From: david.brown@hesbynett.no   
      
   On 23/01/2026 10:43, Niklas Holsti wrote:   
   > On 2026-01-23 10:25, BGB wrote:   
   >   
   >     [snip]   
   >   
   >> I am currently using some ~ $35 Logitech gaming headphones.   
   >   
   >     [snip]   
   >   
   >> Granted, more expensive headphones exist, but I am not made of money.   
   >   
   > Indeed. I had occasion recently to inquire about headphones at a large   
   > local electronics shop. The assistant asked for my price range, and when   
   > I hesitated, he mentioned that their range went up to 65 kilo-euro. Talk   
   > about "framing" a price discussion :-)   
   >   
   > The shop had one of those items in a locked glass display case.   
   > Reportedly each pair of headphones is hand-built. They come with a white   
   > veined marble stand that is also an electronics box, with eight or ten   
   > vacuum tubes mounted visibly on the top surface. The builder comes to   
   > your home to personally install and tune the stuff for your environment.   
   > The price, however, was only 62 999 euro; perhaps it was discounted as a   
   > display item.   
   >   
      
   With that level of work involved in making (and installing) them, it is   
   not surprising they cost such a lot.  There are many steps between the   
   manufacturer and the customer, with distributors, sales offices and   
   shops, and these all need to take their cut.  That cut needs to be high   
   as the quantities sold are low - high end hi-fi equipment can be in   
   stock in shops for months or more without being sold.  So a factor of 5   
   or more between manufacturer price and customer price is not uncommon in   
   this field.   
      
   You are not just buying good quality sound reproduction - you are buying   
   prestige, and the "feel" of the product.  If you have the money, and you   
   like this sort of thing, and you understand you are buying look and   
   feel, not sound quality (they are presumably good quality, but not   
   /that/ good), then that's fair enough.  It is no different from buying   
   jewellery, or a fancy car.   
      
      
   But if someone is telling you that you need a valve amplifier for the   
   sound quality, file that along with the "oxygen-free directional"   
   speaker cables, gold-plated power leads and "audio quality" ethernet cables.   
      
   > We settled on a cheaper model.   
   >   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)