in this) will use the UK financial crisis as camouflage or indeed scapegoat for what was and remains their inadequate business models.

Am I being too harsh - or realistic - or both?


---//---

[Steve Toy]

You are right to a point. The hi-fi industry was already in decline before this economic crisis even began. The current crisis is simply exacerbating the situation as more second-hand items flood the market not from upgraders but from people desperate for cash to pay bills.

I was speaking to the owner of a hi-fi shop in Tours, France back in April. He told me that today he is the only hi-fi retailer in Tours. Some 25 years ago there were 17. Now that's a big decline!

There are a couple of factors in the demise of two channel audio:

1) Consumers having more choice of things to spend their disposable income on other than hi-fi compared to 20 years ago. These include computers and home cinema as well as the fact that for most folks an iPod is good enough to do the job as it is certainly better than the muffled sound of the compact cassette tape previously used in portable audio. Once portable audio itself has reached an acceptable level of fidelity for most people why would anyone other than a small minority of enthusiasts bother with something that takes up considerable space in their living room?

2) The economic crisis resulting in less disposable income and a lack of consumer confidence needed to buy big-ticket luxury items.

As the consumer exuberance wanes and is replaced by a genuine desire to get the best possible sound/£ the second-hand market should begin to steady as fewer new purchases from big brand names are made. Fewer new purchases results in fewer items hitting the s/h market.

The only problem is that the enthusiasm for sound quality ahead of making lifestyle statements is what stigmatises the industry putting off a lot of new consumer entrants and this takes us back to iPods and ADM Bloody Nines.

The decline of this industry will continue long after the current economic crisis unless we can remove some of the stigma associated with owning kit that takes up lots of space can become obsessive and the wife thinks is ugly.

[Marco]

for most folks an iPod is good enough to do the job as it is certainly better than the muffled sound of the compact cassette tape previously used in portable audio.


ROFL! :lol:

I beg to differ. You've obviously never owned a Sony Walkman Pro (and played music on it superbly recorded from your system at home) or owned a top-notch separates tape deck such as a Nakamichi. Nasty, cheap, pre-recorded tapes were like that but not home recordings on good quality chrome or metal tapes. I must educate you sometime.

I'll contribute to the main thrust of this discussion later!

Marco.

[Slatedeck]

Marco, tell me more about the Nakamichis

I have a 582 that I've never tried, looks snaz but is it?

I've never been into cassets and never given it a spin...:)

[Marco]

You definitely should Darren, if the heads are still in good nick. The best Nakamichi tape decks had a way with music that not even some of today's top CD players could manage, never mind a bloody plastic iPod!

These 'new generation' boys have so much to learn :eyebrows:

Marco.

[Slatedeck]

Umm, food for thought, not even sure if I have a tape !! :lolsign:

[Steve Toy]

I was waiting for Marco to come along and defend the compact cassette. I know Sony Walkman Pros and even my Sanyo from the late eighties were pretty good, as are the Nakamichis but cassette listening was for most people a pretty poor substitute for the sound from the record player in the hi-fi system taking up so much living room space.

When digital audio came along with miniaturized storage formats the main rig in the living room became redundant for most people not striving for the same levelk of fidelity as we are. Whilst the iPod is not as good as proper hi-fi it is good enough for most and considerably better than the cassette player, excepting the high-end Nakamichi and Walkman Pros of course

[Slatedeck]

Mind you I have a ton of 8 track tapes.....

I'll get me coat.......:ner:

[Colinx]

To me, part of the problem with two channel audio is the ''snob'' or stand off factor that potential new entrants find. For those of us that are ''in'' the system it may well be less of a problem, but to the newcomer it can be, and I would think, is, a daunting prospect. Just for a moment imagine you know that you enjoy music in the home, and decide to lavish a little of what is becoming a rare item, your spare cash on a home audio system. Where do you start. The high street is bare, other than the odd branch of Richers. The monthly comics are little real help, either being much more TV/movie biased, or wandering down the high ticket esoteric path.

You do, finally manage to discover that a raft of makers do offer products that may be of interest to you, but how do you get to hear them. Well if you are lucky, you may find a dealer around your town that stocks one, or at a push two of the entry level brands. So you wander in, as a new entrant you are unlikely to be aware of the booked demo system, to be faced with having to make your booking to listen to something. If that has not put you off the idea, and a bigger TV from comet has not become more interesting, then you go back to hear. The next thing you know is that your simple cd replay system at £1500, has after a few changes of component become a £3k plus system that you can not afford, then the man tells you he wants another stack of cash for cables and stands.

If the industry as a whole wants to try and stay viable, then a better way of introducing entry level gear to potential purchasers has to be found. It will take a change in attitude across the industry to do it, probably more of a joined up advertising campaign for the idea of music system, rather than a buy my amp/speakers thing in what remains of the specialised press.

Put simply, get people into the ethos of two channel music systems, and they will ''upgrade'' themselves, ignore them and the industry will continue to die.

[Marco]

I was waiting for Marco to come along and defend the compact cassette.


Of course, as I'm a purveyor of all 'proper' audio formats which don't pander to convenience at the expense of sound quality!


Whilst the iPod is not as good as proper hi-fi it is good enough for most and considerably better than the cassette player, excepting the high-end Nakamichi and Walkman Pros of course

I'm glad you've now made the distinction, although perhaps you should also add Studer, Revox, Tandberg, and a host of other masters of the art of cassette tape, to your list ;)

Darren, 8-track? I remember it well. Now that *WAS* pish! :eyebrows:

Marco.

[Prince of Darkness]

Never heard 8-track myself. I did here it had a lot of potential, but was let down by poor reliability (particularly a tendency to jam). They didn't really sell well in Britain, but did seem to be popular in America for a while.:)

[Marco]

I have, erm, 'fond' memories from the 70s as a child of day trips with my parents in the car listening to Perry Como on the 8-track in my dad's (then) Opel Manta. The Manta was lovely, although I couldn't say the same of Perry Como.

Marco.

[Slatedeck]

Never heard 8-track myself. I did here it had a lot of potential, but was let down by poor reliability (particularly a tendency to jam). They didn't really sell well in Britain, but did seem to be popular in America for a while.:)


Well I do have a mains player somewhere as well......if you really must I suppose I could..........No !! Ok cool .........:lol:

[Togil]

You definitely should Darren, if the heads are still in good nick. The best Nakamichi tape decks had a way with music that not even some of today's top CD players could manage, never mind a bloody plastic iPod!

These 'new generation' boys have so much to learn :eyebrows:

Marco.

Agreed , I also had a 582, although it developed a screeching transport.

In 1999 I met Mr. Kobayashi, their chief engineer and now president who told me that no spare parts were available for these decks ( although B&W whom they fell out with may have some spare parts left )

[Beechwoods]

I love tape, and to that end I've got a Nak deck which sounds superb, but it cost a hell of a lot more than the Sony's and Aiwa's I bought from Richer Sounds in the early 90's.

My old Sony was a 3 head deck with HX-PRO and all the gubbins, cost me a lot when I wasn't earning much, and was definitely better than most machines friends had, but compared with the Nak it sounds shite. But my ZX-7 did have an RRP of $1,250 when it was new, so that's hardly surprising.

Compact cassette only sounded consistently good on a select few expensive decks, and people were content to live with the generally 'muffled' sound at the price point they were prepared to pay. iPods and Bose wave machines sound better than they used to put up with out of budget midi-systems, for the same price, so I guess we shouldn't be surprised when people aren't prepared to pay more for better kit.

It's always been that way, for most people...

[Marco]

Hey Beechy, have you seen this post:

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?p=20344#post20344

I'm waiting on your expert opinion! ;)

Marco.

[David Price]

Of course, as I'm a purveyor of all 'proper' audio formats which don't pander to convenience at the expense of sound quality!

I'm glad you've now made the distinction, although perhaps you should also add Studer, Revox, Tandberg, and a host of other masters of the art of cassette tape, to your list ;)

Darren, 8-track? I remember it well. Now that *WAS* pish! :eyebrows:

Marco.


Indeed - Naks are lovely but it wasn't exclusively Naks that did it right - even B&O had some stunning cassette decks. Also, once again it's all part of the setup; it's perfectly possible to have a nasty, worn out old Nak that sounds awful. The good thing is that they are (largely) rebuildable/serviceable at Bowers & Wilkins, unlike most classic cassette decks.

By the way Marco - we're doing a Walkie Pro servicing feature soon - I'm sure you'll love it!

As for me, I use a Walkie Pro, plus Nakamichi car cassette decks in my cars (I've ripped the OEM CD players out because they don't sound as good)!

[Beechwoods]

And it should be said that Nakamichi continued to trade on their reputation for good quality decks long after the bean counters had taken over calling the shots and the reality of build was turning out somewhat different.

Tascam decks should also be mentioned in the roll-call of good machines. The 122 in particular was a great deck and can be found second hand these days at very attractive prices. Studer / Revox and the best of the Nak range are hard to find at such good prices.

[Marco]

David,


By the way Marco - we're doing a Walkie Pro servicing feature soon - I'm sure you'll love it!


Brilliant. I'll look forward to it! I tend to do my own 'servicing' in terms of keeping the heads and tape rollers clean, but I'd be buggered if any parts had to be replaced...


As for me, I use a Walkie Pro, plus Nakamichi car cassette decks in my cars (I've ripped the OEM CD players out because they don't sound as good)!

Haha, that's mad. I thought that I was the only one sad enough to do that. I knew you were a man of class ;)

OEM car CD players sound utter sh*t!

Marco.