But Ethan....you're always handing out homework assignments, links, graphs and math that would require 20 hours to pursue....in defense of your own views.
Not really. I do often link to my own articles and videos, but they're short and to the point, and they directly address the issue at hand. Further, I always answer questions with clear logical answers, and offer the articles and videos for further study. I never
ever tell someone nonsense like "you won't understand until you've been a pro engineer for many years" or "read this and then you'll get it" as people often say to me as their
only response.
how would you feel if someone said to you that Real Traps in their component state are just paper, plastic, and metal, wrapped around some fiberglass...and they aren't worth more than $20-$30 as raw material.
As of 2012 our cost for one MiniTrap was $96.79 which includes the raw materials, and labor for assembly and packing, plus the cost of the shipping box itself and custom molded foam interior packing which is not inconsequential. It's slightly higher today. The powder coated metal frames and rear mounting bar alone cost us more than $40. We use genuine Owens-Corning double-density rigid fiberglass, which costs about five times more than the cheap crumbly mineral wool many companies use in their cheap knock-offs. The $97 does not include the cost of rent, heat, insurance, and taxes, just the product itself.
I believe this cost-to-sell-price ratio is standard, though companies whose products are built in China earn substantially more. Years ago I spoke with the owner of sE, and he bragged to me that he paid $85 for a microphone that sells for $1,000. For his $85 he gets the microphone, a shock mount, a velvet bag, a 20-foot microphone cable, a fancy wood box, and it comes all assembled and packed nicely in a cardboard shipping box. His company does literally nothing further for their 1,176 percent markup other than shipping out the boxes and billing the customers.
You have this tendency to constantly take shots at high-end audio products and reduce them all down to $0.50 components....though you avoid actually naming brands.
Well I did now just name a brand.
I do not object to fair prices for real value. As others explained, a prosumer DI box that sells for $30 is likely not made as well as a professional model that costs $200. I made the point in my Audio Myths video linked above that real studios pay more for reliability, when sessions can cost thousands of dollars for just the musicians. I don't buy cheap junk personally, and I don't suggest others do either unless that's all they can afford. Which is the case for a lot of people!
However, I do object when products cost ten times more than necessary, especially when they are sold based on unrealistic promises. Analog summing boxes come to mind. I can't for the life of me imagine what someone could put into a preamp to make it worth $1,500 per channel. Even more so for microphones costing $3,000 and up which is not uncommon. $200? Sure! $500? Okay. $1,000? Eh, maybe. But it better be very good, and have multiple patterns and be built like a tank etc to offer real value.
Now, before you accuse me of being the "value police," I'll add that I don't care what people spend on their audio gear. The
only time I object is when someone with a limited budget asks what they should buy for good results, and some arrogant gear snob tells them they'll never get professional results unless they spend a grand per channel on mic pres and converters.
--Ethan
