Snake Oil Department, Top This

[Jcrow]

True but you are very well aware of what you are doing and why.

Rolex doesnt claim selling anything other than jewelry. They dont market it as "never miss your appointment with rolex , you will be so on time."

The fact that measuring time is very easy these days is commonly well known and accepted.

With amps it is different. Theres the common opinion that your A/B or A soundsva lot better - I believed it myself when I got here a few weeks ago.

And these amp dealers play into that misconception when they most likely know the truth. The snakeyness is not that it wouldnt be fair to spemd extra for a cool amp it is the promise of the extra "warm and musical" sound that makes uninformed people open their wallet.

I dunno, an amp must still perform its fundamental duty which is to amplify a signal. Snake oil is more selling a product based on claims it will achieve something that it cannot do. What you describe is just marketing spin in my opinion (maybe it's the same, but in my mind there's somewhat of a distinction).
But I think we're splitting hairs here. I just wanted to answer the question why people buy into somehwat obsolete technology, and why not everyone is just buying a $200 class D amp.

 

[meesbaker]

I dunno, an amp must still perform its fundamental duty which is to amplify a signal. Snake oil is more selling a product based on claims it will achieve something that it cannot do. What you describe is just marketing spin in my opinion (maybe it's the same, but in my mind there's somewhat of a distinction).
But I think we're splitting hairs here. I just wanted to answer the question why people buy into somehwat obsolete technology, and why not everyone is just buying a $200 class D amp.

Yea you are right it is certainly not the same level of scam as a platinum power cable for 7000$

 

[Mnyb]

If had a endless supply of money I would buy some Accuphase gear .

In reality I buy into some middle ground , high quality and good service is worth something and some flair and looks

I’ve been into active speakers for the last 20 years , that’s very rational you have no idea of what DAC and AMP there are in those , you bought a complete function.

But still I do secretly also want some classical passive setup ( but augmented with modern room correction and subs )

 

[antcollinet]

Arent we kind of at the point where pretty much any integrated amplifier that costs 1000$+ is snake oil?

Wiim Amp Pro shows us that 120W per channel load independand + Bass management + Room EQ + DAC + StreamingOS can be done for 350$.

Meaning the actual amplification part is prolly just 100-200$ maximum.

So how can we still run around with those classic type amps that do nothing but red and white cable, make loud , no dsp no nothing, literally jus the amp for like 3-10 times the amount? All that stuff like rotel/arcam/marantz/hegel pure 2 channel analog amps for 750-3000$ and more.

Why would anyone buy that? Often they dont even pack spectacular power just overpriced 0% modern features amps all based on the promise of "great sound" which we know is bogus on amps - for just a make loud box.

Any amp thats 3-4 times more money than a wiim while doing considerably less is basically snake oil that plays out the lie that better amps sound better.

It’s not about price vs pure electrical performance that makes something into snake oil.

It is about false claims about the performance. I've no issue if someone wants to sell a beautiful piece of sculpture milled out of a solid billet of aluminium, amazingly finished, stunningly designed, and controls that feel like the dashboard of a Rolls-Royce - to people who want to pay for that luxury at many thousands of pounds (any more than I object to the Rolls-Royce). There are all sorts of reasons why people value something - over and above the audio quality - if someone can create and sell value out of those things - all good.

Right up until the point they also claim that nothing less will make the music sound worth listening to. Then it becomes snake oil.

 

[meesbaker]

My dream setup would be a traditional 7.1 system.

As the basis we use the Panasonic UB9000 for its analog 7.1 RCA output section because nothing sounds as good as completely uncontrolled unDSPed multichannel chaos plugged directly into amplifiers. Volume can be neatly controlled through the analog output dB section hidden only 3-4 levels deep into the menu.

(Only the old version of this player qualifies, because it has the true audiophile AKM DAC that already made the playstation1 legendary - the new ones come with sharp sounding ESS Saber DACs!!!)

We run our 2000$ Audioquest RCA cables from the player directly into passlabs monoblocks. For a cheap 8K per amp we get mindblowing 30W of true Class A power with unmatched warmth.

As for the speakers - every true professional knows that optimally we have the same speaker on all positions. Therefore we are chosing 7x Klipschorn for 15K each, for the 2 rear speakers we actually mount 2 of those directly under the ceiling.

Listen and learn from a true master of his craft and make sure you never utilise power cords that cost under at least 2-3000 dollars and you will make this setup sing truly

 

[AdrianusG]

If had a endless supply of money I would buy some Accuphase gear .

In reality I buy into some middle ground , high quality and good service is worth something and some flair and looks

I’ve been into active speakers for the last 20 years , that’s very rational you have no idea of what DAC and AMP there are in those , you bought a complete function.

But still I do secretly also want some classical passive setup ( but augmented with modern room correction and subs )

"If had a endless supply of money I would buy some Accuphase gear .

Me too probably, that or Luxman

I know it's overpriced, (and possibly overbuilt as well) but what you get is quality, and in the case of Accuphase repair-ablity for tens of years on , so yes it's too expensive but not snake oil, 15000$ for a high quality Integrated Amp that's built like a tank is not the same as 8000$ for a bloody power cord or some "fancy interlink"

 

[VintageFlanker]

Improve your Hifi sound with Origine B2 from Neodio

The revolutionary zero-vibration technology implemented through Neodio's Origine B2 acoustic purifier.

www.neodio.fr

 

[Gibsonian]

View attachment 485767

Five bucks for the cap, one for the resistor, five for the wooden box. RRP US$429.95. Sounds like a scam but wait just a minute, according to the dedicated and sincere reviewer, adding this R/C network to your system achieves THIS!



So, totally worth the dough!

Tangibility. I’ve been waiting some time for this

 

[Ropeburn]

Tangibility. I’ve been waiting some time for this

My wood is sprucing just thinking about the possibilities.

 

[AaronJ]

Improve your Hifi sound with Origine B2 from Neodio

The revolutionary zero-vibration technology implemented through Neodio's Origine B2 acoustic purifier.

www.neodio.fr

The have the nerve to charge for the M6/M8 adapter at that price instead of including it as a courtesy. Shame.

 

[antcollinet]

My wood is sprucing just thinking about the possibilities.

TMI