Would you pay $11,000 or more for speakers if the cabinet was made in China??

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Litejazz53, Feb 17, 2017.

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  1. ssmith3046

    ssmith3046 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Arizona desert
    There was a time many years ago that "Made in Japan" likely meant it was poorly made. People laughed at that phrase. If Chinese speakers sounded good and I liked the looks of them I'd buy them. I would do a lot of shopping around though before I settled on the pair of speakers that I was going to plunk down $11,000 for.
     
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  2. misterdecibel

    misterdecibel Bulbous Also Tapered

    How would you feel if they were made in Taiwan? I haven't seen any complaints about the build quality of Usher speakers...
     
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  3. lonelysea

    lonelysea Ban Leaf Blowers

    Location:
    The Cascades
    Taiwanese manufacturing has a reputation placing them above the Chinese, despite their... ahem... similarities. Doesn't mean that the Chinese aren't capable of the same quality - it's probably just a matter of time.
     
  4. Litejazz53

    Litejazz53 Perfect Sound Through Crystal Clear Digital Thread Starter

    Craig:
    I think it would be accurate to say this thread really got some attention, I know it really opened my eyes. When I look at the model 7T I see an absolutely beautiful loudspeaker, but then I had another speaker that had a magnificent exterior appearance, however when I got into the cabinet I saw some of the poorest work possible, rough wood cuts, terrible bracing, many cold solder joints, and more. There is no need to mention that brand, as this thing has become a boiling pot. By the posts I have read, it appears Mr. Kelly has now removed the Made In USA sticker on the back connection plate, and looking at the newer pic shown on this thread, I can't really see if anything is written there now. As you have been in this business over 20 years, and a long time Aerial dealer, I would like to ask you, is there ANY reason, a highly respected manufacturer like Aerial Acoustics would have their cabinets made in China other than to propel profits into the stratosphere? We already know the customer will not see any savings as a result of this move, but rather higher prices. Is it remotely possible that the Chinese have taken Aerial's cabinet design and created a better, more rigid, better braced, and superior finished cabinet than could be made anywhere else, is that possible? I am trying to be positive here. I have not seen Aerial offer any information on who they are working with in China to realize this ultimate speaker design and how the Aerial product is now much better as a result of this move? Would they not want to scream that from the housetops? This brings me to my last question. Do you know what company in China Aerial Acoustics is presently working with to have all their cabinets made. Additionally, I think you said at this point in time, they are now letting the Chinese assemble their speakers with all the drivers as well, arriving back in the United States fully assembled and ready to sell, they don't even have to open the box. Is the same company that builds the cabinets in China also putting the drivers and crossovers in the cabinets? I would just be interested to know who their cabinet builder and supplier is in China and are they exclusively working with Aerial Acoustics, or building cabinets for several other speaker companies in the United States and elsewhere. I think it would be very informative to know this information, and I hope you are able to provide that.

    In my opinion one company that literally personifies GOLD standard research and development and the ultimate pride in creating the very finest loudspeaker possible has to be Wilson Audio. There are several others, Magico certainly comes to mind, magnificent offerings from both companies. A mortal man like myself can own one of these loudspeakers, however in my case, it would have to be on the used market, and that is fine with me! If I ever discover Wilson Audio has lost their unmistakable passion for their design and construction and sent it to China, well that will be the time I need to jump into some Bose cubes. I hope you have some information on who Aerial is working with to make their cabinets, I would really like to see who they are, and their background, or at least as much as I can find out.

    Thanks so much for your input, it has been extremely informative. :edthumbs:
     
    Last edited: Feb 23, 2017
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  5. Rasputin

    Rasputin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Chinese vs japanese/european manufacturing standards are worlds apart generally. Chinese have no pride in manufacturing whatsoever. Why in the world would one treat them the same? Even less, pay similar prices?
     
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  6. frimleygreener

    frimleygreener "It 'a'int why...it just is"

    Location:
    united kingdom
    Could I ask how you know this for a fact?
     
  7. Rasputin

    Rasputin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    It's a cultural thing, somewhat difficult to pin down. Also by experience owning differnet electronics/gadgets from respective countries. Talking to engineers/repairmen etc...
    Paying 11.000 ds for a chinese speaker? Go ahead.. :laugh: I actually think flushing the money would be a better investment.

    Why do Arabs speak louder than Swedes? Something I cannot prove with facts. It's just the way it is...

    By the way, would you rather buy chinese/russian CDs than japanese?
     
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  8. frimleygreener

    frimleygreener "It 'a'int why...it just is"

    Location:
    united kingdom
    No one mentioned paying 11 grand for Chinese speakers. You made a sweeping statement that is not borne out by facts. Do any Chinese companies churn out sub standard goods? Of course they do. As do every other manufacturing company in the world.
     
  9. Rasputin

    Rasputin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    I thought it was the topic? Well, there may be different degrees i hell. Sorry, but relativism just doesn't count as facts either...

    I can point out many manufacturers pumping out substandard stuff made in china, cambridge & audio pro are two (utter ****e. I probably can reach 100s if i made an effort). Much more difficult to chose japanese manufactured ones.

    I owned both Honda & Cf moto motorcycles too :D
     
    Last edited: Feb 23, 2017
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  10. frimleygreener

    frimleygreener "It 'a'int why...it just is"

    Location:
    united kingdom
    I think the topic related to speaker cabinets.
     
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  11. Rasputin

    Rasputin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Same same. Ok, Chinese carpenters are worldly admired & respected. :D
     
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  12. Richard Austen

    Richard Austen Forum Resident

    Location:
    Hong Kong
    I think this is a good point - no matter what a company does with regards to quality control there is always that lemon or something breaks in shipping. If a cap fails it fails and there isn't much can be done. Sure you can test the amp for 20 hours before you ship it out but one day it can just fail whether the amplifier is $200 or $200,000.

    I think the questions to ask a dealer selling $$$ Chinese gear is " If this amp or speaker dies. how will you have it repaired." My dealer in Canada is Soundhounds (Victoria) and they repair everything. So if the amp fails they can fix it onsite. So I would have no problem buying any brand even the ones they don't carry because I know they can fix it.

    But not every dealer has a repair facility. So if you live in a town with no repair center then you have to factor in repairs. I like Line Magnetic for example but if you live in a town selling say ARC amps maybe it's worth spending the extra or taking a slight hit on sound quality to buy it if you know you can get ARC fixed locally or the shipping won't cost much. As opposed to lesser name Chinese brands. Many Chinese brands come onto the market and disappear in 5 years.
     
  13. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    They already are.
     
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  14. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    Sweeping statements about Chinese made goods? On this board?? No, really? Gettaway...!

    *feigns surprise*
     
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  15. PH416156

    PH416156 Alea Iacta Est

    Location:
    Europe
    Political correctness.

    Some years ago, I saw an online discussion (not on this forum) about a famous headphone manufacturer. Two cans-same model- were disassembled and photographed. One was made in Europe and the other one in China. Outside, they were pretty much the same although the wire of the Chinese was a bit thinner. The dismantling revealed two worlds apart, the Chinese having glue even where it wasn't supposed to be, and rather amateurish soldering. Also, there were bits of plastic residual inside and a couple screw holes were larger than needed.

    I saw another similar topic more recently, again not on SH.tv (couldn't find the previous one anymore, maybe deleted at the request of the manufacturer? :D) and the chinese was, again, lower quality compared to the european but much better than the one I read about years before. The retail price was the same for both.
     
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  16. Rasputin

    Rasputin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Agreed on both statements. You can almost pick any product (manufactured in dif. countries) apart & manufacturing will differ even if it's the same product. (GENERALLY speaking for you PC people!) :D
     
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  17. Rasputin

    Rasputin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    This post totally misses the point... Quality control? If it was as simple as that...

    The manufacturer has a totally different factory to work with. They don't care about updating equipment/ working standards, or else they wouldn't be in China. With different equipment, techniques & much "tighter" time schedules for workers + a philosophy about not caring for the products = fail.
     
    Last edited: Feb 23, 2017
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  18. Tim Irvine

    Tim Irvine Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin, Texas
    I think people in the market for a product, especially a high dollar product, will, if they are on SHF, come to this very board to learn the observations and research of others. Most will find a way to audition a few of the options. Then they will choose. My guess is most will not take things apart to inspect interior workmanship. Unless something has obvious flaws or a gaudy MIC sticker, if they liked the look, liked the sound, got good feedback, and encountered no serious gripes or concerns, they are going to buy it regardless of where it was made unless, for reasons I understand and respect, they have decided to buy or not to buy based on such the things as where the product was made and this is a principle they use with consistency. I have found a buy American principle to be challenging in most aspects of life. I also suspect that people who enlarge that to a buy American, Canadian, or Western Europe principle or the like have developed the principle on often vague perceptions of the manner in which such areas regulate things like toxic substances and worker conditions. The approach may be better than not thinking about such things at all, but it may not be as effective as we would like to think.
     
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  19. Larry I

    Larry I Senior Member

    Location:
    Washington, D.C.
    I will say it once again, it is the responsibility of the company farming out work to another company to do due-diligence to find the right company, to monitor the work, to inspect what they receive, and if things are not working out, to cancel the arrangement. It makes no sense to blame the Chinese manufacturer (or whatever); they are simply providing what the buyer has asked and paid. If the buyer wants to pay rock bottom dollar, crap is what they will receive. If they pay for quality, the Chinese can certainly deliver. Asian manufacturing is chosen because, for any given quality level, the cost is lower.

    I can understand the frustration of buyers not being able to readily determine what kind of quality of workmanship goes into a prospective purchase. I don't think that a short-cut measure, such as country of origin, is particularly useful. These days I also have misgiving about relying on internet buzz or the fan base of any given company. There is a lot of shoddy work and bad sounding gear that gets raves. It still comes down to inspecting and listening to the gear yourself.
     
    Shiver likes this.
  20. Shiver

    Shiver Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Can't say I'm immune to a sense of pride and patriotism by a 'Made in England' (or whatever country of manufacturer's origin) sticker. Questions are, all else being equal:
    - How much would you be prepared to pay for that sticker to not alternatively say 'Made in China'?
    - Is all else really equal?
     
  21. misterdecibel

    misterdecibel Bulbous Also Tapered

    Quality control in any country is going to be as good as whatever the parent company is willing to pay for.
     
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  22. coopmv

    coopmv Newton 1/30/2001 - 8/31/2011

    Location:
    CT, USA
    :righton: I'd buy $2000 speakers made in any state in the US ...
     
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  23. aaron25

    aaron25 New Member

  24. Mr Bass

    Mr Bass Chevelle Ma Belle

    Location:
    Mid Atlantic
    :targettiphat: Great post.
     
  25. Tim 2

    Tim 2 MORE MUSIC PLEASE

    Location:
    Alberta Canada
    Don't recall him saying it was " a fact", just his opinion like everything else we read here.
     
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