Concerns for the Future of Sound United and Update on my Marantz 7706.

[TLS Guy]

Tariffs against China don't, or shouldn't, affect assemblies, AFAIK- I just checked the images for a few Marantz AVRs and two of the three are made in Vietnam, the Cinema 30 is made in Japan.

Trump's tariffs involve the whole world pretty much including India, and Korea, so you can bet Vietnam is caught up in it.

 

[highfigh]

Trump's tariffs involve the whole world pretty much including India, and Korea, so you can bet Vietnam is caught up in it.

The US can't compete on consumer electronics unless the products are tweak-level stuff that's mostly driven by BS. We do a lot of design/developent in other areas, but even in Aerospace, Defense electronics that don't require a lot of security clearances, the US is importing. The average wages in the US are too high because the cost of living has been raised by high wages. This isn't saying that unions are bad per se, but they are behind a lot of large wage increases, cost to manufacturers via strikes and being strong-armed into agreeing to the terms demanded.

The link shows the reasons workers should be in a union and #1 is "Union members earn more than non-union members"- "Union members have better protections against abuses in the workplace" was at #5. Used to be that working conditions/safety and long hours were the main reasons for unions. Everything about unions is about higher pay and that can't help but raise the price of goods made and services provided in the country where those goods and services are purchased.

My dad worked for Harley-Davidson and one of the people he knew drove a Toyota pickup with a 'Buy Union' bumper sticker on it. Proud union member, too- used to bitch about people making $18/hour in the early-'70s for sweeping floors, then I reminded him that they were in the same union. He didn't like me. Boo hoo.

Remember when GM said they had included $1500 in the price of each vehicle for retirees and benefits? Thank the UAW and AFL-CIO for that and look at the range of prices for a Chevy Silverado 1500, for example- $35K-$70K. That's insane.

9 Reasons Why Everyone Needs a Union

We all want to have a job that allows us to take care of ourselves and our families. Things like paid sick leave, affordable health care, paid vacation, retirement, 8-hour work day, and safe workplaces are important to each of us as an individual and all of us as a society. Not many people...

www.afge.org

 

[TLS Guy]

The US can't compete on consumer electronics unless the products are tweak-level stuff that's mostly driven by BS. We do a lot of design/developent in other areas, but even in Aerospace, Defense electronics that don't require a lot of security clearances, the US is importing. The average wages in the US are too high because the cost of living has been raised by high wages. This isn't saying that unions are bad per se, but they are behind a lot of large wage increases, cost to manufacturers via strikes and being strong-armed into agreeing to the terms demanded.

The link shows the reasons workers should be in a union and #1 is "Union members earn more than non-union members"- "Union members have better protections against abuses in the workplace" was at #5. Used to be that working conditions/safety and long hours were the main reasons for unions. Everything about unions is about higher pay and that can't help but raise the price of goods made and services provided in the country where those goods and services are purchased.

My dad worked for Harley-Davidson and one of the people he knew drove a Toyota pickup with a 'Buy Union' bumper sticker on it. Proud union member, too- used to bitch about people making $18/hour in the early-'70s for sweeping floors, then I reminded him that they were in the same union. He didn't like me. Boo hoo.

Remember when GM said they had included $1500 in the price of each vehicle for retirees and benefits? Thank the UAW and AFL-CIO for that and look at the range of prices for a Chevy Silverado 1500, for example- $35K-$70K. That's insane.

9 Reasons Why Everyone Needs a Union

We all want to have a job that allows us to take care of ourselves and our families. Things like paid sick leave, affordable health care, paid vacation, retirement, 8-hour work day, and safe workplaces are important to each of us as an individual and all of us as a society. Not many people...

www.afge.org

That is the dilemma for all Western Countries. The problem is that although it initially increased standards of living, it shipped a lot of skilled jobs overseas. So now we have a surfeit of low paying jobs, low standard of living and a massive welfare budget.

The only way out of this is targeted tariffs over time, as factories come on line and standards of living equalize around the world.

What Trump has done is nuts. I honestly think this buffoon of a man thinks factories can be built in a week and come on stream with skilled labor in a month.

It all comes down to balance, and getting living standards and wages for like work comparable around the globe. These huge ungainly container ships crossing the oceans burning huge amount of polluting bunker fuel is not a plan either, and needs to stop. It has taken pretty much all my life time to get into this mess, and it will take a generation or two and consistency to get out of it.

 

[mono-bloc]

Just look at the damage and mayhem Trump is responsible for , in the first five weeks of his prudency. Now look what will happen after four years.
If he has his way, you will all be dressed in gray uniforms, and working for a bowl of rice.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

We’re all just making guesses.

These tariffs may hurt sales for every company.

But even so, I choose to be optimistic. I’m guessing Masimo will soon find a buyer for Sound United or multiple buyers for the SU brands. And then after that, either the whole SU or each individual brands will be back to business as “usual”.

But sure, in the meantime, it’s probably a safe bet that most companies might not be producing new models. Look at Yamaha, who hasn’t released a new AVP and AVR in how many years now? Which might be viewed by many people as a “good” thing since I know a lot of people who are sick of seeing a new model every year and seeing their new AVR/AVP become “obsolete” in 60 seconds.

 

[TLS Guy]

We’re all just making guesses.

These tariffs may hurt sales for every company.

But even so, I choose to be optimistic. I’m guessing Masimo will soon find a buyer for Sound United or multiple buyers for the SU brands. And then after that, either the whole SU or each individual brands will be back to business as “usual”.

But sure, in the meantime, it’s probably a safe bet that most companies might not be producing new models. Look at Yamaha, who hasn’t released a new AVP and AVR in how many years now? Which might be viewed by many people as a “good” thing since I know a lot of people who are sick of seeing a new model every year and seeing their new AVR/AVP become “obsolete” in 60 seconds.

You are a supreme optimist. This avocation of ours is not a very profitable business, and actually never has been.

Masimo have had no buyers after a long period of time. I wish I could share your optimism, but I can't.
For one thing the board and shareholders of Masimo are spitting mad that Sound United are in their portfolio.
I doubt they will run it again when the current clock runs out at the end of the month. At that time I fear discontinued company will be its true and end destination. I doubt there will be any appetite to continue Sound United as an operating company, and a discontinued company it will likely become in every sense of the word. I hope I'm wrong, but I'm pessimistic for a good outcome here.

 

[3db]

Corporate greed by the upper management echelon is responsible for out sourcing and the decline of skilled labor in Canada and the US. The US has a twit for president who has a total lack of understand of how complicated outsourcing has become and is haphazardly applies tariffs across the board. "DUMP" and his followers will be single handedly responsible for the ensuing world wide recession that he's triggering.

Also unknown to the vast uneducated masses of the US, he's bringing a system online that is decimating the middle class and rewarding the wealthy. Look at the Trump/Musk partnership.

Making America great again?? More like make America broke and drag the rest of world with it.

 

[highfigh]

That is the dilemma for all Western Countries. The problem is that although it initially increased standards of living, it shipped a lot of skilled jobs overseas. So now we have a surfeit of low paying jobs, low standard of living and a massive welfare budget.

The only way out of this is targeted tariffs over time, as factories come on line and standards of living equalize around the world.

What Trump has done is nuts. I honestly think this buffoon of a man thinks factories can be built in a week and come on stream with skilled labor in a month.

It all comes down to balance, and getting living standards and wages for like work comparable around the globe. These huge ungainly container ships crossing the oceans burning huge amount of polluting bunker fuel is not a plan either, and needs to stop. It has taken pretty much all my life time to get into this mess, and it will take a generation or two and consistency to get out of it.

Between saving on wages and the materials/chemicals that can be used in other countries because their governments have banned them, the US has gone from being a major manufacturing base to a service economy and some of it could have been delayed, I doubt it could have been prevented. Look at the jealousy over money and wealth in this country- I think that's one reason we have many of the problems that plague us- "I need' is used when they really mean "I want" because they see that other people have things the small-minded believe they should have, for no other reason than the fact that they exist. Not because they worked for those things, but just because they feel entitled to them. For many, work ethic is unknown and they want it all, at the lowest price possible, which means reliability & durability have to go out the window because cheap and good are becoming mutually exclusive. The saying "You can have cheap, good and fast- pick two, because all three isn't possible" isn't new and people have come to accept cheap and fast.

Keeping up with the Jones's; jealousy and greed- it's at all levels.

 

[highfigh]

Corporate greed by the upper management echelon is responsible for out sourcing and the decline of skilled labor in Canada and the US. The US has a twit for president who has a total lack of understand of how complicated outsourcing has become and is haphazardly applies tariffs across the board. "DUMP" and his followers will be single handedly responsible for the ensuing world wide recession that he's triggering.

Also unknown to the vast uneducated masses of the US, he's bringing a system online that is decimating the middle class and rewarding the wealthy. Look at the Trump/Musk partnership.

Shareholders don't bear any of the burdern?

 

[3db]

Shareholders don't bear any of the burdern?

Why do you think management outsourced? Its shareholders that helped pave the wave.

 

[highfigh]

Why do you think management outsourced? Its shareholders that helped pave the wave.

I don't usually see many people pointing fingers at shareholders, just complaining about the wealthy and talking about corporate greed. People bitch about that all the time, yet they have shares of all kinds of companies and corporations in their portfolios, all without the 'conscience' they harp about.

Also, MBAs seem to have become a more popular college major in the mid-'70s and they're the ones who made all of this happen, regardless of when they learned to count beans. They pay attention to the smallest details and while that's important, someone needs to look outside, to see who will be affected.

 

[Trell]

I don't usually see many people pointing fingers at shareholders, just complaining about the wealthy and talking about corporate greed. People bitch about that all the time, yet they have shares of all kinds of companies and corporations in their portfolios, all without the 'conscience' they harp about.

This is just dumb and then some: The people "bitching" have most of their stock savings in mutual funds, and individually amounts to very little.