What will the impact of prospective -- and possibly impending -- U.S. tariffs be on audio gear?

[JustJones]

I heard from a very trustworthy source that:
- China will pay the tariffs
- Prices won't go up
- Tariff revenue will significantly reduce the federal deficit and we will get tax breaks

Apparently the nature of tariffs had to be explained to the baffled employees who thought that the higher cost stays with the country that is tariffed.

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[DMill]

IMO. I think audiophiles have never had too much of a problem spending money on gear. So for that market, likely little effect at all. For everyone else it will really depend on the overall state of the economy. If people have more money in their pockets to afford a AV receiver that costs a few hundred more to get the brand they want or they find something cheaper. I’m sure people who can’t afford to pay rent or buy groceries probably arent in the market for new speakers. We will see. As an American, all I can do is hope for best.

 

[JustJones]

As an American, all I can do is hope for best.

 

[JohnnyAudio]

Tariffs motivate manufactures to go thru a alternative country thru a private enterprise broker.
Instead of paying the 20% tariff they pay 18% and the private enterprise broker keeps it all.
Perfected corruption.

Will you pay more for your next electronic?

 

[JohnnyAudio]

Still, really risky and questionable tactic to threaten to dismantle your most treasured creation, globally dependent trade. Nobody else is making out like gangbusters in the international community. All nations are sharing the same pains. We got into the situation together, transitively the problem needs to be solved collectively.

"the problem needs to be solved collectively."
The market will solve most economic problems.

 

[gilency]

Ridiculous. China is not going to pay the tariffs. That is pure fantasy.

This is a joke of course

 

[A Surfer]

...
The market will solve most economic problems.

History does not really support that assertion, and when it does it greatly depends on whom is rating things as solved.

 

[suttondesign]

Among the many effects of tariffs, currencies change in relative value. So it is difficult to know the overall effect of tariffs on u.s. consumers if you don’t account for a possible decline in the value of the dollar relative to other currencies.

 

[JohnnyAudio]

Among the many effects of tariffs, currencies change in relative value. So it is difficult to know the overall effect of tariffs on u.s. consumers if you don’t account for a possible decline in the value of the dollar relative to other currencies.

Since the US imports quite a lot, we may be the ones who suffer a lot when the karma chameleon comes home.

 

[copperblue]

Where does this leave Behringer, or Apple for that matter?

 

[JohnnyAudio]

Where does this leave Behringer, or Apple for that matter?

Well, I know a guy (antenna designer) that just got an apple job for 500K$.
People will by an Iphone even if it means going broke.

 

[holdingpants01]

Where does this leave Behringer, or Apple for that matter?

Apple already make some of the iPhones outside of China, the factory in India made 14% of all iPhones in 2023 with an aim to get to 25% by the end of this year. I wouldn't worry about this company in particular

 

[tmtomh]

I heard from a very trustworthy source that:
- China will pay the tariffs
- Prices won't go up
- Tariff revenue will significantly reduce the federal deficit and we will get tax breaks

With the increase in disposable income from the tax cuts and no increase in prices, we should have a golden age of audio enjoyment.

This all makes perfect sense if we just remove the phrase “very trustworthy.”

 

[ta240]

Think about equalizing domestic prices for imported SMSL/Topping etc. products with PS Audio/Benchmark prices? That would be a lot of tariffs.

You can level the playing field but you can't force all the different teams to charge the same for their tickets. In reality Topping and PS Audio aren't competitors. Schiit Audio and JDS Labs would fit that much more.

I'll repeat myself. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. You want them to need you, you want them to always see peace as the better option. It is like not wanting to break up with a partner you love, but deliberately giving them compelling evidence the relationship doesn't work. Seems like a risky proposition.

But at some point I'd rather check for ticks after I walk through a field than just start out my walk covered in them to 'keep them close' . Which also goes along with the 'don't kill the customer' thinking because they will still slowly suck you dry even if you keep them close.

One side is playing the long game and the other is all about wanting stuff now. China uses large tariffs to force businesses to manufacture in their country and share their technology, which is a brilliant move. I often hear about how they do their planning decades out, meanwhile we are all about the now, the instant gratification.

If one side is willing to suffer through temporary hardship to gain or keep an advantage and the other cowers at the slightest thought of difficulty it is usually clear which will win.

Since the US imports quite a lot, we may be the ones who suffer a lot when the karma chameleon comes home.

This comes from losing the game in the past. Is it better to just forfeit all future 'games' or actually start playing the game that the other team is playing? Neither extreme is a good solution but moving in a direction towards actual competition with using some of their tactics just might be.

 

[amirm]

To use a quick and dirty example. If DAC's from China increase 50% due to tariffs say a $200 Topping goes to $300, then the consumer can either pay the price or buy a domestic DAC for instance a Schiit that was $200 but went up 25% (because yeah that's how it works in the real world) and is $250. See the domestic product is a bargain!

It would be very strange if Schiit didn't also raise prices. I suspect they make so little on that DAC that they would welcome such a price increase. Further, their component costs take a hit as many electronic parts they use come from Asia.

 

[amirm]

But regardless of how the USA elections played out, I was guessing that the days of high quality, yet bargain-priced goods from PRC were not going to last forever, so I've been doing a little bit of shopping.

During the last few years, price of Chinese audio gear raised substantially due to inflation. It was a surprise at first but seemingly we got used to it.

 

[JohnnyAudio]

It would be very strange of Schiit didn't also raise prices. I suspect they make so little on that DAC that they would welcome such a price increase. Further, their component costs take a hit as many electronic parts they use come from Asia.

Amirm,

If someone did a tariff/ price study for the audio industry maybe we could change the world.

 

[amirm]

This comes from losing the game in the past. Is it better to just forfeit all future 'games' or actually start playing the game that the other team is playing?

The other team has cheap labor and wants to protect manufacturing. We don't have cheap labor and never will. Trying to protect that makes no sense. We need to advance what we do which is great (high technology, complex technology, medical, etc.).

 

[amirm]

Amirm,

If someone did a tariff/ price study for the audio industry maybe we could change the world.

I dream big but even I can't dream that big.

 

[A Surfer]

That is exactly a big reason this happened. We were willing to let the cheap labour, and extremely polluting industries go to Asia. We were fine with them devastating their environment, which happened. The hope was that they would always stay subservient to our advanced society and technology.

Suddenly when they have turned the tables, now you see the US, and others, crying foul. We are okay with others doing the dirty work, but if we're to be honest, we did not want them to eclipse us. Hence the protectionist backlash, which will fail.

Do we really think Americans, and others of course will pay the much higher prices for domestic production? Of course not, ridiculous to think. That is exactly how this happened. Consumers voted with their wallets and production went offshore because we wanted more for less. Now the chickens have come home to roost so to speak.