Sir Triode Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) The rot started when they board stole the company from Dan D'Agostino. Now they have finally ruined the reputation of the company (like Harman did with Mark Levinson by licensing it to Lexus) by hooking up with Acura (Honda's premium brand in the US) to fit out the 2014 RLX (American made Accords) with Krell ICE systems. Very sad... http://campaign.r20....ehlcmIUan0hYbc= Edited November 28, 2012 by triode12
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted November 28, 2012 Volunteer Posted November 28, 2012 Does the amp get towed in a trailer 4
Krispy Audio Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 It's the thing to do these days hey. My mate's Land Rover is fitted out with a Meridian system. I've got to admit though, it sounds phenomenal for an ICE system.
twwen2 Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 I'm not sure it's a sell out so much as market expansion. Dynaudio make plenty of audio components for the automobile market, and their reputation is in-tact?
firefly0071 Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 Bang and Olufsen provide audio equipment for Aston Martin. Does not prevent me from buying these cars (assuming I had the money). 1
Krispy Audio Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 I think the point is that it's cheapening the brand (as a home audio manufacturer).
Sir Triode Posted November 28, 2012 Author Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) Not only that CP, it also shows that the company is more concerned about the bottom line that it is about making great sounding products. Not that it hadn't happened already -just look at some of the crap (not all) that Krell has been making since Y2K just to keep the company afloat and the reason why they brought in more investors that has done this. A HE company cannot survive by making equipment that is over $10K per component with lavish advertising budgets - there isn't a large enough market to sustain the sales required to keep the company in the black. That is why the smart ones like Music Reference, Magneplanar, Quicksilver and a few others keep their company and overheads small and lean. And target the larger market by making great products at a reasonable price (good value). I guess the sell out (of their soul) and take over is finally complete. Edited November 28, 2012 by triode12
Muscat Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 I think its a smart move. Acura, like Lexus is at the premium end of the auto maker spectrum. Also gets the brand out to a wider audience. I wouldn't say Naim is cheapening its brand partnering with Bentley. Now if they were sold with Corollas say... that's another story.
Krispy Audio Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) I'll be keeping an eye on his son's new brand to see what path that takes...... Edited November 28, 2012 by CP_ 1
Sir Triode Posted November 28, 2012 Author Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) I think its a smart move. Acura, like Lexus is at the premium end of the auto maker spectrum. Also gets the brand out to a wider audience. I wouldn't say Naim is cheapening its brand partnering with Bentley. Now if they were sold with Corollas say... that's another story. Smart move from a business perspective by owners who are not concerned about or interested in Audio. They are concerned about the bottom line - not good news for audiophiles. We don't need another BOSE or B&O. Edited November 28, 2012 by triode12
Sir Triode Posted November 28, 2012 Author Posted November 28, 2012 I'll be keeping an eye on his son's new brand to see what path that takes...... I am friends with Bret and he is taking the purist approach to things. Like his Dad did in the early days of Krell.
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted November 28, 2012 Volunteer Posted November 28, 2012 Smart move from a business perspective by owners who are not concerned about or interested in Audio. They are concerned about the bottom line - not good news for audiophiles. We don't need another BOSE or B&O. As long as their audiophile stuff doesn't suffer in quality I'm quite happy if they look after their bottom line.
RockandorRoll Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 I always liked the McIntsoh stuff in Subarus = Clarion Great brand exposure for Krell, a lot of people would have no idea what the hell Krell is. I think the dealership may have a hard time convincing customers that Krell is better than Bose. These are Honda buyers after all
Krispy Audio Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 A bit off topic, but I had to laugh at this. The Friday night of the AV Show I headed to the Motor Show. The Infinity rep pulled us up and said “You HAVE to jump in and hear the amazing Bose system this car hasâ€. We all laughed and hopped in, and they proceeded to play a demo DVD with rollercoasters and cliché stuff. It sure did play loud (he insisted we turn it up to full volume), but in no way showed any musical prowess. 1
analog brother Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 my car has a forsell air conditioner
Krispy Audio Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 Your car is silver plated - so may not sound as good at high speeds 1
~Spyne~ Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 If a business doesn't look at the bottom line and continually try to find ways to stay in the black, then they die off and you won't have the option of buying that brand. I'd much rather the company look to expand it's market (and let's face it, home audio is not exactly the most profitable business to be in) and stay alive than focus ALL it's energy and money on making good sounding products and then go bankrupt and cease to exist. Some people are very naive if they can't appreciate the necessity for many companies to do similar to what Krell have done. As mentioned, Dynaudio is a great example of a company whose products are installed in many cars, and their home audio reputation is still very strong.
metal beat Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) The rot started when they board stole the company from Dan D'Agostino. Now they have finally ruined the reputation of the company (like Harman did with Mark Levinson by licensing it to Lexus) by hooking up with Acura (Honda's premium brand in the US) to fit out the 2014 RLX (American made Accords) with Krell ICE systems. Very sad... http://campaign.r20....ehlcmIUan0hYbc= Totally disagree Triode. How does it show that the company is more concerned about the bottom line that it is about making great sounding products?. As others have said many hi end hifi companies have linked up with luxury car makers. It provides them with cashflow to fund their high end audio, not the other way around. You always go on and on about the rip off of high end audio companies making a joke of hi end audio with their over priced audio. Dan always had overpriced hifi with Krell. Now that he has his own company the prices are even higher and he has completely changed the design of his amplifiers in both sound and weight. If these new designs were so much better, why did he not do this at Krell? His Momentum amp sounds wonderful, however it is overpriced jewelry. If Krell were offshoring their manufacturing like Classe, I would be 100% in agreement. Edited November 28, 2012 by turntable
analog brother Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) haha! cameron, the compressor has gone, so no vacuum hold-down suspension! Edited November 28, 2012 by analog brother
Sir Triode Posted November 28, 2012 Author Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) Totally disagree Triode. How does it As others have said many hi end hifi companies have linked up with luxury car makers. It provides them with cashflow to fund their high end audio, not the other way around. You always go on and on about the rip off of high end audio companies making a joke of hi end audio with their over priced audio. Dan always had overpriced hifi with Krell. Now that he has his own company the prices are even higher and he has completely changed the design of his amplifiers in both sound and weight. If these new designs were so much better, why did he not do this at Krell? His Momentum amp sounds wonderful, however it is overpriced jewelry. If Krell were offshoring their manufacturing like Classe, I would be 100% in agreement. Like I have mentioned in one of my posts above, there are very good companies who survive and still make great products (that don't cost an arm and leg) that haven't done this. e.g. Magnaplanar, Music Reference, Quicksilver, ARC and many more. TT, Dan (and his family) were pushed out of the company by a the board of directors. He has set up Momentum as a result of this. He probably didn't have the support of the board at Krell to make them when he was still there. I too think the Momentum amps are overpriced for what they are - I suppose Dan is chasing a certain market. But at least (when I heard them) they pushed the SOTA - I personally am not interested. I even mistook his preamp in a pic to be a LCD projector after just an cursory look. Not too impressed myself with what you get for the money after looking at the innards but they did sound very good to me when I heard them hooked up to Sashas. Edited November 28, 2012 by triode12
RockandorRoll Posted November 28, 2012 Posted November 28, 2012 My parents car has the Bose 11 speaker setup with a sub in the tyre well You wouldnt pay extra for it but its nice to have in there as standard Good audio in cars is stupid anyway, road noise, engine noise and wind noise all make it a less than desirable listening experience. My old car had a full Focal setup with an AB amp driving KR series splits. Sounded good when i was parked and the engine was off. 1
Sir Triode Posted November 28, 2012 Author Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) My parents car has the Bose 11 speaker setup with a sub in the tyre well You wouldnt pay extra for it but its nice to have in there as standard Good audio in cars is stupid anyway, road noise, engine noise and wind noise all make it a less than desirable listening experience. My old car had a full Focal setup with an AB amp driving KR series splits. Sounded good when i was parked and the engine was off. AMEN! Edited November 28, 2012 by triode12
Guest Posted November 29, 2012 Posted November 29, 2012 The above posts are perfect example of the misconception of those that have never ever actually heard a well executed "aftermarket" car audio system, designed from the ground up to accurately reproduce music. With extensive sound deadening, speaker placement, tweaking with some digital aids (time correction, incidentally that we have been doing for years in car audio), it can be done very well ... even when driving! In fact, some of the best cars I have heard in the country, rival what some consider well set up Hi-Fi systems. All I am saying, is that there are many car audio enthusiasts around the country who have poured hours into their cars. It is possible. Anyone wanting more information, check out www.measq.com.au I am the founder and we run events in QLD, VIC, SA, ACT and shortly in NSW also. I have the $6K Harman Kardon option in my Mercedes - and it's "ok" but it certainly wouldn't come close to the results in an MEASQ event. (for the record, the original purchaser shelled out their hard earned for that "upgrade". For $6K I could do much better with aftermarket gear). 5
ArthurDent Posted November 29, 2012 Posted November 29, 2012 ...a lot of people would have no idea what the hell Krell is. Other than the extinct race of advanced beings from the planet Altair IV? 2
kramered Posted November 29, 2012 Posted November 29, 2012 I don't think it'll hurt B&W to be associated with Maserati either. And Marc is 100 percent correct. A well-installed and set-up aftermarket car audio system can sound superb. With quality components, tonality, dynamics, resolution, etc are not an issue - the toughest thing is getting an accurate soundstage in terms of width and image focus/location. Cheers, EK 2
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