Took the wife to Tweeters Sunday under the pretense, "We're going to need a digital video camera to film the baby as he grows up." Looked at cameras for 2 minutes, looked at big screens for 15 minutes (5 minutes of which was spent arguing with the salesman about his prevarications), and then stopped by the super-high-end audio room.
Salesman popped in some jazz (he had left me for a less hostile customer a little earlier) and cranked up the volume on their Denon receiver. It sounded exactly like my system! I mean EXACTLY!!! No BS, I thought I was at home listening to my own stuff.
I moved over to check out the speakers. Medium-brown wood cabinets, very nicely done (warm, not too much lacquer). About the size of my M60s. I think they were Martin Logans, but I can't remember for sure because when I saw the price - $4,400+ each - I was stunned.
I'm sure that if I were to do an A/B comparison between the two speakers, the differences would be apparent. They would have to be significantly better for $8,000+ more, right?
Actually I just checked the Tweeter web site and I think they were those Vienna Beethovenrs at $4449.00 each. I must have been high or something.
In reply to:
I'm sure that if I were to do an A/B comparison between the two speakers, the differences would be apparent.
You mean, your M60's would be BETTER of course, right?
i looked at the vienna line,the cheapest floorstanding speaker they had was 1500 dollars,they did sound really nice but the m80s,in my oppinion,out preform them with ease,those speakers also require you to put play sand in them to make them stable!!!!that will be the day i spend 1500 dollars,let alone 5000 on a speaker that requires playsand.the salesworm told me they do that to keep shipping costs down.yeah right....ron
Yeah Mark, I've learned that audio is one of the areas where the saying "You get what you pay for" has little application. Maybe things are improving though; audio salesmen used to outright lie, now it appears they only prevaricate.
I have to stay out of the big box stores.
It irks me to no end when they start spouting the sales pitch with words that they cannot even define.
Try asking a salesman next time if they can mathematically define a watt and power. If they are lucky, they will remember their grade 12 physics class.
I also auditioned a pair of Beethovens at our local Costa Mesa Tweets, they were driven by some high priced separates and sourced with a Pioneer Elite something or other DVDA/SACD player. They sounded pretty good! Almost as good as a pair of M60s.
I also auditioned a pair of Thiels C2.3s(?) Their bass was a bit better than the M60s, but the Axioms don't give up much or anything to these wonderful speakers. The system was pretty impressive - Anthem MCA50 200 watt per channel amp, Thiel rears and a great big Thiel center.
For the money, I haven't heard any speakers which can outperform the Axioms or their cousins, the Michauras.
If they could remember anything from grade 12 Physics, one would hope they aren't working at a retail electronics store.
Hmmm, I don't remember the 12th grade! Good times!
I'm still trying to find out what prevaricate means.
Frank
Yeah, I'd like to know the legal connotations of lie vs. prevaricate. John?
Lie is what your kid does when you ask him who broke the vase.
Prevaricate is what corporations do with their taxes.
Masa, where speakers exceed a manufacturers suggested retail price of $2,000, the law requires that all statements made by salesmen concerning them be termed prevarications rather than lies.
Actually, my issues with the salesworm (thanks for expanding my vocabulary, dude) were his statements concerning HDTV sets. Technically, he wasn't lying when he said the gov't had ordered all TV broadcasts to be switched to the HD format by such and such date (I think the first gov't deadline has already come and gone, hasn't it?). The implication being: Might as well buy one of these widescreens right now, because in 2006 your current sets will be useless.
I pointed out to him that TV stations make money by connecting advertisers with the populace. As long as the vast majority of people have standard TV sets, that will be the prevailing broadcast signal.
He continued with the BS about how we're all going to have to buy converter boxes for the old sets, blah, blah, blah...
Thus, I believe prevaricating is a more accurate term than lying in this case.
So in other words prevaricating is "beating around the wallet?"
(i.e. giving you the positives while neglecting to mention the negatives in order to make an item seem irresistable)
Speaking of Michauras, do they have a website? I'm getting curious, now.
They did, but they launched their line of speakers about the same time as our Saudi friends decided to fly three US airliners into the heart of US commerce, the heart of the US military, and the White House or Congress (that flight brought down by heroes in a field in Pennsylvania.)
Michaura basically sold its inventory to ubid.com which blew these speakers out at ridiculously low prices. If you ever get a chance to buy a pair of Michauras, the M22 like M55s, the M50 like M66s, or the M60 like M665s, GRAB IT!
These speakers are incredibly good. Sound quality very, very similar to Axioms, but in my humble opinion, better. Maybe its the hexagonal shaped cabinets, dunno. A fluke maybe. But they are superbly built, beautiful to the eye, and incredibly wonderful sounding.
pre·var·i·cate
To stray from or evade the truth; equivocate. See Synonyms at lie