Not when you're spending $2k on Lexicon to get $300 worth of crown guts.
Here's a perfect example ...
PS Audio Stellar amplifier... Selling in Canada for $2,199 ... but what's inside?
Yep, those are a pair of ICEPower 300asc modules which you can get for roughly $120 each.
Now these are a popular commodity in the DIY world. For example, heres a tutorial on how to build your own version for around $300... YouTube
You can also get pre-assembled versions on Amazon, etc. at a real bargain price.
So...how does PS Audio justify the $3,000 price tag?
That's what Andrew was telling you.
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But it can ... once you know what games are being played, you can take your money elsewhere and get some real value for what you spend.
My current project has been "sound bar killers"... mini-amps hooked up with decent but relatively inexpensive speakers as sound systems for TV, Phone, Computer etc. For just a hair over $500 CDN I can provide a system that will stand it's own beside most "high end" setups with no problem. Granted they lack the high lustre finish and the prestige names... but they do the job just as well.
Now to be fair, if money bags wants to spend the high price for the prestige items and knows that's what he's doing it's not my problem.
The problem is that many people are totally sucked into thinking that you gotta spend a ton of money to get decent sound and performance. They mistakenly equate price with quality, name with performance, size with effect and in the end they spend way more money than they need to.
As you point out ... Victims of Advertising.
And lets face it, these online reviews are, almost without exception, paid advertising. It is rare that a known "shill" (as @monutainmanbob calls them) will break ranks, as Andrew did, and either expose the game or dump on a bad product. Their income depends on them playing the game.
To see beyond the hype you need some real knowledge of how stuff works. Even minor technical skill will tell you that you can't tune a system with wires, that power conditioners are a waste of money, that fancy power cords are a waste of money, that the name on the case is not an indication of quality, etc. Just a little bit of training and insight is all that's needed.
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@leadbelly
So far you've contributed nothing but contradiction and innuendo.
I don't know what your problem is and frankly I don't much care.
Just please, take it somewhere else.
So far you've contributed nothing but contradiction and innuendo.
I don't know what your problem is and frankly I don't much care.
Just please, take it somewhere else.
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You're not a mod. You might do well to try to learn, aka read scottjoplin's thread and understand that NAIM amps did actually blow from capacitive cables. There's really no point being on this forum if you're unwilling to learn.
Yah, it must suck to know everything! 😉
But, as with everything else, the ps audio reference is also short sighted....I have no idea what’s in them but those little blue box’s are supposedly their claim to fame, whether or not they make up the cost/value I have no idea, and if I wanted to buy one I certainly would.
And my man Andrew is just licking the hand that feeds him.
I’ve got nothing against crown, I have a xls2002 for my sub amp......when I get done with my new build this spring I’m gonna see how it performs on the mains just for the heck of it.
Edit.....$199.99 w/sub!😀
https://f072605def1c9a5ef179-a0bc3f...product-specsheets/R-4B-II-Spec-Sheet-v01.pdf
But, as with everything else, the ps audio reference is also short sighted....I have no idea what’s in them but those little blue box’s are supposedly their claim to fame, whether or not they make up the cost/value I have no idea, and if I wanted to buy one I certainly would.
And my man Andrew is just licking the hand that feeds him.
I’ve got nothing against crown, I have a xls2002 for my sub amp......when I get done with my new build this spring I’m gonna see how it performs on the mains just for the heck of it.
Edit.....$199.99 w/sub!😀
https://f072605def1c9a5ef179-a0bc3f...product-specsheets/R-4B-II-Spec-Sheet-v01.pdf
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Well, 30+ years in the electronics industry, one might reasonably assume I've picked up a few things along the way.
The PS Audio "Gain Cell" is an electronic volume control device.
Your man Andrew just dumped all over the people supporting him ... he outed them for having multiple prices for the same basic technology. That's hardly "licking the hand that feeds you".
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That's right! Do the best you can. Keep learning, better your best. One man does make a difference. 🙂
I learned a lot from Jason Stoddard's Schiit Happened: The Story of the World's Most Improbable Start-Up | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org
I’ve got 54 years of paying attention under my belt!
The blue box’s in the amp are ‘analog cells’ some kinda class A mosfet stage? Anyways......not the gain cell.
Stellar S300 Power Amplifier | PS Audio
Edit......I’m not saying this ps audio stuff is good,bad, or indifferent, just that knowing of which you speak is half the battle.
Oh yah, regarding Andrew.......you dont think the bean counters at Harmon might have realized they’d sell a heck of a lot more <$500crowns if they were related to the $50k Levinson ?
I mean how many $50k amps do they actually sell? The people that buy them are after the prestige of the name (is mark even involved anymore?) and wouldn’t be caught dead with a crown in the rack!
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Hi Douglas, Thanks for caring.
About 17 yrs ago at the dinner table my 3 kids really shouted at me "why are you so f*n cynical about everything?"
I replied "cos everybody and I mean EVERYBODY is gonna try to rip you off."
I'm glad to announce that now they are all even more cynical than I, (actually a great deal more so)
There is hope!
About 17 yrs ago at the dinner table my 3 kids really shouted at me "why are you so f*n cynical about everything?"
I replied "cos everybody and I mean EVERYBODY is gonna try to rip you off."
I'm glad to announce that now they are all even more cynical than I, (actually a great deal more so)
There is hope!
😉 Member wideoldtech (modest) joined about a year ago on a similar mission, he's learned to tone it down a bit I think 🙂 Humility is required on this forum, it's quite likely that even idiotic sounding posts were not made by idiots.
Matt I’m all for the crusade against ignorance but ol’ Douglas needs to bring a stronger game than this!
The $3,000 at the end of that post was a typo ... It should have been $2,000 as with the price above. I missed the edit window before I caught it. Sorry for the mistake.
Inside, it's just a pair of 300ASC modules and one of their gain cell control units. They didn't design the amplifier, they don't build the amplifiers, they simply assemble them into cases. It beats me how they justify the markup.
It’s $1500us
Heres Amir’s review......seems middle of the road
But still gets a recommended.
Review and Measurements of PS Audio S300 PWR Amp | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum
Yeah well, things are a bit more expensive in Canada thanks to the orange guy and his freaking tarrifs.
Where do you think I got the picture from?
That’s Oompa Loompa ......get it straight Douglas! 😀
Edit.......don’t take that as ‘political’ , I dislike them all equally regardless of affiliation.
Edit.......don’t take that as ‘political’ , I dislike them all equally regardless of affiliation.
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