B&O, overpriced artistic piece of audio?

Your expressed concern has been a prevaling attitude within the "audiophile" community for many years. And as with many opinions these days, the occasional B&O fan can provoke heated exchanges amongst those who disagree. I agree with those who suggest that what you have should be very satisfactory. Image can be a significant factor in the decision process. For many products, especially within the higher price classes, the cost of the case, displays, heatsinks, controls and nameplates (visual aesthetics) can sometimes equal or exceed the manufacturing costs of the components within. B&O has always recognized the value to some of having a high aesthetic and ergonomic appeal. B&O has, in the past, claimed to have placed real importance upon listening tests in the product development process. They are an old and successful company with thousands and thousands of customers (especially overseas). So we can assume that they know what their potential customers want. I have not heard the most recent B&O models. Earlier models, in my opinion, were sonically acceptable for smaller spaces. But not a choice I would have made given the great number of quality alternative choices. If you have the option, why not audition B&O at home (before eliminating your current system) and decide for yourself. If you prefer it and want it, that's enough to make it a valid choice.

B&0 sends my thoughts back to the mid 80's. Going to the audio salons. B&O was really big back then. The pinnacle of their existence. I remember the brands of audio from those days that these stores would push: Alpine, B&K, B&O, Carver, Kyocera, Monster Cable(we've come a long way baby!), NAD, Nakamichi, Polk, Proton, 3 way speakers with 12" or 15"(if you were REALLY stylin') woofers(the midrange was an afterthought - hey it has one), etc. It was the age of the yuppie. Product was bought by many people who had no idea of what they were buying. Most were just buying because they were making great money, and loved the lifestyle. Think of the other stuff those people bought. BMW, Polo, Rolex, etc. All of these brands rose to prominence then. Back to audio... Sound was good to those who bought, or so it seemed. Hey, most people were comparing this stuff to boomboxes, rack systems, and horrid solid state crap. In retrospect, looks were more critical than sound. Style ruled. The sound just needed to be able to make a person see(or hear???) that it was better than his Panasonic receiver. I don't know why, but even though the sound of that stuff wasn't at all special, I look back on that time with fond remembrance. Maybe I'm just getting old...

Trelja, We're all getting old.

Gosh, I never expected to have so many people replying to my simple musing. I guess this musing began when I walked into a B&O store in NYC and saw some of the products....then I got into their website, which by the way is fantastically designed, and kept on checking out their looks. More than anything, I am quite aware that no styling will ever make up for the lack of real musical finesse, after all, I would not be spending so much time and money on my system so far if I did not know....Now that I think about it, I think that with the same money I could have afforded some B&O, but then, I would be wondering...."How does that component sound like?" No, gentlemen, I am not contemplating at getting rid of all my gear, I am just like everyone else curious to hear from people who heard these sleek Danish systems. I believe that the future lies in simple designs, not only in looks(like B&O) but circuit wise like The Pass' and the new 47 Labs Gaincard amps matted with old, but revolutionary designs like the Lowther drivers.... No need to quarrel over these B&Os, I am not that dumb. Or am I? Paul

Industry insiders call it 'Bang & Awful Sound'.