Guess the price

[MZKM]

SoundStage recently published measurements of a bookshelf speaker. In [good?] fun, post your guess for the retail price, then click on my subsequent comment to reveal the actual price.

SoundStageNetwork.com | SoundStage.com - NRC Measurements: Stenheim Alumine Two Loudspeakers

www.soundstagenetwork.com

 

[MZKM]

Retail price:
$11,900/pair

Special Edition (higher quality crossover components & binding posts) retail price:
$16,900

 

[Jimbob54]

Reassuringly expensive.....

 

[RickSanchez]

Staying true to what The Price is Right taught me, I definitely don't want to go over. I'll say $1,500 (each)?

 

[restorer-john]

Anything more than US$399 pair is stupid.

 

[TurtlePaul]

I feel like there are cheap things that look simple, then there are things that are more expensive which look more complex, then there are things that look simple but wrap around to being much much more expensive. I think we are in the third category here, I am guessing $3,000 each.

The tweeter/woofer spacing is... interesting... and willing to bet that port leaks reflections in the midrange around 800 hz.

 

[RobL]

Anything more than US$399 pair is stupid.

Aluminum alloy enclosure…

 

[Blumlein 88]

Aluminum alloy enclosure…

Radio shack sold tons of aluminum enclosure speakers for less $100.

 

[Madjalapeno]

Off by a factor of 10.

Pressure Die Cast case is nice, but there are plenty of metal enclosures for a fraction of that price.

 

[thewas]

Pressure Die Cast case is nice

Not even cast alu enclosures but just some alu plates bolted together and with mainly useless foam damping instead of some heavy viscous stuff:

Source of the photos is another review with some IMD measurements https://www.lowbeats.de/test-kompaktbox-stenheim-alumine-two-hoechste-schweizer-praezision/ The denegerated audiophool press calls such though as "highest Swiss precision"

 

[RobL]

Radio shack sold tons of aluminum enclosure speakers for less $100.

So these are equivalent to Minimus 7’s? Not saying they’re good value but you’re not building these enclosures for $100…

 

[Blumlein 88]

So these are equivalent to Minimus 7’s? Not saying they’re good value but you’re not building these enclosures for $100…

I don't know. Looking at the pictures, the die cast aluminum Minimus 7 might be the better enclosure.

 

[sergeauckland]

My view is that there is zero correlation between performance and price. Price is determined by what people will pay, not what something costs, and what people will pay is entirely determined by the marketing effort put into the product. Witness the daft prices people willing to pay for Wilson Audio products, Audio Note products, Nordost cables or any number of 'boutique' products devoid of any technical merit.

S.

 

[Gorgonzola]

Retail price:
$11,900/pair

Special Edition (higher quality crossover components & binging posts) retail price:
$16,900

"Yes, but have you listened to them?" ~~ classic audiophile retort when high prices are quoted.

 

[mj30250]

I guessed far over any reasonable price knowing that these would be grossly expensive, and still fell far short. Nice.

 

[sergeauckland]

"Yes, but have you listened to them?" ~~ classic audiophile retort when high prices are quoted.

Indeed, which is why this industry is still plagued by crap products, devoid of any technical merit, but which are marketed to the 'trust my ears' brigade who know nothing , but are taken in by any old bollocks that makes a good story.

S.

 

[Gorgonzola]

Expensive parts are mostly to WOW the gullible. Here's a pic of the AN DAC 5.1 Profession Edition, ("professional"? really?). Chock full of exotic, expensive parts. Is it worth US$6000? Well maybe almost for the pricey parts alone but what about performance? (BTW, DAC 5.1 uses exactly the same obsolete digital section, (red board nearest the top), as the cheapest models.)

 

[maverickronin]

Not even cast alu enclosures but just some alu plates bolted together

The worst of all possible worlds...

 

[Zvu]

I'll be having 3 pairs of March Audio Sointuva for this amount of cash, thank you very much.

 

[sergeauckland]

Expensive parts are mostly to WOW the gullible. Here's a pic of the AN DAC 5.1 Profession Edition, ("professional"? really?). Chock full of exotic, expensive parts. Is it worth US$6000? Well maybe almost for the pricey parts alone but what about performance? (BTW, DAC 5.1 uses exactly the same obsolete digital section, (red board nearest the top), as the cheapest models.)

The moment I see a Tube or a Mundorf capacitor, I know it's crap, unless I see measurements that might suggest otherwise.

S.