Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/11/14

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Subject: Re: High end audio [Macintosh] and [Leica] photographic analogies
From: "Jeff S" <segawa@netone.com>
Date: Sat, 14 Nov 1998 18:55:32 -0700

- -----Original Message-----
From: Walter S Delesandri <walt@jove.acs.unt.edu>
>Mcintosh= LONG TERM CUSTOMER COMMITMENT =  LEICA
>Bryston,Parasound,Cary,Joe's basement,== who knows in 5-10 years?

Walt, when it comes to hifi, I think you gotta go with whatever helps you to
enjoy the music more, and while it was nice to know that Mark Levinson Audio
Systems was promising that my ML-1 was essentially guaranteed to give
like-new performance, regardless of age, these things were sonically
eclipsed long ago by far less expensive products, so dunno if this has
proven to be a big deal in the long run. Ask them (Madrigal, or whoever owns
the rights to the ML brand name these days) to update it to 1998
performance, and I can just imagine that response *that* inquiry will get!
Fortunately, you can get modern performance out of any M-series Leica simply
by changing the lens :-)

Jeff

>
>BTW, I don't sell or even use Mac -- all my gear is tube, designed and
built by me. -
>BUT for the long term consumer, I'll put my money on Mac. (I >did< use it
for
>years, but sold all of my collection when I wanted to pay down on my
house -- at
>a tremendous profit, I should add)
>
>Final example = God protect me from anything Bruce Moore or MFA ever made.
Would
>YOUR shop take it in for repair?
>
>And golden ears be damned, Mac sounds fine.  (yes, even the solid state
junk - and
>it STILL will after you're dead.)
>
>Walt (the don't-buy-what-I-use-buy-what's-good-for-you egotist)
>
>On Fri, 13 Nov 1998 07:18:26 -0500 Andre Jean Quintal
><quia250249@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> If i may, you will find a lot of up-to-date information
>> on very good to excellent to out-of-this-world
>> audio through the UseNet group
>> rec.audio.high-end,
>> also accessible through
>> http://www.dejanews.com
>> Seldom do McIntosh owners (or would-bes) participate, unfortunately.
>> One of the dimensions the McIntosh business philosophy
>> espouses caters to the "other needs" of the consumer:
>> a need for security, which they call "peace of mind".
>>
>> As an experienced former McIntosh salesman and
>> store manager, the above is an important fact of life:
>> some people do NEED to feel secure about what they
>> purchase and are willing to part with much more money
>> for a chunk of the "real thing".
>>
>> LEICA is one such product.
>> The difference, however, is that LEICA products
>> have been, are, and will remain a technical reference
>> at the forefront of photographic technology,
>> while manufactured to stand the test of time.
>>
>> McIntosh audio components are very, very well built.
>> But, a great number agree, they too often fail to stand their own
>> in double blind listening tests, some far less expensive
>> equipment often eclipsing the gilded midnight black
>> units of the world-famous brand.
>> Dependability is no problem, i must add.
>> But : that's also true of a Bryston, half the price,
>> seen the most in recording and broadcast studios,
>> outstanding quality AND sonic performance.
>> Many other brands can claim the same, too,
>> some with even better sound, obvious from the first minute !
>>
>> LEICA originated photos have a general image quality
>> that no fool will ever question, on average even.
>>
>> The audio world market is dominated by huge corporations.
>> BUT the demands of audiophiles, especially,
>> have made it viable for smaller excellence-driven
>> firms to emerge and survive in a cut-throat marketplace.
>> A few younger brilliant music-loving AND business
>> oriented engineers have reshaped the high end audio
>> marketplace and McIntosh, all incumbent that it is,
>> is under pressure to deliver.
>>
>> LEICA, with the benefit of almost a Century
>> of outstanding products and fairplay business practice,
>> has survived the onslaught of mass market gizmo cameras,
>> then some pretty hairy non-photo world-market pressures,
>> and will still be around 25+ years from now
>> simply because there always will be people
>> and institutions who require such a product.
>>
>> You perhaps will be amused to read that, to me,
>> an audio system is only as good as the loudspeakers
>> will allow, no matter how expensive the electronics.
>>
>> Much the same in photography: put a substandard "production"
>> lens on a high end "pro" or "semi-pro" mass-market brand
>> camera and your creative work is lost to mediocrity,
>> while you get the can't-do-nothing-about-it grin
>> from some in-store you-get-what-you-pay-for comic.
>> You get spot-check quality from spot-check quality control.
>> Specs on paper are one thing, real world performance
>> is what you really want.
>> Put a LEICA brand lens upfront and it's a known fact
>> that this most definitely will not be a limiting factor.
>>
>> Still to be realized, soon now, my lifelong LEICA dream :
>> focus on photo essentials.
>>
>> I love you Santa Claus !
>>
>> Andre Jean Quintal
>>
>> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
>>
>> At 04:07 -0500 13/11/98, Custodian@aol.com wrote:
>> >Pascal
>> >
>> >What light?
>> >
>> >I used McIntosh equipment, both tubed and solid state, and I thought
build
>> >quality was excellent but sound quality was average. No way did it reach
high
>> >end standards.
>> >
>> >David
>>
>>
>
>