That BC amp is a beast but reality sets in when you click on the price list.

I don't really agree with your statements here. First of all mark up on a Corvette is large, much larger than on a Colbalt. Every company has to make money on their higher end product. Whether you spend 100k on a Corvette or I spend it on audio gear, neither is more or less an evil than the other, it is a matter of what is important to the buyer. To say all high end equipment is over priced and not worth it is just not accurate. You first have to hear the various levels of gear to be able to know how much difference there is between a $1k unit and a $10k unit. Audiophiles who really know their gear and what they hear aren't just buying a name plate. I suggest you price some of the higher end caps and resistors etc. The statement made parts are cheap may be for building radio shack circuits with 10% tolerance but for higher end gear with tight tolerance and better material there is a difference. Power supplies get very expensive. And did you see the capacitor bank in the DAC? It's probably over kill but it's there and adds to the expense. The DAC, considering the power bank could actually be a good value when you take a $1500.00 player then add the expense of an upgraded power cord and power conditioner. With BC you are also paying a premium price for it being hand made. I do agree that all of the excess doesn't mean a thing if it doesn't perform. Also, profit has to be some larger to make up for lack of volume of sales. A company isn't going to sell as many $4k units as a $400.00 one. Just as GM don't sell as many Corvettes as Impalas.

I've heard some very expensive gear. Most I thought I would consider if I had the money, some left me wondering who would buy it at any price. Krell made a $25k preamp/CD player combo, I think the 25s, that thing is phoenominal and I would not hesitate to drop that kind of money on it if I had it. The Dynaudio Sapphires are a bargain at $16k. I have yet to hear anything from T+A I wouldn't pay the price for and that includes an $8k CD player.

Unless you have heard this calibur of gear you simply are not qualified to make those kinds of statements. ALL product lines, no matter the product, has a higher profit margin on the top end models. So you can't single out audio as the evil industry that bends every one over. And, please don't try to hold up the auto industry as the poster boys of fair play. You think they can afford to pay their linemen $30.00 an hour to sit at home on their butt during lay off and have an even profit from top to bottom model?

A lot of it is the consumers fault as well. When Arcam had the Alpha lines out the gear performed great, prices weren't bad at all compared to the performance level you got. But the chasis were plastic and thin metal. Even though they had a great product it didn't have the look. So they came out with the Full Metal Jacket (FMJ) lines. The FMJ did have internal upgrades but the price of the FMJ was a pretty good step from the Alpha. I guess it's like any other product, you have to look the part as well.

The companies that make me mad are the ones who move the production to China yet the prices of the product stay the same to the consumer. Audio isn't alone there either. Did you see Nike drop any retail prices when they moved to Mexico and China? So there's more evil around than just ragging on some one who makes a profit. They can hang a price on anything, if it sells they will keep the price there or raise it depending on demand and how fast it sold. If no one buys it then you will see a price drop. I wonder how much the cost of material is in one of those $150.00 running shoes.

I know this lady who wanted me to help her put together a HT system, she told me her budget was $200.00. In a polite way I basically told her, good luck with that. Come to find out she was sporting a $350.00 designer name purse. So a lot of it is with one's priority.