Hi-Fi Choice mag to vanish?

[Neil McCauley]

And, like the Jap, Greek, Italian and American 'audiophiles', are not afraid to spend whatever is necessary in order to achieve their system sonic goals, as opposed to the (largely) penny-pinching, unimaginative, eBay 'bargain hunters' we have here in the UK!

One only has to attend the big European audio shows, and compare how they are conducted by exhibitors, and the clientele that they attract, compared to the shows here, for that fact to be hammered home....

Marco.

Quite so Marco, quite so. No idea what can be done though. Have you? Regards. Howard.

[Welder]

Oi! Who are you calling “tight fisted” and “unimaginative”. Some of us just “careful” with what money we have and some of us just don’t have the money to start with

ADMIN! Send this man on a week’s holiday! Talk about insulting a notoriously thrift conscious nation.



(Oh, it’s you Marco. Do me a favour please and ban yourself for a week)

[Marco]

Lol! The key is in the word "largely", which was used in my post... I'm not for a moment suggesting that any of our discerning members here are like that

Marco.

[Alan Sircom]

Quite so Marco, quite so. No idea what can be done though. Have you? Regards. Howard.

No, I wish there was something that can be done about this. It's understandable at the present time. We British are collectively not buying anything expensive (unless it's mind-bogglingly expensive) at the moment and that includes hi-fi and AV equipment, because we are collectively waiting for the other shoe to drop. But the worry is the British weren't buying much in the way of hi-fi before the downturn, compared to other countries and relative to the rest of the CE world.

There's an even stranger statistic that doesn't get much air. Sales of consumer electronics typically run fairly predictably; the early adopters live in cities and buy shiny things, while those in more rural areas end up buying more conservatively. So the two iPad family is almost guaranteed to be based in London, while the person pondering an upgrade from DVD to Blu-ray is likely to be based somewhere green and pleasant. When downturns hit, the early adopters become more conservative and hold off the gadget purchases, while the rural buyers still go through their replacement cycles, albeit perhaps a little slower than usual.

This time, the inverse is true. The gadget buyers are soaking up anything with an Apple logo on it (if they can, clones if they can't) at seemingly a faster pace than usual, while the heartland has gone very quiet indeed.

Really don't know what to make of that!

[WAD62]

Lol! The key is in the word "largely", which was used in my post... I'm not for a moment suggesting that any of our discerning members here are like that

Marco.

...get yer eyes off my skip, I found it first

[WAD62]

This time, the inverse is true. The gadget buyers are soaking up anything with an Apple logo on it (if they can, clones if they can't) at seemingly a faster pace than usual, while the heartland has gone very quiet indeed.

Saturation advertising by Apple perhaps? Works with the non-discerning consumer every time...

I dread to think what their budget is...

[Neil McCauley]

Saturation advertising by Apple perhaps? Works with the non-discerning consumer every time...

I dread to think what their budget is...

Cash 'mountain' currently $57 billion apparently. Most recent quarter's profits were circa $7 billion apparently.

[Neil McCauley]

Saturation advertising by Apple perhaps? Works with the non-discerning consumer every time:

Now hang on a minute. They don't have reverse-bouncers chucking people into their stores now do they?

The plain and unpalatable fact is that they are producing items people want to buy. And I'm one of those people.

I've used a MAC computer since 1984. I've used and still use an i-pod, albeit with music in WAV format. Yes, I have an i-phone Mk4 and Jayne my PA has an i-pad #2

None of us are chavs. We aren't into bling. The fact is that the above tools deliver not only on their promise but in a way that we find appealing. Who in their right mind, in the generation of buyers with money to spend seriously consider attempts at 'fettling' a Linn LP12? It's nuts and our industry looks like nuts. When I drive my Audi A3 I don't expect to 'fettle' it every now and then.

Finally, imagine buying an Apple product from an Apple store and then visualise how that person might react to the first impression of an audiophile store? This was one of the reasons why I no longer have a shop and now sell either through home demos or sale-or-return mail order.

[hifi_dave]

And, like the Jap, Greek, Italian and American 'audiophiles', are not afraid to spend whatever is necessary in order to achieve their system sonic goals, as opposed to the (largely) penny-pinching, unimaginative, eBay 'bargain hunters' we have here in the UK!

One only has to attend the big European audio shows, and compare how they are conducted by exhibitors, and the clientele that they attract, compared to the shows here (populated in the main by what I call the 'carrier-bag crew'), for that fact to be hammered home....

Marco.

It's been this way since the mid 80's. Before that, every young lad wanted a good Hi-Fi system and was prepared to pay for it. Now, it's the cheapest product at the lowest price that sells in the UK. We aren't prepared to pay for quality where Hi-Fi is concerned. That and the fact that most people aren't even aware that Hi-Fi exists..

More and more of my customers are in their 40's or older. Most are upgrading their systems and few are starting from scratch with a whole system. I'm also seeing customers who went the 'Home Cinema' route and are now coming back to good quality two channel, often with a TT as the main source.

[Clive]

I won't buy Apple products mainly because most are over-priced. They are good though but everyone has them and I hate being part of that - it's an entry ticket to a part of society.