Bose sucks.
Here are brands I endorse (that people will not find absurdly expensive) which, in my experience, dont put out products that sound wrong.
Components:
Rotel (British)
Marantz (American)
Rega (British)
Creek (Canadian)
Quicksilver (American)
Speakers:
Spendor (British)
Sonus Faber (Italian)
NOLA (American)
Zu (American)
...actually the list of products I'll endorse over the ones
you'll find in Best Buy, Magnoila Hi-Fi, etc, is almost endless.
I realize that not everybody wants to try and shop at a place other
than the big-box stores that offer brand names that you are familiar with, but if everybody reading this blog is
so "out of step", then why are you so "in step" when it comes to buying audio gear?
Almost all the companies I listed supply products that are designed,
engineered, sourced, manufactured, and assembled without the use of RED
china (though there are some exceptions). But if that is not reason enough for you flag-waving types, then
why not find another reason? Try listening to these brands. As a matter of fact, the salespeople at the audio
shops that carry these brands will encourage you to bring in your own
music so that you can get an idea of how it will sound coming
through something you might purchase. They want you to sit down and
listen.
I dont proselytize beyond a few selective subjects, but I
do have amazingly high expectations and standards when it comes to
certain things (audio components and tattoos come to mind) so I'll just
lay this little diddy on you:
Independent audio salons are truly a music lovers dream. They
offer lots of product, in many different configurations, for many
different budgets. A lot of them have moved into home theater in
order to stay even remotely competitive. A lot of these audio salons could care less
about the "big box stores", because it is really the network of
hobbyists that keep them in business, but they do want your business.
So if you wander into a store that has a $5000 CD player playing through a $35,000 pair
of speakers, do not feel intimidated. That gear is for
the hobbyist with an insatiable hunger and the wallet to match. There
is more within the audio salon that is probably right up your financial alley (and
will more than exceed your needs).
Many audio salon shopkeepers realize that most people out there are just average jack and jills who
want an audio system that works...and sounds good. The average jack and jill does
not want to drop a mint either. That is why the audio salons carry brands to accommodate the average citizen that wanders
inside. Sometimes, the average citizen comes back into the shop as an audiophile hobbyist (it happened to me).
So if
there is a store near you, which there probably is, that carries a lot
of brands you have never heard of, I would advocate that you at least
poke your head in there before your next purchase of "electronics" from a big-box store.
These audio salons are in the phonebook or just a google search away. Why not at least see what they have to offer?
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