Did that component just start sounding better? That component I thought sucked a few years ago now sounds great. Are they building them better now?

Or conversely, did that component just start sounding terrible? Are they just building that component that I used to think was great, and now I think sucks, with worse parts than they used to?

Or is it just me?

We all run into these circumstances where our impressions of sound quality change. Some changes in our perceptions occur over years. Some over days. Some take just a few minutes 🙂

Oh, and the answers to the introductory questions are… yes.

There are all sorts of reasoning we use to describe such a topsy-turvy apparently wishy-washy situation…

1. The quality of the power changes in direct relation to the quality of the changes in the sound [I have always been suspicious of this one, and instead prefer #2]

2. Our emotional state affects how we enjoy most kinds of music – it taking perhaps an hour or so to relax and enjoy many kinds of more ‘laid back’ music genres if it has been a hectic day

3. If we do not have a lot of experience listening to different equipment, first impressions – which may last weeks – are just not reliable, and long term impressions are only relevant compared to what we had previously

4. Our ears do change and grow more experienced and we are able to hear more – we educate our ears just like wine lovers educate their palette [this reasoning is often used in a derogatory manner by non-audiophiles to explain why THEY can’t hear, or taste, something.]

5. Manufacturers do actually change equipment without telling everybody, usually for the better

6. Our preferences change. [This is the most interesting subject, for me personally]. As we hear better and better equipment for long periods of time, as our ears grow to trust that we are not going to attack them with aggressive and annoyingly obnoxious exaggerations or parodies of sound – we start to hear things… the mind – ear interface becomes more and more efficient, and we start experiencing other states of mind more and more often.

It is not just drug-like sound that many of us are looking for, but the ability for the drug-like sound to affect us deeply. This is opposite to a typical addiction where one becomes less and less sensitive to a drug. Here, as we open ourselves to the music more and more frequently, and achieve a drug-like ‘high’ from the music more often, the more easy it becomes. [This is why it is a good thing that the faster I drive, the louder the wind noise, and the less able I am able to hear the car radio .. :-)]

This increased sensitivity to drug-like sounds, and this, what we have been calling the drug-like music state, if pursued with some diligence over time, is a great thing. It is independent of the cost of the system making the drug-like sound. Expensive systems can deliver a more powerful druggish sound, and more frequently [ sometimes every time you play them! Danger Will Robinson! ], but otherwise it is an experience that is available to just about everybody who cares to try and achieve this musically altered state-of-mind.

As we look at expanding Audio Federation’s footprint, we often think about whether to expand the distributorship side of the business or to expand the dealership side of the business. When we talk to people about this, everyone sure does seem to have figured it all out 🙂 but it is all in great fun and full of good-willed optimism and I thought I would try and share some of that here.

There are several goals here – financial, of course. And stability. Building the Audio Federation ‘Brand’. And also just the day-to-day, which is the most fun versus being somewhat boring or a royal pain-in-the-butt. Oh yeah, and which are we better at?

Essentially,: Which will we be more successful at, both in terms of earnings and personal enjoyment – an expanded dealership or an expanded import business?

First – being a dealer is WAY more fun. We get to meet a lot of nice people, play a lot of music, get to hear a lot of new music. I mean, in some sense, this is the ultimate can’t-really-be-a-job-can-it job. And Neli is really, really good at the customer interface thing – she is always so patient and understanding and helpful. But on the practical side [ick. HATE that side :-)] one has to look at the rise of the internet and the used gear racket and the decreasing loyalty people feel towards their dealers [less so for older folk, but still, it ain’t like the olden days]. Stability wise, I think dealers are able to hang onto a product line longer than distributors, on average [and as distributors, this is a perception we will have to fight all the time – we want to be the distributors for something, once we decide to take it on – for, like, forever].

Anyway, on the ‘this is fun and something we really want to do’ side of the equation, expanding the dealership wins [and we have some rather unique ideas, we think, to make it a heckuva lot more fun – for everybody – once we get down out of the mtns].

On the other hand – some people feel that being a distributor is the only way to be a success in this business [Actually, being a cable manufacturer has a much higher probability of financial success, but I digress…]. But, as one looks at successful distributors versus dealers, what does one see? Well, I do not know what people see, and there is not much actual data here that I am 100% sure of – but I see Sumiko on one hand, apparently successful importer [judging by by the number of their reps and success of the brands they carry, along with the premium they charge for importation] and I see Listen Up, apparently successful Colorado dealer [based on the number of their stores and large advertising budget -they also have strong pro and Home Theater arms of the business ].

So, I am not sure distributors do any better than dealers do in achieving financial success. Opening a recreational goods store would be a much better idea – in Money mag or somewhere they report that this is a quickly growing area of the economy and the average store makes about $500K in revenue [we do not do so bad here -thanks everybody! – but the average dealership makes way less than this].

OK. the $64M question: Is being a distributor any fun? No. It really ain’t. But it does have its satisfactions: Neli loves talking with and helping dealers a lot. We like helping products get into the U.S. and becoming more and more successful. We get a hand in helping way more audiophiles get their hands on high quality gear – albeit indirectly – and this is very rewarding [although we are very honored to be dealers for all of our lines, being the Audio Note importer/distributor is ultimately more rewarding, as the dealer network magnifies the impact of our efforts to get people to replace the Bad Sounding with the Good Sounding].

So where does that leave us?

Yes, we are going to expand.

Yes, we are going to move the store somewhere more appropriate [not sure when, but there are few places less appropriate than here in the foothills above Boulder].

Yes, we want to expand our showrooms [It’s where the most fun is. We had 4 large systems setup here before we decided to move – which is more than most large dealers. We would like to bump this up a notch or 2… and this time get a place with corners so we can also show off the Audio Note speakers to their best effect :-)].

Yes, we are going to have a magazine once again. Although Spintricity is currently mothballed, we will revisit this magazine idea…

Yes, we are going to… 🙂

[OK. Hope this non-audiophile business-centric post was not too darn boring. But it is a topic that has been on our minds a lot lately – and just thought I’d give you a peek behind the scenes here a little].

I was reading this paper on how attractive websites do better with users than usable websites:

Visual Appeal vs. Usability

Well, that article refers to an extreme example, but this is something that has been difficult for me to comes to terms with, geek that I am, but it is really hard to overestimate the value of appearance when an average person makes a decision about something.

From presidents to cars to websites and … yes… to high end audio gear.

I would say the list of important criteria looks something like:

price – what is this going to cost me relative to the other choices?
convenience – how much work must I do for one choice versus another?
appearance – how attractive is one versus the others
…
competency – how well does one perform relative to the others.

——————————–

With this list I think one can explain why MS Windows beat out Apple, why the ipod and iphone beat out their competitors, why Facebook beat out WAY better designed competitors… and why some products in our industry actually sell a few units, no matter how competent they are vis-a-vis their competition – and why some others don’t do as well.

I don’t really have any specific products in mind. We can all think of wonderful looking amps and racks and speakers that seem to be doing OK in this over-crowded marketplace – and perhaps their very attractiveness is the reason why.

I do think it is something ALL manufacturers here should pay attention to – though I feel few actually do. They feel as I do, of course, that competent products should rise to the top.