are ML's going to become bestbuy crap now?

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ASLayerAODsk

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sigh...so now our beloved speakers are being sold by, what i consider, 'chumps' aka sold by ppl who have NO CLUE and NO REAL TRAINING on the hardware they have avaliable to them. sigh. so is this gonna bottom out the prices on ML's now? are they going to start mass producing them? i always said that when i can walk into a NON-SPECIALTY store and buy ML's i would sell mine and buy something else...well..this has happened now...at least in the States....here in Canada it hasnt happened yet...but i have the local Bestbuy now inquiring on it...anyone?
IMHO someone at ML REALLY dropped the ball on this one...:p might as well start selling them with a happy meal too while they are at it :p

ps. my cousin in Mn just confirmed they are there at the bestbuy. sigh.
pps. plz let your feelings on this be known...i know im not terribly happy with it..obviously.
 
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Magnolia was . . .

bought by Best Buy a while back. Technically, Magnolia A/V is the dealer and their salesmen are a better than the BB drones (though when I bought my ML at my local, stand-alone Magnolia, the set-up sucked pretty hard). That being said, I don't know if the people at the Magnolia sections of BB are any more knowledgeable than the BB drones proper.
 
hehe

good question..they have the 2nd gen panel now...which sounds QUITE a bit better than the first gen...not sure why....better highs/mids...the sub still leaves a bit to be desired...but my paradigm 10" solves that one pretty nicely...so...i dunno...bought em for $3500cdn...i honestly dont know...its just so depressing that ML is going 'big box' now...not like they TOTALLY werent, at least here in Regina...but it wasnt so BLATENT :p sigh

oh..and if the BBuy ppl here are ANYTHING like they are anywhere else in the world...you might as well start selling ML's at Walmart while they are at it...and Safeway...as well as Blockbuster too....:p this is just sad :p
..and as i mentioned before...might as well team up with the golden arches and start giving deals on em with a happy meal too :p
blah
 
Relax. Do you really think that they are going to sell their ESL speakers at Best Buy? I think not because it is a bit beyond the price point that Best Buy likes to sell at. I am sure that the Fresco, Montage, and lower priced fare might show up on the sales floor but not the ESL's. Too expensive.

Why can't ML serve both demographics? If B&W can go low end and still keep their high end reputation then I think ML can do it too. They may be able to get more people interested in the bigger pricier stuff this way.

Some people will say "look what happened to Infinity and JBL when they went mass market," but honestly those companies where on their way down before then.

ML has to do something to spread the word. When I bought my Martin Logans nobody that I knew had ever heard of them. Nobody. Not a good way to stay in business in this age of global economies and cheap but highly skilled foreign competition.
 
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my last experience in Mn

I remember going to an 'audio king'? store in Mn last time i was down there...and the 'salesman/bs'er' told me that he had been to the 'factory' in Kansas and that he was 'Martin Logan certified' which ALMOST made me laugh in his face...was that supposed to impress me? the hardware did...as it was a set of aeons setup with Krell monoblocks, a Theatre center, and script surrounds....wow. a TRUE treat...but i doubt that BB will EVER carry Krell....lol...that would be like McD's carrying designer burgers...or something like that. blah. this is just irritating me just talking about it.

BB+ML = idontknowbutidontknowifiwanttoseetheresult

if its like what Walmart did to my city...ALL the prices on EVERYTHING went down..and MANY businesses went out of business...is that what Gayle and his marketing dept have in mind? driving themselves out of business/bottoming out their own prices? id be interested to know what they are hoping to accomplish by this insane*IMHO* move...i guess i just dont understand...anyway...ill shut up now.
 
I agree with all of you on this point. If they do infact choose Best Buy as a carrier for their product they will hurt the exclusivity & integrity of the brand. It is poor brand mgmt to have a ML speaker sitting next to a Pioneer, Sony and Fujitsu product.

Is ML selling out? Will cheaper parts be placed in the Best Buy line? Would you find the Ascent or Summit there? I'm all for inexpensive price, but have never favored the sales staff of BB. And it's also doubtful BB is gonna let you take them home for an audition, where as a "real" hifi dealer would.
 
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Isn't Magnolia HiFi part of the Tweeters chain? In FL, Tweeters also bought the Sound Advice chain, which remains the leading dealer for ML's around here (that's where I bought my Aerius i's).

The fact is, the number of true high-end shops are on the decline.

Best Buy is incorporating the Magnolia (Tweeters) store-within-a-store concept in only 12 major markets, ostensibly to cater to a more sophisticated clientele.

IMHO, this is a GOOD thing for ML, and those of us who love their product. More exposure means an expanding customer base, and continued revenue to drive new designs. Heck, even if only 5% of the low/mid-fi customers that walk into Best Buy for a "home theater in a box" setup, end up buying ML's and eventually moving up to separates, that can only benefit high-end audio in the end.
 
Just did a little research... found this at the Magnolia website... "In December 2000, Magnolia Audio Video was acquired by Best Buy as an independently operated, wholly-owned subsidiary..."
 
Judging by the tone of this thread, ML is more of a status symbol to many here than a great speaker. Can't let the great unwashed hear em at the BB eh? Get real. A casual examination of various threads on this forum shows that many here are very unhappy with their "expert" dealers. The biggest complaint I see for these dealers is poor setup and demos. BB probably will do no worse than its high end cousins. I for one have no doubt that Gayle is well aware of what it takes to put a high quality speaker on the market. He has worked at this company building its reputation for over twenty years and I have no doubts he will do what is right for the company and its customers. Finally, no need to get too outraged since this "revelation" is hardly news. The Magnolia story was on the net late last year as I recall.
 
attyonline said:
Judging by the tone of this thread, ML is more of a status symbol to many here than a great speaker. Can't let the great unwashed hear em at the BB eh? Get real.
Great Point! If I can buy great sound at a better price I do not care what the name of the gear is or where I bought it! One of the main reasons we pay what we do for gear is because of the name of the gear.(How much do you think it really cost to make a 4 figure cable?) The profit margin on high end audio equipment is huge. Profit is made one of two ways quanity(low % high volume) or quality(high % low volume). If ML could sell a lower end speaker to the masses generating stronger fiscal performance to give them the ability to lower the high end gear more and inturn sell more of them. This will also help bring high fidleity to the masses. This is nothing but good! Unless you are one of the audiophile snobs who own your gear because no one else does and not for the love of music.:D
 
hmm

u KNOW you bought your ML's PARTIALLY because noone else has one....lets face it...HOW many friends do you have that dont have ANYTHING like it and wouldnt even CONSIDER spending $3k+ on their WHOLE SYSTEM much less 2 speakers?? Us audiophiles are USUALLY a tad egotistical...it goes with the territory...i can admit that its a vanity thing to an EXTENT but also..i am a musician...so for me as well..id have to say its more an 80/20 split as i LOVE music and the quality of the sound...so...for selfish reasons for myself...id have to say its the quality/imaging. but thats just me.
 
ASLayerAODsk said:
u KNOW you bought your ML's PARTIALLY because noone else has one....lets face it...HOW many friends do you have that dont have ANYTHING like it and wouldnt even CONSIDER spending $3k+ on their WHOLE SYSTEM much less 2 speakers?? Us audiophiles are USUALLY a tad egotistical...it goes with the territory...i can admit that its a vanity thing to an EXTENT but also..i am a musician...so for me as well..id have to say its more an 80/20 split as i LOVE music and the quality of the sound...so...for selfish reasons for myself...id have to say its the quality/imaging. but thats just me.

Speaking for myself, I bought them only because they sound GREAT - period!

And anyone whose even somewhat into audio knows about Martin Logans. There are many more "less" popular ESL and convential speakers out there that audio enthusiast do not know about. So I don't believe most of us bought ML's because no one else has one.

You have an awesome set of speakers, but you're going to sell it just because every other Tom, Dick and Harry are going to have the same brand?? Even so, how many people do you have to impress that come into your home to listen to them?

Whatever price you decide to sell yours at, I'll offer you 1/2...because I'm sure to be able to get them at Walmart soon for that price :cool:
 
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:d

waddya think of those Nautilus diamond tweeters? :D in comparison of course to the equivelent ML. i had a set of 804's next to my ML Aerius i's when i was deciding..and these won out...so i doubt that i would buy then now...but they do sound pretty damn good...
but they dont have enough high end sometimes..and i have no clue how to even attempt to get a higher range out of them...or if its even possible..and im not the handiest person in the world either
 
Hell, ALL my friends have crappy (IMO) speakers so the last reason in the world I got ML was the snob factor. ANY high end speaker costing more than $800 a pair would have wowed my buds. I got them because they sound great with no boxiness. But the snob attitude is alive and well apparently in some quarters. :)
 
:eek:

hehe..im a snob :D
actually..the bottom line reason i bought these...they beat out IMHO, the Nautilus 804's in a side by side comparison...which i used all NAD hardware and MIT interconnects, which were lent to me, which was a real tease...blah..but im slowly buying what i heard originally..and i actually have it quite close to what i heard then...other than i would really like to get an NAD amp to replace my Anthem MCA 2, other than that....maybe a new receiver while im at it...this Denon 1801 is just too outdated now...i had the chance to try out a Marantz...and wow..what a difference...or maybe ill just say screw it and save up for a Carver ult theatre..im not sure...thats a ways away..but im still looking around....for the price of one of those i could almost get a Krell...hmm....but anyway....its still TOO BAD that ML is, IMHO, selling out.
 
ASLayerAODsk said:
hehe..im a snob :D
actually..the bottom line reason i bought these...they beat out IMHO, the Nautilus 804's in a side by side comparison...which i used all NAD hardware and MIT interconnects, which were lent to me, which was a real tease...blah..but im slowly buying what i heard originally..and i actually have it quite close to what i heard then...other than i would really like to get an NAD amp to replace my Anthem MCA 2, other than that....maybe a new receiver while im at it...this Denon 1801 is just too outdated now...i had the chance to try out a Marantz...and wow..what a difference...or maybe ill just say screw it and save up for a Carver ult theatre..im not sure...thats a ways away..but im still looking around....for the price of one of those i could almost get a Krell...hmm....but anyway....its still TOO BAD that ML is, IMHO, selling out.

I have no idea what you're trying to say...nor do I care anymore... :confused:
 
If I remember correctly, this topic was discussed here several months ago.

ML said by selling the more affordable products it gave them more resources to invest in Research and Development. Because of selling their lower end products at BB stores it helped the company put more money into upgrading their upper end products and has allowed them to invest in other technologies besides just high end beloved esl speakers. I believe one the the benifits of this is their in-wall products they now offer! I would love to have those in my system. So, it's not all bad. We will benifit from thier investment into R&D.

Jeff
 
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