What I hate more than Bose... (1 Viewer)

[Jeffrey_Jones]

You're right, that's exactly what I was saying
While I appreciate the humor the truth is that anyone who believes that my post makes me a Bose advocate probably scored very low on reading comprehension tests in school and has no business replying to what I wrote.
Unsubscribe - What I hate more then Bose
Thanks,
Jeff

 

[RicP]

Quote:

I'll give you one more piece of advice Jeff. Since you've only been here 3 weeks...
Lay off the insults and remarks about people's reading comprehension and narrow-mindedness and you'll stay a member here. Otherwise, you won't last too long.

 

[Adil M]

Comply... yeah, I'm not going to get into that arguement, b/c I would get burned.

What is Bose?

Bose is better then the speakers that came in my tv. They are better then the speakers that come in your Elite 520. They are. Bose is a well-known name. This is why people buy them. Same w/ monster cable. Bose is easy to find. They are conveniently sold w/ every electronic purchase and inconveniently packaged in w/ cars. "Can I get a keyboard for my PC?" "Would you like Bose w/ that?"

Why... kickbacks. How do I know, I worked at CC. If a SA can't find you better speakers in the same price range as the BOSE speakers they are either a liar, greedy, stupid, or you are in the wrong store. I thank Bose for bringing us customers who I have moved to other lines. Some people are really stupid and probably, not necessarily, did very poorly on their standardized tests. Why, b/c they buy Bose products anyway despite their senses. I don't know many people whose time is that valuable that they can't take two seconds to go into a showroom and listen to some speakers before they purchase them.

Our local HT store had Bose Speakers, but they don't sell them. They just have them there to show how bad they are in comparison. I'm sure it's illegal, but no one has said anything to them in the last three years.

 

[Jeffrey_Jones]

Lay off the insults and remarks about people's reading comprehension and narrow-mindedness and you'll stay a member here. Otherwise, you won't last too long.

Ric,
While I understand your anger, I believe your threat, disguised as advice is misplaced and without provocation. I do apologize if I offended anyone...that was not my intent. My last comment was intended to illustrate the point that I never said anything positive in my post about the sound quality of Bose speakers...every. Apparently my original post is very poorly written as it was not received as expected.
All I ever wanted to do was point out, in a somewhat sarcastic way, that Bose did have some positive effects on a hobby that we all love.
"I worked for several A/V shops while I was in college and Bose was the best thing that ever happened to us" - They were. As stated in my original post, they generated a lot of customer interest and brought people into our store. That meant that I could sell them something. In most cases it was not Bose, but it was something.
"Many customers truly loved the sound of the Bose speakers even when compared to other speakers we carried" - They did...I was there. This doesn't make me an advocate, it makes me a good salesperson, willing to keep a deal and sell someone a speaker that I don't really like, as long as the customer does.
"I also respect Bose for being an innovator in the sub/sat arena, for introducing customers to HT and for making it fairly easy to up-sell customers into larger speaker packages" - I do. They may make a speaker that I don't like, but they were one of the first, if not the first company to introduce customers to sub/sat systems. Again, this generated a lot of interest and a lot of high end speaker sales for the industry. It also generates a lot of Bose owners, something that I can live with if they can. The hardest thing about running a successful HT store is getting people in the door. Once they're in, the product...along with a good salesperson, does the selling.
Look, I really do apologize for offending anyone but my intent was just to generate some interesting discussion. Big mistake.
Thanks,
Jeff

 

[RicP]

Quote:

. Great! Then let's discuss. We love discussion here.
Your mistake was not "generating discussion", rather, it was resorting to insults and derision when your position or seeming position was challenged. Not a great strategy.

 

[Eujin]

RicP,

Your points are all very well made, especially regarding Bose. You wouldn't by any chance be the same RicP on Saabnet?

I understand some of the points Jeffrey_Jones is trying to make, but I don't think you can admire a company that has done little or nothing in terms of real innovation other than bringing sub/sat systems to the masses, while continuing to charge more for less.

I mean, how can any company in all honesty claim to bring DD5.1 and DTS to a consumer's living room out of TWO speakers?! IF such claims were TRUE, you'd have one of the biggest breakthroughs in home theater! Hey, if I could get the exact performance out of two little speakers that I get out of my Left, Right, Center, Left Surround, Right Surround and Sub, I'd run out and get the 3-2-1 in a heartbeat. The reality is, the DD5.1 and DTS specs are there for a reason. Sound engineers of DVD soundtracks mix sound effects, music, etc. for specific channels. Claiming that one can enjoy 5.1 and DTS sound through just 2 speakers is plain deception of ill-informed consumers. I really don't think you can admire an audio company for that, no matter what their "place in HT history" is.

I understand that consumers will be willing to pay more for a product with solid branding behind it. BUT the said brand/product has to live up to expectations of price vs. performance. Bose has done nothing to fulfill any kind of sensible price-performance ratio. And with their marketing of the 3-2-1 system, they're actively MISLEADING the public.

 

[Thomas_A]

See how Evil Bose speakers are...they got Y'all spatting over them....Maybe its time for this thread to go...??

 

[Marc H]

Really though, at least ya got give them credit for their marketing ability.

 

[David_D_C]

Jeffery Jones,

I honestly thought your first post that included the line...

"This seems about as misplaced as the hatred for Microsoft in the computer industry."

...was some clever sarcasm until I was three quarters of the way through it.

It's amazing that people can have opinions that differ so greatly.

Cheers!

 

[Eujin]

Well folks, it appears there is going to a happy ending to the story I started in the first post of this thread. Here's a recap of our tale thus far:
Once upon a time, a co-worker of mine impulse-bought the Bose 3-2-1 system--even after I had warned her time and again never to be taken in by that company's slick marketing ploys. After further attempts to convince her to exchange the Bose system failed, I concluded that there was just no accounting for people who would be happy to pay $1000 for an entry-level DVD/CD/Receiver combo and 2 speakers masquerading as a surround set-up.
Well, guess what? The said colleague has now decided that the Bose is going back! It seems that her husband is now convinced that they've been had. Here's what happened: he was watching a DVD that had one of those THX Optimode tests. While these video and audio "calibration" tools are rudimentary at best, they do provide test tones for setting approximate levels for a surround set-up. Obviously, when you try to do the audio portion of THX Optimode with only 2 speakers, reality sets in very quickly!
Ah, serendipity. I guess some people just need to experience what they're missing--quite literally--and THX Optimode tests allowed that to happen. This is all really quite funny. Now, if I can just convince them to move out of the HTIB realm...

 

[Bernard L]

I just went to the HT shop today to visit and found someone testing out a bose system. I've never actually realized how tiny those speakers are!!! and still they could produce relatively loud, and kinda clear, and semi-balanced sound...

I know it's nothing compared to the big floorstanders, but HEY... these bose cubes will go great in small rooms!! no space hogging, and you won't be starving for power in smaller rooms... BOSE IS PERFECT (for its applications)

 

[Evan H]

I'm going to jump into this fray....

I was listening to the 3-2-1 system on display in Best Buy. I was impressed w/what I heard. While it didn't simulate a full 3-D audio field, i felt that the sound between the speakers were completely non-directional. I won't discuss the audio quality of what I was hearing, as the store was quite loud, and not ideal for critical demoing, but the imaging was quite good I felt.

Now before you tell me to listen to something good, here's what's in my system:

Receiver: Yamaha RX-V595

LR Speakers: Paradigm Studio 20 v.2

So as you can see, I'm not listening to my music every day on crap. I think that if the system was less money than the $1k that BB was charging, it would be a great deal, But I'll stick with what I have, for what cost me roughly the same price when i purchased my system 2 years ago.

 

[Eujin]

I agree that the little Bose cubes are capable of putting out decent, listenable sound. But for $1000?!? That's highway robbery in my book! I'll take a pair of Paradigm Atoms (or other killer bookshelves in the same price range) and any decent receiver and DVD player any day! The point is, the 3-2-1 system should really be priced less than half of what they sell it for. That and the whole quasi 5.1 claims just make me feel ill.

 

[Brett DiMichele]

You can buy cubes on ebay that are nearly identicle to the

bose cubes... They actualy have a larger driver (4" vs 3.5"

if I am not mistaken) and best part of all... they cost all

of $70.00 for all of them... (no bass module though) so you

save enough and you buy a good sub and cross it at 200hz and

lower and you get the asthetic qualities, that in reality

are the only thing that makes the Bose Cubes so popular (WAF)

and you get them cheap!

 

[Rick Radford]

Man, y'all don't take many Bose prisoners, do ya?
That being said, it strikes me that J6P loves Bose and P&S. Some grow out of it, and some don't. Some show up here, and some don't. If they have enough interest and stick around, they learn and spend their $$ intelligently.
And ya know what? If I were fortunate enough to get a Corvette or Acura that came with a factory installed Bose system, I'd still take it.
Life goes on.

 

[Eujin]

Hey, I'd take a Corvette or Acura any day--Stereo be damned!

 

[Brett DiMichele]

Just think... If I didn't have Corvette(s) (Plural)
I could have one of those Home Theater/Music systems we
all read about and salivate over in the mags.. Ohh well
what can I say, I like going 150+

 

[Neil Weinstock]

Twas written:

However, for factory audio systems, the Bose ins my Acura is spectacular. Maybe the one in your car is craptacular, but not mine.

Any thread with the word "craptacular" in it is OK by me.

 

[Theodore_R]

Hopefully I can get some quick responses on this question. I am fully aware of the bose scam and would never consider buying for myself. however the concept and purpose of the 3.2.1 is useful and necessary. for instance, let's say you already have a home theater setup in your living room and want to watch dvd's in your bedroom. you want something better than your tv sound but don't want 5 speakers and all the wires in your small bedroom -- a receiver that can "process" 5.1 into a workable two speaker setup (like the 3.2.1 does) is ideal.

now here's what i need to know -- are there other systems that do this -- process 5.1 into two speakers so that the imaging is listenable? i need to know soon because i am helping shop for one for a friend's christmas present. money is not really an object and the bose package is a match in terms of features needed. please give me alternatives before i reccomend the bose! thanks.

 

[Marc Rochkind]

Here's what I'm planning to say about the 3-2-1 and similar systems in a book I'm writing. I'd appreciate comments.

Phantom Surround Speakers
It’s somewhat of a hassle to locate the left and rear surround speakers correctly and to put up with the cables that run across the floor (or to run them through the walls), so the idea of somehow creating the same effect without the physical speakers is pretty attractive.
One such system comes from Bose, their 3-2-1 Home Entertainment System, which dispenses with a physical center speaker as well. According to Bose, “Here's a home entertainment system that defies convention by offering a surround sound experience from only two speakers. No need to re-arrange the room or consult electronics technicians.”
The Bose system, and others like it, may work, but without test results from an independent lab, there’s no way to know. Even if you could try it out in your home, unless you know exactly what to listen for, and you have a variety of adequate test sources, and you have a switch to allow quick back-and-forth comparisons (in other words, your own lab setup), there’s no way to know how effective the system is. Sure, it’s bound to sound better than what you had before, but the real question is not whether it’s better than your TV’s speaker or even your home stereo, but whether it’s an adequate subsitute for 5 physical speakers. As you can tell, I’m skeptical.