What are you really paying for when you buy a pair of $200K speakers like these from Vox?

angelaudio

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
Seems like the fancy woodwork and finish is what they charge for. The drivers and sound quality I’m sure are superior, but how much more superior than other stuff without the fancy trim?
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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...
 
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.
 
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. 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.
 
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.
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.
 
@botrytis If I had the coin I might spring for something nice like that to put in the mansion thats sits on the cliffs next to the ocean. But would they really sound much better than other stuff costing much less is what I’m curious to know.
 
The MBL systems are among the few at those stratospheric prices that ever truly moved me and made me yearn to get "that sound". Andy Singer often presents these huge speaker systems at shows (just one example) and they have always sounded like PA systems..it gets silly.

Conspicuous consumption is distasteful to me.
 
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When you get to this level of equipment, it's as much art as it is anything else.

And how much is a piece of art worth? Whatever someone is willing to pay for it.

And, if the buyer can actually afford it, it probably fits well, both financially as well as aesthetically, with other of his/her purchases.

But, it's really none of my business...
 
I think there is an AK member with a pair of those. They do sound stellar. I heard a pair at AXPONA - quite remarkable.

I can't even imagine what they sound like, I would imagine their imaging and instrument space and separation is unreal.

I have the Q150s that I picked up last summer for $300 bucks. It's KEFs cheapest smallest speakers in their cheapest speaker line.
They fill my living room or even the back deck with clean detailed spacious smooth music.


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https://www.shop.ca.kef.com/speaker...0iyGQAD1EMSWWS5uKefn4F5uFF2g3VjEaAnR9EALw_wcB
 
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