Crazy US Prices

[WOStantonCS100]

S'ok by me... these prices drive more and more folks to DIY and/or restoration/upgrading of classic audio. Even if folks aren't keeping these items for themselves, at least they are pulling 'em out of the bin.

[6L6]

hugely spiralling average prices of American hi-fi as seen in the recent Chester Group New York Audio and AV Show.

Oh, one other thing...

The location of that show has an awful lot to do with the prices -

There are probably more people with mind-boggling amounts of money in and around New York than anywhere else in the world. If you want to appeal to those people, make it expensive. That will get their attention.

[northwest]

S'ok by me... these prices drive more and more folks to DIY and/or restoration/upgrading of classic audio. Even if folks aren't keeping these items for themselves, at least they are pulling 'em out of the bin.

This is a very valid point. As for the cost in New Yorknyou need a bit of perspective. I often frequent one of the "top three" steakhouses in Manhattan when I am there. They are always packed and for 4/5 of us the bill is always around 1000 dollars without going crazy. (the one time we did it was a bottle of red costing 500 dollars )
I reckon to have half a lifestyle and live in Manhattan today you would need to earn 300k. Yes, there are people on a lot less and they live there, but would you really want to?
So I can see quite clearly where these "lifestyle manufacturers" are coming from. Not for me though, I think the people who DO buy into this sort of bullshit really ought to know better.

[MartinT]

The thing is, you can eat out in New York really well for a lot less. I usually find London more expensive.

[northwest]

The thing is, you can eat out in New York really well for a lot less. I usually find London more expensive.

You can still buy Pizza for a dollar a slice in midtown, though the best pizza is in Brooklyn IMHO. You have to understand, I am with people who absolutely must be in the 'best' restaurants. I don't care, I'm not picking up the tab Though I always enjoy a good steak.

[jandl100]

In many areas of expenditure there are and always have been the ultra-top band. Cars, watches, handbags .... you name it. Is it just that for some reason these are getting the attention now in hifi rags like Stereophile and TAS, where the reviewers themselves often seem to be in that league of income and aspiration? This then drives the UK rags like Hifi+ (which is owned now by The Absolute Sounds publisher anyway) into reviewing the jewellery price-band of hifi.

Is it actually relevant to the vast majority of hifi buyers? Who cares what the ultra-rich do? We're just having it rammed down our throats these days, is all.

[northwest]

Frankly I believe it is all a Willy measuring exercise and rather distasteful. Nothing worse than someone buying something that they have absolutely no knowledge of and then extolling its virtues.

[6L6]

Is it actually relevant to the vast majority of hifi buyers? Who cares what the ultra-rich do?

Art Dudley, when he had his own magazine, Listener, mentioned something in a review of the Ortofon Jubilee cartridge, which was, if memory serves me correctly, about $1600usd at the time...

Basically he said that this cartridge was at the perfect 'no-man's-land' in price. It was much too expensive for normal people to buy, but too cheap to be paid attention to by the really rich people who drive the buying in the industry.

(That's a heavy paraphrase, but hopefully fairly accurate. The review was in 2002 I think...)

If I can find the issue, I will get the quote right. But it sums it up pretty well. And this was 10 years ago! It's only gotten worse.

[MartinT]

It's the Rolex effect. You don't buy one if you want really good timekeeping. Horribly blingy. Only for those with more money than sense.

[northwest]

It's the Rolex effect. You don't buy one if you want really good timekeeping. Horribly blingy. Only for those with more money than sense.

There you go again Martin, disagreeing with me

Now, Hublot...........