Audio for the Rest-Of-Us

As they march-on with their self-destructive parade down Bankruptcy Street, you can still here the usual suicidal bromides coming out of the high end audio salon. This discourse is designed to disenfranchise all but the few, who put up with the retailers colossal snobbery just because there is no other place to buy this stuff. My personal favorite is, “Its not about the money, its about the sound”.

But, as everyone but the high end press and the retailer knows, it’s the complete opposite; It is about the money. As a matter of fact, it is all about the money. Mr. High End Retailer, show me the money. Well you did and its just too darn much. The only time that it is not about the money, in my book, is charities: where savings lives and souls can really make a difference. They also tell me to “support” my local high end retailer – implying that internet retailers should be avoided. That’s like telling Amazon to support their local bookstore. I support charities. Mr. High End Retailer, you are no charity.

It’s the “Show me the Money” pitch that will really get to them and get you the cold shoulder or a kick to the curb. Just what are we getting for all this money, I am not sure. New product introduction at the high end audio salon is at such a rapid pace, that driving it out of the lot easily reduces its net worth. Not to say, by any means that some of them are not well crafted; they are. However, if you think you are buying a work of art, then by all means, pay the gallery prices.

But I am purchasing equipment that will stir my scotch and get my brain moving with the jazz singers thoughts. I need to get the best for the money, because you see, I want to get as close to this is possible without feeling like I blew the college fund. The very idea that I may risk $20K for an amp that will only get me incrementally closer than spending $2K, just does not sit right with my common sense, so it is about the money.

An therefore its no secret, that the IPOD crowd has no interest in high end audio because at these Mt. Everest prices, they cannot get near it. So, this is what every marketing 101 student knows: IPOD is successful for one reason and that its barrier to entry is small. If you are in high end audio and want it to survive, make the entry point small.

As I stated in my previous blog, the Darth Sideous Triorca of high end manufacturers, retailers and journalist got us into this mess, and as of date, their governor Rod denial shows no real interest in getting us out. As far as supporting my local dealer goes -its hard to support something that has no interest in supporting my real needs. Enter the internet, which is really the only market place supplying product for the mid tier. Because of the thin margins, it is almost impossible for the high end retailer to get into the game. So in effect, they are squeezed out.

Audio for the rest of us is being led by Pacific Valve, GR Research, The Horne Shoppe, Van Alstine, Morrow Audio, McCallister et.al who are trying to run business for the middle tier who have common sense for price / performance. he middle: where men are men, woman are woman and cash is king. Support you internet high end retailer, they are the only ones in the game.

Piano Tuning

The other day we had our Yamaha piano tuned. As I walked around the house, I could not help but noticed the different sounds emanating from my piano as the piano teacher turned piano chiropractor, styled the tightly wound rope to get the sound he wanted. As he prodded and twisted, sounds echoed my halls. Some sounds were well placed. Others were cacophonies of out of tune notes and harmonics which pierced ears and freely gave headaches.

You can have some the same experience with high end audio. For example, you can assemble a series of components that really don’t mesh at all. The result: blurred over tones, sharp piercing midranges, raspy highs. Assemble the right components: silky smooth midrange , texture, deep bass, no beaming – smooth sailing.

So, how to avoid? What causes this is listening in a dealer show room, impulsive ebay shopping and late night audiogon-ning. While it may have sounded all so well in the store, the interaction of rooms and equipment have created quite the mess.

Luckily, audiophiles have some weapons that can aim at the right tone with Apollo 13 "bring it on home" precision. You need a 30 day audition. Not just to see if the item you bought was of high quality, but to hear first hand, if your new piece “tunes” with your current system. If it does not, return it for another item that the retailer agrees will gel more with what you have. This, if anything, is the argument for not jumping into “used” equipment so fast. Return, you see, if it does not gel.

Yet another not so subtle one is tube rolling. Tubes can make such a difference that incorrect tubes can cause the piano tuning torture described above. For this reason, I keep several tube types on hand, swapping them to and fro, looking for the correct harmonic structure that I want.

The lesson is simple. You can hear this right off the bat. The best audition, is the home audition.