Are HiFi products luxury items?
I had a similar discussion some years ago on a US forum and found it interesting how few persons consider HiFi products as luxury items. Most who did, tended to label pretty much anything above what they are willing to spend to be luxury.
IMO, HiFi really isn’t much different from watches, wines, cars etc... There are tons of reasons why a $10K watch costs more than a basic $25 watch. Whether those reasons are in anyway relevant to you or even justifiable is a whole other issue. Likewise in HiFi, the differences in pricing are substantial, while the differences in quality are hotly debated.
I think just about all the gear we consider entry level, right up to obscenely expensive are luxury items. Nothing wrong with buying luxury, and frankly if you consider HiFi as luxury then your perception of the market and prices somewhat changes. Suddenly concerns about aesthetics and convenience stop being bad words in HiFi and simply become reasonable consumer expectations. You stop being offended that a manufacturer had the audacity to produce a $200K amplifier, simply because you recognize that such a product is not about practicality or the common man’s needs - It is just a statement. Luxury items range wildly in prices, aesthetics and practicality. It’s really all about choice and variety. I see HiFi the same way. You can spend as much or as little as you want and still have a wealth of options to choose from.
So what’s your opinion, luxury - yay or nay?
I had a similar discussion some years ago on a US forum and found it interesting how few persons consider HiFi products as luxury items. Most who did, tended to label pretty much anything above what they are willing to spend to be luxury.
IMO, HiFi really isn’t much different from watches, wines, cars etc... There are tons of reasons why a $10K watch costs more than a basic $25 watch. Whether those reasons are in anyway relevant to you or even justifiable is a whole other issue. Likewise in HiFi, the differences in pricing are substantial, while the differences in quality are hotly debated.
I think just about all the gear we consider entry level, right up to obscenely expensive are luxury items. Nothing wrong with buying luxury, and frankly if you consider HiFi as luxury then your perception of the market and prices somewhat changes. Suddenly concerns about aesthetics and convenience stop being bad words in HiFi and simply become reasonable consumer expectations. You stop being offended that a manufacturer had the audacity to produce a $200K amplifier, simply because you recognize that such a product is not about practicality or the common man’s needs - It is just a statement. Luxury items range wildly in prices, aesthetics and practicality. It’s really all about choice and variety. I see HiFi the same way. You can spend as much or as little as you want and still have a wealth of options to choose from.
So what’s your opinion, luxury - yay or nay?