Ayre Acoustics KX-R Twenty / VX-R Twenty

[What Hi-Fi?]

Ayre Acoustics delivers a transparent and insightful sound with the KX-R Twenty/VX-R Twenty pre/power combination.

Ayre Acoustics KX-R Twenty / VX-R Twenty : Read more

 

[F8lee]

I have to imagine that the particular speakers used with this (or any similarly stratospherically proceed gear) are a critical link in the sonic chain - are WAMMs the best choice here? Maggies? A small pair of Sony speakers??

 

[Simple Bob]

Our high-end audio manufacturers have got it all wrong. The challenge in high end is not ultimate performance regardless of cost rather it is who achieves ultimate performance for the lowest retail price. This price may still be relatively high but there's a world of difference in the latter approach.

 

[F8lee]

Our high-end audio manufacturers have got it all wrong. The challenge in high end is not ultimate performance regardless of cost rather it is who achieves ultimate performance for the lowest retail price. This price may still be relatively high but there's a world of difference in the latter approach.

Well, viewed another way, perhaps these kind of gear are analogous to the so-called "super sports cars" - the >$1 million >1,000 HP beasts that look astounding (either gorgeous or ugly, depending on taste) and are owned by people who consider that pocket change but don't drive them anywhere to their limits.

 

[Simple Bob]

Monkey see, monkey do? Who said you have to do in your backyard what your neighbor does in his backyard?

 

[F8lee]

Monkey see, monkey do? Who said you have to do in your backyard what your neighbor does in his backyard?

I guess whoever wrote "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" - I dislike that so many people are this way, but have you no concept of how their egos demand them to "show off" to others? Have you never seen a photographer carrying around hugele expensive Leica gear, say, that obviously doesn't know what he or she is doing, in effect using said gear like jewelry? If not - go to a Leica store (they have a few dozen in Europe and 8 in the states) and look at the shoppers - inevitably there will be some with far more money than sense (or knowledge). Like McLarens and Veyrons in the car world, these are items created to satisfy the buyers' needs to show off their wealth more than to enable them to better feed their desire for the art (photography, racing)

So, "come on over to my mansion and listen to my half-million-dollar system" (with Wilson Audio speakers!) really translates into " lookit how expensive my stereo is!" for the vast majority of people.

 

[Simple Bob]

I'm really addressing the supply side of the business. The "democratized" approach I'm advocating will make their best products accessible to more customers in the market. They can put the exact same innards in a solid gold chassis for the skin-deep egomaniacs if they wish .

My approach makes more business sense as it is more sustainable in the long run, in my humble opinion, not to mention enlarging the global population of happy audiophiles.

 

[Simple Bob]

In other words, as a genius designer, I will inevitably ask myself "What good is my genius if it will only make a handful of people happy?" Was I born with such a great gift to share only with a handful?

 

[Simple Bob]

Music is the most beautiful language that everyone, without exception, can understand. Your brilliant products are created to serve music as faithfully as you can make it. Why deny a single soul the nourishment that music brings through your work?

 

[Simple Bob]

Amen.

 

[F8lee]

In other words, as a genius designer, I will inevitably ask myself "What good is my genius if it will only make a handful of people happy?" Was I born with such a great gift to share only with a handful?

Well, I guess if said designer you had an enormous ego, as opposed to just wanting to build the most bestest whatever-it-is for the sake of calling it the best in the world and all (which I believe requires slightly less ego)

After all, what does the self--proclaimed "genius" care about the peasants' inability to appreciate his or her work?

 

[F8lee]

Music is the most beautiful language that everyone, without exception, can understand. Your brilliant products are created to serve music as faithfully as you can make it. Why deny a single soul the nourishment that music brings through your work?

And this comment merely presupposes that "the people" could even tell the difference between the $250,000 system and their iPod earbuds....which is not true at all in the vast majority of cases. So the drivel about "bringing perfection to the masses" is just that - drivel. "The Massees" think the current band of pop-tarts and rappers are oh-so-musically talented and listen to them through whatever cheap technology they can afford.