Its in Vegas, right?
They're probably having too much fun to take time out to post. |
No one could afford to go - everyone is staying home looking for ways to avoid the banks taking their homes.
CES? Flights available to and from, hotels have availablilty....hmmmmmm....
No surprise really, but someone HAS to be there!! |
Apparently, CES attendance by mfrs is down 10% and on Day1, visitor attendance was down about 8-10% from last year, and that was considered something of a success. |
From what I heard, the economic downturn has hit the Mustang Ranch pretty hard so they are offering some fantastic group discounts. Don't expect a decent report till monday. |
I will be leaving tonight for CES and see the last 2 days. I will provide an update either Sunday night or Monday. I had to work Friday so I could afford the trip. I will be stopping at Maggies spot, MBL, Burmeister, and the usual attractions. Martin Logan, ARC, Krell, Von Schweikert, Joseph Audio, Halcro, and the others. Will be in touch....Jallen |
I suspect Vegas must really be hurting with this economy. They really went over the top, even for Vegas, over the last decade in regards to extravagance and expense. Maybe VEgas will now revert back to the older days when it was actually affordable to stay and eat in a nice place. |
No Mapman,Vegas hasn't been Vegas for 25 years IMHO.Something else altogether now....... time has done it in,cheers,Bob |
Found this about Vegas + the economy in support of my theory:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-luxury-vegas25-2008dec25,0,303714.story |
OK, I am at the Airport, went the last 8 hrs. CES is rockin, totally packed. I don't know what it is normally like, but there was a wait for the elevators, long ones, at the Venitian to go up to the High End Audio rooms. Alexis Park seemed a little sparse, except for the wait at the amazing Magnepan demonstration. |
I should have mentioned as well that the Vandersteen new model was absolutely sublime. Wow!!! Granted, they were one of the few guys who used some room treatments, and they had about $400k worth of gear around them (Clearaudio Statement table that even Clearaudio didn't have), but man, Diana Krall never sounded so good.
Also, the goofy little thing from Peachtree Audio was a Giant Killer. That weird box with a tube, and those tiny speaker sounded fantastic in a very realistic setup, I am suggesting that for a bunch of friends now getting into audio as a starting point. They may never move up, sounded that good.
I was most excited to see my fav gear at Cary Audio, but the room was not that exciting (odd given the new eXcite gear), I really wanted to hear the new DAC and preamp, but they only had it hooked up to headphones and a computer?? Didn't really want to talk with me about it either. I was pretty dissappointed.
Totem, Bryston, Joseph Audio and MBL were all exceptional. I never saw the VPI setup?? Kept looking for it, if someone saw it let me know what it was like. |
MacDad,
Was the Peachtree device you mention the Nova or Decco integrated?
They both look like a nice package for the price. |
Decco, it was really impressive sounding. Not for a huge room, but for an office, bedroom (not too big) a small Apt (hello NY, Paris, London, Tokyo, Boston, Rome, Chicago, San Fran...) it was fantastic. Smooth sound. |
I saw one at a local dealer recently.
It caught my eye but I did not have a chance to listen.
Next time.... |
Reading between the lines and the actual comments mentioning it, attendance at the CES was down noticeably this year. (around 110,000 instead of 141,000 last year) That's attendees (not exhibitors), and that's massive.
The economy and the CES's high prices for exhibitors have driven away many companies. The CES glosses that over, only telling us about the 300 new exhibtors, but not the number of companies that have down-sized or dumped the CES altogether.
So what does the CES do? They add their "spin" to the news. Quality over quantity (in attendees as well as exhibitors) Exhibitors quoted as saying they like less traffic (Right!! roll of eyes ) as it gives them more time to spend with people "they really want to see". (Funny, I thought they went there for as much exposure as they could get!)
Now CES is talking about charging a $100.00 pre-registration fee to attendees to keep the quality of attendees higher. What a crock!! That's a money grab!! As if $100.00 fee will keep someone away who is willing to spends hundreds or a thousand dollars to fly there and stay at a hotel. (Not!)
It's all about money; that's all the CES cares about. If attendance is down, they'll get it somewhere else, this time, in the name of a bullsh*t idea to get "quality attendees".
I guess the rebel T.H.E. Show isn't going to die just yet... |
"It's all about money; that's all the CES cares about."
Really? |
Golden_ears, I don't know about the preregistration fee you mention but think it would discourage casual attendees. As a dealer it probably wouldn't change my plans, since seeing people and products is important. As a consumer I might think twice. It could be an empty threat by CES, though. Last year there were rumors about CES moving to Orlando starting in 2011, but that's the last I heard of it. Attendance was down 22% from last year. |
For Mapman:
Well, ya, the CES puts on this show to promote the electronics industry, but if the weren't making a ton of money doing it, they'd stop doing it.
When it comes to "Specialty Audio", Exhibitors have been complaining for years, no, almost decades, about restrictive CES policies, high prices and fees, Union restrictions, etc. That's what started the whole Rebel show scene in the first place. That's why THE Show exists...and drives the CES crazy. That means the CES had to try to be somewhat competitive, particularly when THE Show was right next door to them for years. They moved to the Strip to get rid of THE Show, knowing the the competiton could not afford to do it, at least not without raising their prices to CES levels.
The problem with that is that the prices have increased dramatically for CES exhibitors and even more are dropping out. Many exhibitors prefer to do the Consumer shows like RMAF and Montreal now.
Essentialaudio
The CES is supposed to be a Trade-only show, but we all know some non-Trade people and family get in, through their buddies at stores, manufacturers, distributors, etc. In that case, they are not paying anyway; their buddies got them in free as "employees". A $100.00 fee is NOT going to stop them, because it won't apply.
Even if some "casual" people are able to get registered, the $100.00 fee is NOT going to stop them either; that's a small expense compared to travelling expenses, hotels, etc. The CES knows that will not stop them, and they are lying when they say they are instituting a fee to discourage people like that. They just want to collect some more money to make up for all the revenue they're losing from their shrinking exhibitor base!
Like I said, it's all "spin"... |
i have attended ces for the last 15 years. i did not go this year.
here are some of my reasons.
at some point, i have had my fill of speakers, amps, and other components i have heard 5 times.
there are very few exhibits that have outstanding sound.
there is no purpose listening to mediocre sound, after the novelty has worn off.
there are very few advancements in technology.
there is "sameness" in the sound of push pull amplifiers and many tube preamps. many 24 bit , oversampling digital sources have a lot in common, sonically. |
Mrtennis, this was my first and last CES. I couldn't agree with you more, and I have only been once. With a few notable exceptions; Vandersteen, Magnepan, MBL, and Peachtree Audio, nothing was really mind blowing. Also, if attendance was donw 22% this year, I cannot imagine how packed it normally is. It seemed packed to me at CES, THE Show was pretty sparse.
It was fun to go once just to see it. Vegas is such a wierd place though...... |
Golden_ears, I don't disagree with you regarding casual attendees - I was one myself for years. The $100 fee was only for people registering late, which I think went up to $200 after Jan. 1st. At that rate it would be a consideration for those whose curiosity and desire to attend are not high. As for your theory and pointed opinion about 'spin' and money grabbing, no one is being forced to attend. I accomplished a lot by attending, however. |
