Bose: Why Audiophiles Should Stop the Hate

[admin]

Let's give it up for Amar Bose,founder of Bose Corporation, easily the most controversial company in hi-fi. Serious audiophiles might smirk at the mention of the name Bose in the same breath as high-end audio. But it's an association built on a clever combination of honest technical research, patents and successful marketing. Amar Bose made headlines recently when he donated a majority stake in his company to his alma mater, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A closer look at the company many love to hate reveals a good corporate citizen at its helm that has influenced acoustic science in several positive ways.

Discuss "Bose: Why Audiophiles Should Stop the Hate" here. Read the article.

 

[zhimbo]

Let me go get some popcorn, and sit down for the rest of this thread...

 

[Whitey80]

Good read from a different viewpoint.

But, unfortunately, this forum is overwhelmed by the few here that tout so emphatically that numbers make music, and everything else is wrong

Bring on the hate.

 

[its phillip]

Meh. I don't care how much they donate or who they donate to. Bose isn't worth buying or recommending.

 

[ratso]

interesting to go back and read some reviews of bose BEFORE they became the company to hate

http://www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/425/index.html

although not a glowing review it is far from a slam - "we would say that it produces a more realistic semblance of natural ambience than any other speaker system" (!)

BTW it sounds like Dr. Bose is a really good guy and it's nice that this article brings that out. however i might point out, detractors are to the bose speakers, not the bose guy.

 

[markw]

I don't dislike Bose. I'm just not their target market and I doubt others that frequent this forum are either.

We are after the most sound for the least dollar and there's nothing wrong with that. Styling and convenience take a back seat to that.

The market that Bose targets, however, is more concerned with styling, simplicity, conveinence, and not having the source of their sound taking up too much of their living space and they are willing to pay for those virtues.

To each their own.

Now, Monster, OTOH...

 

[Wayde Robson]

I probably need a flame retardant suit today Hey, if I can't write to challenge convention - why write at all.

I don't take exception to people who choose not buy Bose products based on informed consent. Personally, I wouldn't buy Bose either. But Bose just doesn't get me worked up like it does some people.

I would venture to say that those who do get worked up about Bose and preach the gospel of Bose Hate are really saying nothing about Bose at all...

they're generally making a statements about themselves. I see most of the Bose hate on the Internet as a form of sophomoric bragging about being 'in the know'.

There are bigger Monsters to fry out there.

 

[its phillip]

Just because there are worse companies out there (monster, audioquest, kimber, etc) doesn't make bose any better

 

[markw]

Just because there are worse companies out there (monster, audioquest, kimber, etc) doesn't make bose any better

The question is, exactly what is wrong with the Bose company, aside from the fact that you don't like their products?

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I find Bose marketing store demos misleading and confusing customers into thinking they'd have same sound in their room just like in store standing in the demo's sweet spot...

And this is just to name a single issue (one of many)

 

[markw]

I don't hear too many of their customers complaining.

I find Bose marketing store demos misleading and confusing customers into thinking they'd have same sound in their room just like in store standing in the demo's sweet spot...

And this is just to name a single issue (one of many)

Most are quite pleased with their purchase and show it off proudly and their friends are suitibly impressed.

Granted, there may some that may later realize that there are other, "better" systems out there as far as sound goes but, then again, had they explored further at the time of purchase, they would have realized it then as well. Caveat emptor.

No, for some* people, Bose is exactly what the doctor ordered.

* from their sales, apparantly many.

 

[krzywica]

For me Amar Bose is the Billy Mays of audio, period.

 

[its phillip]

I find Bose marketing store demos misleading and confusing customers into thinking they'd have same sound in their room just like in store standing in the demo's sweet spot...

And this is just to name a single issue (one of many)

Great example. Their marketing is hugely misleading (just like the snake oil cable manufacturers you guys hate so much).

A company unwilling to post or give you specifications of their products is not cool.

 

[its phillip]

Most are quite pleased with their purchase and show it off proudly and their friends are suitibly impressed.

Granted, there may some that may later realize that there are other, "better" systems out there as far as sound goes but, then again, had they explored further at the time of purchase, they would have realized it then as well. Caveat emptor.

No, for some* people, Bose is exactly what the doctor ordered.

* from their sales, apparantly many.

The same can be said for the cable buyers. They love the sweet sound of their new speaker cables or power cables or interconnects. People are stupid.

 

[markw]

Not really

The same can be said for the cable buyers. They love the sweet sound of their new speaker cables or power cables or interconnects. People are stupid.

Unlike cables, Bose products offer their target market a melange of tangible qualities that make then uniquely different from their comperitors.

 

[Whitey80]

The same way Apple continually grows. May not be the most spec'ed out computers, or the most customizable or upgradeable or even have much 3rd party software to use on them, but because of the attractive design and the simplicity of use, an overwhelming number of people are willing to pay quite a premium for them.
Even when the company is incredibly aggressive on keeping their section of the market closed to anyone else (similar to Bose with reviews).

(Having received a very hefty "cease and desist" letter from Apple's army of attorneys, I can attest to that)

 

[bikemig]

I owned a pair of Bose 201 speakers for a long time and enjoyed them. They were part of was my first pretty good sound system (I had an Onkyo stereo receiver and CD player). I have a Bose system in one of my cars (it wasn't my choice but the car and the speakers came with my wife who most definitely was my choice, . It's not a bad car system either. I certainly wouldn't buy Bose again, though. I think you can do better for the money. You are paying a premium for marketing, not quality.

 

[GO-NAD!]

I don't neccessarily consider Bose products to be bad, per se. I just don't care for their marketing tactics. Sure, they cater to people who want to keep it simple and not take up much room. There's nothing wrong with that. However, when they claim that it sounds as good as, or better than, products that an Audioholic would tend to prefer, it really burns me.

The Wave radio TV commercial that I see all the time is one of the worst offenders, to me: "To get great sound, you used to require large, expensive and complicated equipment..blah, blah, blah..." It's freakin' clock radio for f&$% sake! It might be a pretty good clock radio - but it's still a clock radio! Making such claims are tantamount to selling snake oil, IMHO.

If it was marketed fairly, at a reasonable price, I would have nothing against it at all. Here endeth my rant...

 

[Dan]

I think what gets most people here annoyed is that their stuff is overpriced, overhyped and they shy away from honest comparisons with other products that are either cheaper for the same quality or perform better for the same price(or less).

I think the most analagous company is not a cable thief but Starbucks. The coffee they buy is very low grade even if it comes from a famous coffee region. The burn the beans during roasting so that only the burnt flavor comes through to mask the poor bean quality. Then they sell it at a premium price while proclaiming loudly how great their stuff is. Of course most of what they sell is not coffee but caffeinated milkshakes. You can put any garbage coffee into some vanilla mocha latte slop and the quality won't matter at all.

Similarly if you put your MP3 player into a Bose it won't sound as truly awful as it does on a more revealing system.

BTW, I roast my own beans (lightly) and drink it black (OK with half a Splenda sometimes). My speakers are Vandersteens which are about the polar opposite of the Bose 901 in philosophy. My speakers image beautifully albeit with a very small sweet spot. The 901s filled the room with reflected sounds resulted in a big sound but poor spacial imaging. They were also very power hungry at a time when power was very expensive. The sounded the same no matter where you sat.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

BTW, I roast my own beans (lightly) and drink it black (OK with half a Splenda sometimes).

I think, before this thread really becomes violent flame war we should switch and talk more about coffee...

How do you roast them?? Over or machine? I try to by local fresh roasted and grind right before brew..