Vote

Not at all. What is the business model and size of the company? Who is their market? You have to look at marketing, parts count & quality, overhead, fit & finish, etc. Then you need to listen! Poor or average design with expensive parts does not mean it will sound better than an inspired design with "off the shelf" parts. Are you buying trophies and bragging rights or a product that helps connect you to the music?

Don't you see that most quality product are higher price !!!

It is obvious that price has something to do with the quality of equipment. You can not get good sound from cheap products.

Generally speaking, I believe that you get what you pay for. As a result, right or wrong, I must admit I tend to overlook really inexpensive "hi-fi" items as not being worthy of consideration.

Obviously, there is a strong correlation. However price is not always a foolproof guarantee of performance. And, for a music lover with shallow pockets, this all well and good. The real challenge that makes this hobby fun, is to listen to the the best without concern for price, knowing full well that you cannot afford it. And then use the experience to research and put together a system that comes darn close to the price-no-limit contraption. Then you don't have to take out a second mortgage. This feeling is as good as the music. Perhaps, it even makes the music sweeter.

Price is a small element in my selection process. Who designed the component and the company behind it take a larger role in the decision process.

It is very easy to equate price with performance. However, sometimes the price reflects items that don't change the performance of the product, such as milled billet aluminum cases or African Bubinga veneer. So you must be able to determine what percentage of the product's price is cosmetic vs. performance-oriented. One extreme example is B&O. Lots of style, but aural dreck. Unfortunately, not everybody has the technical knowledge to make such decisions. That is where the media can be of some service—through education&#151and the dealer would, preferably, have a demo unit with the lid popped, so we could get a better look.

In the most global sense possible, I think audio equipment "quality" is a ratio of price to the one-quarter power (e.g., 16x price = 2x "quality".) So yes, I think price is loosely correlated with quality, which therefore influences my perception of products. However, I hasten to add the obvious: This subjectively-derived rule of thumb is extremely approximate and very susceptible to myriads of factors related to the particular product/manufacturer under consideration!

I consider price when choosing among audio gear, but rely more on the sound I hear than on the product's cost. Certainly, higher priced equipment has more snob appeal, but that does not guarantee better performance.

In hi-fi equipment, more than in any other consumer product, the correlation between price and quality, is tenuous.

although price usually equals a higher quality product, it is not necessarily a gauge of a better sounding product. However, the greater the difference in price the greater the rarity of the lesser sounding better than the costlier.

a really cheap product (price) will normally mean it is cheap (quality) if u spend 200 candian dollars on a dvd player. its gonna suck!

I only listen to equipment. I expect a certain level of quality for a certain price, but you can spend any amount and get bad equipment. It really depends on the brand more than the price.

Well designed equipment, hand-made in low quantities, costs more to manufacture. Therefore, it costs more and USUALLY sounds better. Hey, if Ferraris were mass produced they probably wouldn't perform as well, and they'de still be expensive!

I own some average priced book shelf speakers that amaze me. My brother owns some expensive bohemouths that suck E.

Fortunately I have the passion for very ancient(20 years old)high-end gear, so that nothing can influence my opinion about a product. My experience decides.

When i found equipment which pass the price tag and quality level i try to pay fot it as less money as it is possible.

Yes sometimes. The best $2,000 can buy will probably be a bit better than the best $1,000 can buy, but the worst $2,000 can buy will definitely be a lot worse. I think you rarely get what you pay for: The law of diminishing returns operates with special ferocity in the world of hi-fi. The more you spend the less per buck you get.

There is a price point in every category of equipment below which, you are sure to have lower quality products. However, once you reach a certain point, higher price certainly does not equate to better quality or performance. A case in point would be Paradigm's Studio Reference Speakers, which outperform speakers costing two and three times more.

I believe that the quality/cost curve is asymptotic in that after a certain point, quality goes up less and less in relation to cost. Also, there are many products out there that would not be taken as seriously if they weren't priced as high as they are. Sorry about your toes, guys, but the WATT Puppies are my main example.

Price is not an absolute indicator of quality. Example: both Mark Levinson and B & O are very pricey, but they're in different worlds when it comes to sound quality.

I've heard plenty of expensive junk!

I always feel if the equipment is expensive, it must be top of the line. If I can't tell the difference between the expensive or lower priced equipment, I think it's me

listening tests are the ONLY way to judge the quality of sound

Price can suggest how good a component might be. But, in the end, the only thing that really matters is how good it is. I'd rather be stuck on that desert island with a well-designed cheap system than a lousy expensive system.

I wonder about line level preamps. They switch and attenuate. Is that worth 15 grand or even 5 grand? I don't think so.

There are a lot of components out there that offer honest performance for the dollar, but a lot more that offer fancier cases and needlessly "better" electronics that have no functional or qualitative benefit.

It's mostly about perceived value. A Rolex is a badge that says "I can afford this." It doesn't perform any better or look any better than many cheaper watches. So it is with audio equipment. Most of the time, the big bucks get you the name brand and the fancy faceplate, but not necessarily the musical satisfaction. You may just be paying for the brand's reputation and marketing costs. Never think your hi-fi habit will impress the neighbors—unlike other luxury goods, big-time audio isn't recognized by the general public. They may admire your new Lexus, but they'll think you're crazy for buying those Sonus Faber speakers.

It is very simple: If you want the best quality, then you've got to shell out big bucks.

Anybody can build a peice of crap, slap a large price tag on it, and call it audiophile quality. This hobby is too subjective (see last week's Vote) to buy something simply because it costs more.