The Audio Industry and the Internet....What is the effect long term Good VS. Bad

Elliot G.

Industry Expert
Jul 22, 2010
3,286
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Fort Lauderdale, Florida
www.bendingwaveusa.com
The High End Audio Business has ignored the wild west which is the internet. How do you feel about buying and selling on the internet and what do you think will be the long term effects on the industry, high end dealers, manufacturers and end users.
 

caesar

Well-Known Member
May 30, 2010
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Of course, there are always many causes and different factors at play - such as the economy, etc, that impact anything. But overall it has been mostly positive.

On the positive side, it has connected disparate networks of audiophiles that were scattered in cities over the world. It has created a used market that puts a value on gear and helps purchasers make better decisions. It has helped weed out bad dealers. It helps weed out bad equipment faster. It breaks out superior equipment ahead of the pack faster. It presents access to different opinions of audio experts, experienced hobbyists, and magazine writers much easier allowing better decision making for the consumer.

On the negative side, prices of new equipment have shot up to counteract the flourishing used audio market. (This usually manifests itself in class warfare types of posts and letters to editors,but the cause is the internet.)

Ultimately, audio is an experience. One needs to hear and experience the music. The internet will never replace that. No matter how Valin praises a piece of gear, a smart audiophile will always need to hear for himself before handing over the plastic card.

These are just off the top of my head... I will probably think of more.
 

Ethan Winer

Banned
Jul 8, 2010
1,231
3
0
75
New Milford, CT
Buying new (versus used) without having a chance to see let alone hear what you're getting is a problem for buyers. It's also a problem for brick and mortar dealers because some people waste their time with in-store auditions and then go buy off the 'net.

--Ethan
 

Jay_S

WBF Founding Member
Apr 20, 2010
309
5
16
San Francisco - East Bay
The same post could have been written a decade or more ago. The long-term is already here. People have been buying and selling high end audio through the internet for a long time. At least for now, the internet is the entrenched standard, not the wild west.
 

Gregadd

WBF Founding Member
Apr 20, 2010
10,517
1,774
1,850
Metro DC
My entire system was purchased over the Internet either new or used. I don't recommend that for the novice.
 

caesar

Well-Known Member
May 30, 2010
4,290
767
1,698
Buying used on the internet is not a problem for good dealers. Prices have gone up to account for that so the dealers make a bigger margin on less sales than before the net. It has hurt the bad dealers, however - no doubt about that. The economics at play here are the same as for used cars or used text books. If the company could lease all of their products, they would lower their prices. Since products are sold to an individual who can re-sell them, prices have to go up. Tewxtbooks are updated with new dates every few years and little substantial changes. We are just squeezing the balloon. There is no magic here or a free lunch.

I do agree that inexperienced people can purchase wrong products without listening to them first. However, if they find a good price on a used product, they should be able to resell them without much of a hit.

Also, if the manufacturer makes a great product, they are hard to find used. So another benefit for the consumer is it forces the manufacturers to release more breakthrough products that people would actually want to buy.
 

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