High Fi Audio Sales Figures

[MinusTheBear]

It would be key to know what company you work for because all the different manufacturers have their pros and cons. Quality portable media devices already exist that can be considered high end but are stretched to thin at this point in time. I would consider buying a "MP3 Player" with a feature set such as this to replace my current model.

1) Long battery life - Cowon has set the standard in this market. 50-60 hours for music. 10hrs for video. Improve upon this especially on the video and Wi-fi battery length.

2) Storage - Minimum internal storage of 32gb with options of 64+

3) AMOLED Touch Screen - Examples like the Cowon S9 and upcoming J3

4) T.V out and Digital Out

5) Wifi/Bluetooth

6) MicroSDhc slot (expandable memory)

If you can incorporate these basics and improve upon the likes of models and feature sets of the Sansa Fuze, Cowon D2+, Cowon S9, iPod Touch and Microsoft ZuneHD etc and still stay within the price range of these products I think you will have a competitive product. Battery life is key to me and something that is very much lacking in these "all in one devices" which makes the feature set stretched to thin AKA Apple. Not a fan of the propretiary nature of the iPod/Touch products either - in file support and how to add media to the player.

 

[highfigh]

I've been looking through them the past few weeks. A lot of it has to do with product announcements and reviews, or vague statements of encouragement like, "successful" or "red hot". But specifics appear to be elusive so far.

I wonder - are there publicly traded companies that manufacture audiophile class products? I found a few large companies that include audiophile class products in its portfolio, but never seem to break the sales down for specific products. for example, Monster talks about how successful the Beats headphones are, but never discuss actual figures. I don't know why.

I'll address the last sentence first. Monster is too impressed with themselves and think the word 'Monster' is no longer associated with anything but their company. Apparently, the founder went back in time and made it possible for that word to only refer to their products. I find it hard to believe, myself. Having lived through the 1960s, I distinctly remember several uses for it, including Monster movies, Monster Trucks, Monster trading cards and many other things.

High-end audio companies tend to be smaller operations and since they epitomize 'niche market', you won't find many that are publicly traded. Shareholders don't like it when there are no dividends and the stock price drops.

Who do you work for?

 

[highfigh]

You'd be surprised. Even the entry priced (<$100) Shure SE210 sounds pretty decent if properly fitted to your ear using the included selection of tips. By the time you get into the level of an Etymotic ER-4 or the Ultimate Ears Triple-Fi 10 Pro (what I use) you're into pretty darn good quality for any flavor of can - without having custom tips made. Of course custom tips is always an option. The key is getting them properly anchored in the ear canal.


Believe it or not this is far less of a problem with in-ear-monitors. Especially high quality in-ear-monitors. Most people crank up volume for two reasons. Immersion and detail. People often use volume is often used to try to recover missing detail. I've found that the isolation of IEMs that I tend to turn down the volume. That seems to be the common reaction among users. All of the detail is there, the isolation gives a feeling of immersion without having to damage your hearing. I still use an external pocket amp but only for impact.

Of course there is a downside. They should not be used for bike riding in traffic because of the degree of isolation.

Unfortunately, "sounds pretty decent" doesn't appeal to the high-end crowd.

 

[sholling]

Unfortunately, "sounds pretty decent" doesn't appeal to the high-end crowd.

With all due respect that's a tad elitist isn't it? Not everyone has thousands to spend on headphones. I might add that every headphone and speaker boils down to "sounds pretty decent" because there isn't a single speaker or headphone made that provides 100% perfect reproduction. It's all degrees and flavors of close enough to satisfy the listener - aka "pretty decent" for the money.

You've made some statements dismissing in-ear-monitors so I'm assuming extensive experience testing all of the latest and greatest IEMs?

 

[PanaPlasma]

.

At least FLAC and ALAC compatible.

Is it possible to built in a good DAC?

And high end in-ear phones (with noise cancelling).