The new dynamic in speaker pricing

A top level speaker company needs to advance the art. To do that they constantly refine and build the very best, cost no object speakers. They are critical in showing off what they are capable of. Then they substitute compromises to build speakers that are much less expensive, where they can sell many.

These cost no object speakers come with installation to make sure they sound their very best. I doubt they sell many, but they are priced to be profitable. A set goes to professional reviewers.

About thirty years ago I spent a couple hours with a set of Wilson WAMM… I think about $350K at the time… currently $685K. The experience was revelatory… I understood what Wilson was about and set in my mind what Wilson can do. It doesn’t happen to be the sound I am going for… but it is for many.

I am happy to sample them. I do not think they are over priced… some people have a lot of money… good for them. Most don’t care about audio, a few do.

Another factor in speaker pricing for the top-end models is just branding and marketing. While they may or may not sell a few of the most expensive models to a billionaire here and there, a bigger goal may be to simply add caché to the more ordinary products in their lineup.  Consumers can become very entranced with the brand name of the products they buy and like their more modest purchase being associated with something fancy and exclusive. That's true whether one is talking about stereo gear, cars, clothing or whatever.

If the customer base for your product has a mind-set that says, if it cost more, it must be better, then the question should be, why aren't there more million dollar speakers.

BTW, this is no more outrageous than thousand dollar DACs.  Hell, DACs period!

Cheers

I think one is always paying a hefty premium for "statement" design and esoteric materials with a "luxury" product, not necessarily better performance. As a subscriber to the FFF ("Form Follows Function") philosophy, I generally avoid such products.

When the function is audio reproduction, the visual aspect of the equipment, including design, fit and finish, and "unobtainium" materials may contribute nothing. Given the same level of performance, I will generally choose the less expensive product over the more expensive prettier one. However, if the more aesthetically appealing one is priced only marginally higher, I will sometimes pay a little more for that, but not so much an order of magnitude.

Its fun to spend big bucks on speakers.