Re: RE:Hi-Fi installation 101

[dan_masi@MENTORG.COM (Dan Masi)]

While I agree with much of what Mike said, I want to add
my 2c on a couple of points...

On Dec 10,  4:07pm, MSV96@aol.com wrote:
>First thing I always suggest to anyone looking at consumer audio
> is to considor parts and service...

I think this is one of the very *last* things one should consider.
More and more, consumer electronics are becoming disposable
commodities.  Failure modes tend not to lend themselves to
very affordable repairing, with the price of the goods falling
and the cost of service (both in labor costs and labor complexity
due to increasing complexity of the goods themselves) increasing.
Consider the warranty, of course, but I wouldn't look too hard
beyond that.

> Umm...who makes the laser assemblies and custom LSI IC's for the
> vast majority of CD players made-home or car...any
> brand???

Phillips?    ;-)

I agree with Mike's comments regarding Sony, and yes, they make lots
of parts and assemblies used in other brands.  But in my experience,
they have a mechanical failure rate that's a bit higher than should
be expected.  This is my experience only, very small sample size.

> Whose ES (Esprit) series home audio components rival the best
> of Japan??? Sony.

Hmmm.  Talking about "the best of Japan" in high-end home audio is
like talking about the "best of Korea" in racing bicycle frames.

> Who invented the CD format of digital audio as we know
> it???...

Phillips?   ;-)

> The biggest difference in head-units it seems to me is in the
> tuners and operating features.

Absolutely!

> Bottom line on consumer electronic brand loyalty...it's all crap
> because the typical consumer wants max features at min price and
> the marketing people make it so.

Yes, but this contradicts what you just said to some extent.
There are people who love the sound of the Pioneer Supertuner;
name brand loyalty might make sense for them.  There are some
who may find the aesthetics of Kenwood to work well for them,
so sticking with Kenwood might make sense.  There are some that
cling to the Alpine name for some bizarre reason, as if those
old marketing posters of the Countach "Powered by Alpine" had
some lasting, scarring effect on their faculties.  Etc.

etc.

Dan Masi
'96 A4Q