It’s akin to talking about ferraris. They are luxury items for millionaires, I get it. It’s not like vintage gear where the sound is what appeals to the listener most.Honestly, it seems silly to argue this kind of stuff. If you really know something about gear, have heard them and then can say that they don't compare well to even $10,000 speakers, you'd be making a real point. None of us can afford such a thing as these speakers and at least some of us wouldn't even want them even if we could... but if something is going to cost that much, there's an expectation that they look AND sound good so that fancy woodwork would be an expected part of the package...
It’s akin to talking about ferraris. It’s not like vintage gear where the sound is what appeals to the listener most.
That’s a huge profit. These are basically statement pieces above all else. I see a lot of these high end speakers on my instagram feed, and the function always seems to follow the form and not the other way around.From the bottom up: two 13" drivers for the sub. Paper cone/pleated surround alnico woofer. Aluminum compression driver and wide horn. Beryllium CD and a custom cast bronze *exponential* horn. And another Be CD to go from 15kHz to -3dB at 45kHz (too bad that last octave will be attenuated by the meds air between you and the speaker).
Factor in some degree of customization of the drivers, design of the horns, design of the crossovers, and whatever boutique components they want to use in the XOs.
And then to the fancy construction and pretty details. Nothing revolutionary.
I'd guess around 80% is profit, typical for mid-fi speakers too.
And IMO if you did proper blind testing, I bet you could do as well or better on sound alone with other speakers at 1% of the cost.
I remember watching a how it’s made episode on the raris. They had a team that tuned the exhaust to get that signature growl.Well with most Ferraris it is the sound that appeals to a wide variety of listeners.
And like George Carlin said, "You ain't in it"Membership in a very small club.
What are you really paying for when you buy a pair of $200K speakers like these from Vox?
The opportunity to spend more than anybody else on your speakers >>>
It’s akin to talking about ferraris. They are luxury items for millionaires, I get it. It’s not like vintage gear where the sound is what appeals to the listener most.
I think there is an AK member with a pair of those. They do sound stellar. I heard a pair at AXPONA - quite remarkable.
bragging rights amongst their equally rich pals is a big part of the desire to own them, I suspect