Sure... Sony may have a nice set of high end speakers but I still think that their reputation is over hyped and are know for dipping their hands into all sorts of equipment. Probably around 15 years ago, I bought my first t.v. and it was a 36 inch flat screen WEGA for something around $2200. You know... the ones that came out after the curved tech was heading out. Beautiful picture! After the year warranty was up, the t.v. started making a high pitch noise and would not go away. The t.v.s tube ended up breaking and it costed something around $1500 to replace the tube itself. I was in college, saved up my money from odd jobs and bought this thing. Next thing you know, it breaks. A $2200 dollar t.v. should break after a year. I fought and fought with Sony and they ended up giving me a $1200 credit. My experience with them from a customer service stand point was not good. A big company like Sony should have no problem replacing such a lemon as the one I got. Since then, I've always bought the extended warranty and refuse to deal or buy Sony ever again.
Funny you mentioned a 36" Wega. If you had the same that I had, my first 1080i 36XBR400 that weighed 240 lbs, it was a fantastic TV of its time, probably the best in its class. It costed me close to 4K tax in, the C$ must be really low back then, or you had a great price. It ran without any trouble until I traded it in for my first flat LCD panel, got about $300 for it if I remember right. I have never lost more money on a trade in for a 3 year old product LOL.., but the thing was so heavy that no one wanted to take it away except the dealer I traded in with. I have no idea how long that heavy weight would have lasted but I do know my friends/relatives have had their Sony TVs forever, still in working condition even when they finally made their way to the unfinished basements/garages/shacks etc.
Thanks for more detailes, so now I see that you, like others, have had bad luck with Sony. I say luck because of all the people I know, and I mean all, their Sony products worked without issues. I am sure they eventually would have died and i have not been keep tracking of how long they did last, but I heard no complaints/issues about them ever. I have had many Sony products myself in my house in the past, still have 3 BD players, 2 in active use, none have any issues and I never have to claim warranty on any of their products. I hope if I ever do I wouldn't have to fight with them. For AVRs, I owned two Sonys before but not any more mainly because of the look of their recent models and the fact that they choose to stick with their own proprietary gadgets whereas I prefer 3 rd parties such as, Airplay, Audyssey etc.
Back to topic, as I said before, I agree with what you are saying and sorry for picking on your example.
