B&W sold to a Silicon Valley start up company

[highfigh]

Well, now, who says anything about "liking" or "disliking"?

Just saying that "synthetic" is not a natural product.

Synthetic could be engineered to be better. Engineered "synthetic" oil is supposed to be better than natural oil. Engineered wood could be a lot more durable and "better" than natural wood.

Synthetic carbon/diamond? If they can make them more durable, that's great. Can they make carbon/diamond tweeters more durable so they aren't so fragile and don't easily break when someone places a speaker down too hard or if people play at louder volumes (that some other tweeters seem to do just fine) ?

But the whole allure of "diamond" is that they are natural precious gemstone.

Who wants to wear a "synthetic" diamond ring instead of a real natural high-grade diamond ring?

Which billionaire wants to have synthetic marble floors, instead of real natural marble floors for his mansion?

I bet if B&W were to put the word "SYNTHETIC" in front of the "Diamond" in their marketing, a lot less people would be interested.

"Own the B&W 800 D3 speakers featuring SYNTHETIC diamond diaphragms for only $30K".

Geez! I even put a smiley face on that post.

Natural diamond rings are great, unless the wearer might do landscaping, wash dishes, auto repair, etc- it's not unheard of for a stone to come out of the mount and I know someone whose diamond came out of her ring a couple of weeks ago when she was moving some small boulders.

As far as synthetic marble vs real- I'm sure someone wants colors and patterns that don't exist in nature, especially interior detonators.

You summed it up- marketing. As Tom Waits wrote in 'Step Right Up', "the large print giveth and the small print taketh away".

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

If a Beryllium part is designed properly, it's not fragile- it was used for the frame of the capsule on the Apollo rockets that went to the Moon.

As @lovinthehd asked about the synthetic carbon diamond layer on the tweeter diaphragm, how thin is the layer of the 100% Pure Beryllium on that tweeter diaphragm?

It's not like the ENTIRE tweeter is made of synthetic carbon diamond or pure beryllium.

I think we've all heard all our lives that Diamond is one of the toughest/hardest/strongest materials that can cut through glass.

Try cutting glass with that layer of synthetic diamond on the tweeter diaphragm.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Geez! I even put a smiley face on that post.

I know. I was playing along.

But also wanted to continue the conversation of "synthetics".

 

[NINaudio]

I know. I was playing along.

But also wanted to continue the conversation of "synthetics".

What about saying lab made? Engineered? There are plenty of words to use instead of synthetic.

 

[Pogre]

I get it. Just the word "synthetic" implies "cheap", and synthetic diamonds are cheaper, but they are indistinguishable from natural. Both are pure carbon and both have the same molecular lattice structure. I'm actually impressed we managed to figure out how to make them so well.

And yes, that's the selling point for the precious gem market now. "Those little imperfections and impurities in natural diamonds are what make them so special and unique."

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Just how thin is the diamond membrane used, tho?

I found something on Google search regarding "Speaker Diamond Diaphragm".

The entire diaphragm thickness/height is 5 millimeters (or 5,000 micrometers). The thickness of the synthetic diamond LAYER on top of the diaphragm is 30 micrometer.

That's why it's so easy to BREAK - the layer of synthetic diamond is extremely thin.

30 micrometer = 0.001 inch

Handbook of Industrial Diamonds and Diamond Films

Examines both mined and synthetic diamonds and diamond films. The text offers coverage on the use of diamond as an engineering material, integrating original research on the science, technology and applications of diamond. It discusses the use of chemical vapour deposition grown diamonds in...

books.google.com

 

[NINaudio]

I get it. Just the word "synthetic" implies "cheap", and synthetic diamonds are cheaper, but they are indistinguishable from natural. Both are pure carbon and both have the same molecular lattice structure. I'm actually impressed we managed to figure out how to make them so well.

And yes, that's the selling point for the precious gem market now. "Those little imperfections and impurities in natural diamonds are what make them so special and unique."

The whole natural diamond market is synthetic...

 

[panteragstk]

The whole natural diamond market is synthetic...

"Hey look at the pretty rock. We should totally buy them all and keep them in a big vault and pretend they're rare. No one will ever know, and we can sell them for crazy markup. Then, when people try to trade them in, we can give them 10% of what they paid."

I don't get the allure of "precious" stones. Gladly, neither does my wife. I had a fried who's now wife made him return the engagement ring he got her for a bigger one. Wow.

 

[panteragstk]

I get it. Just the word "synthetic" implies "cheap"

Funny thing is when applied to synthetic oil, it's MUCH more expensive. The stuff I put in my truck is great, but boy do they charge a premium. But, when your expensive diesel motor has over 200k miles on it, you don't take chances with cheap oil.

 

[highfigh]

"Hey look at the pretty rock. We should totally buy them all and keep them in a big vault and pretend they're rare. No one will ever know, and we can sell them for crazy markup. Then, when people try to trade them in, we can give them 10% of what they paid."

I don't get the allure of "precious" stones. Gladly, neither does my wife. I had a fried who's now wife made him return the engagement ring he got her for a bigger one. Wow.

The World Has a Diamond Glut. Why Is That a Problem? (Published 2019)

Mines are closing, and middlemen are being squeezed. But don’t expect bargains at the jewelry counter.

www.nytimes.com

 

[highfigh]

As @lovinthehd asked about the synthetic carbon diamond layer on the tweeter diaphragm, how thin is the layer of the 100% Pure Beryllium on that tweeter diaphragm?

It's not like the ENTIRE tweeter is made of synthetic carbon diamond or pure beryllium.

I think we've all heard all our lives that Diamond is one of the toughest/hardest/strongest materials that can cut through glass.

Try cutting glass with that layer of synthetic diamond on the tweeter diaphragm.

Diamond is one of the hardest materials, but any material used for a tweeter diaphragm needs to be able to handle different forces from those of a chunk of it. A thin layer needs to be able to resist bending and that's where these seem to be failing. Cutting natural diamond is done by fracturing it through its layers and if synthetic diamonds also have layers, it may be the problem.

Cutting glass is no big trick- glass cutters are often metal (carbide, possibly).

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Funny thing is when applied to synthetic oil, it's MUCH more expensive. The stuff I put in my truck is great, but boy do they charge a premium. But, when your expensive diesel motor has over 200k miles on it, you don't take chances with cheap oil.

Yeah, they charge me over $100 for the oil change on my car (synthetic oil). That sucks.

 

[highfigh]

Yeah, they charge me over $100 for the oil change on my car (synthetic oil). That sucks.

Because they can, or because it's a difficult car to work on?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Because they can, or because it's a difficult car to work on?

It's for my Lexus LX 570.

Because they say the synthetic oil costs a lot.

And this is with any oil change place - Lexus dealer and other stores. Since it's about the same price everywhere I take my car, I just take it to Lexus.

 

[highfigh]

It's for my Lexus LX 570.

Because they say the synthetic oil costs a lot.

And this is with any oil change place - Lexus dealer and other stores. Since it's about the same price everywhere I take my car, I just take it to Lexus.

Mobil 1 is about $25/5 qts at WalMart or, if you prefer Valvoline, it's a few bucks less. At the Valvoline oil change place, I think they charge about $40-$45 for synthetic and I have used their oil for decades with great results.

Keep the oil clean, make sure the engine doesn't overheat- that's really all it takes to get a buttload of service-free miles from an engine.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Mobil 1 is about $25/5 qts at WalMart or, if you prefer Valvoline, it's a few bucks less. At the Valvoline oil change place, I think they charge about $40-$45 for synthetic and I have used their oil for decades with great results.

Keep the oil clean, make sure the engine doesn't overheat- that's really all it takes to get a buttload of service-free miles from an engine.

I also use synthetic oil for my wife's Toyota Sienna (around $60 oil change) my daughter's Nissan Versa (around $50 oil change).

I took my LX570 to Hibdon tires for oil change once because I thought Lexus dealer was ripping me off. But the Hibdon store charged me about $100 and they said it was mainly for the synthetic oil. I called around to other car shops and they quoted about the same price. Maybe people charge $100 because they "can" like you said.

 

[Verdinut]

I also use synthetic oil for my wife's Toyota Sienna (around $60 oil change) my daughter's Nissan Versa (around $50 oil change).

I took my LX570 to Hibdon tires for oil change once because I thought Lexus dealer was ripping me off. But the Hibdon store charged me about $100 and they said it was mainly for the synthetic oil. I called around to other car shops and they quoted about the same price. Maybe people charge $100 because they "can" like you said.

They see you come and they say: "That guy is driving a Lexus, let's charge him more as he can afford it!" It's more likely the same with a Mercedes owner.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Going back the B&W 800/802s, I always wondered if they would ever offer an Aluminum or Titanium version of the tweeter, instead of diamond.

So it would be the 800A or 800T.

The idea is that a much thicker Aluminum or Titanium diaphragm would be a lot more durable than this extremely thin 0.001" layer of synthetic diamond.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

They see you come and they say: "That guy is driving a Lexus, let's charge him more as he can afford it!" It's more likely the same with a Mercedes owner.

Damn dealer bastards!

 

[Verdinut]

Damn dealer bastards!

Is it possible that the oil pan on your Lexus is bigger than with many other vehicles? That would explain.