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Originally Posted by Brad McGowan  If you think the Audient offering is a little expensive for the given feature set, then wait until you see the new SSL X-Desk. Talk about brand name premium...
Brad |
Here we go again...
Sure, there is a brand name premium, but SuperAnalogue quality is real. The closest I can equate it to with direct ownership experience is when I had one of the original CAD consoles... DC servo throughout. I still remember how it sounded... or didn't sound, but it was plagued with build issues and I eventually sent it back. Many years later, I still miss it.
SSL knows what they are doing, both electronically and mechanically. I was watching a Science Channel "How Things are Made" (or something like that) about pipe organs. At the end, they did a full tracking shot around an organ before it was about to be broken down for shipping. The last image was the electronics rack bearing the name "Solid State Logic Digital Systems MultiLevel Capture System."
Anyway, there's more to that story, but this is an Audient thread. We in the US pay a premium for British gear, in part because of the weak dollar to pound. SSL has become very competitive, though this is still a factor. If you do a straight conversion of what you'd pay even with VAT in the UK to USD, the actual US price is higher for AMS/Neve, Audient, SSL, etc. It does cost money to import.
This margin varies quite a bit. An Audient Mico is $580 (inc VAT) at DV247 and until recently was $1100 from US vendors. I just noticed it has come down to $700. That's now more like the current SSL US/UK difference. If I had any money left, I'd buy one in a heartbeat. I was interested in Audient Black modules before I started up with X-Rack gear. I think Black modules have come down to $450 or so.
Bottomline, IMO: SSL SuperAnalogue = good sound, build and function. Good British goods cost more in the US than they do in the UK, but the margin is closing. We don't have an American equivalent of SSL. Some might argue a rough equivalence between API and Neve. We also have lots of cool boutique manufacturers in the US.
Anyway, I think I'm rambling and it would take at least another paragragh to take this home, so I'll stop now.
Oh, and I like Audient, too.
