Gear asthetix....valid??

[ILUVAUDIO]

Hey all.....

Just wondering; how many folks really place the look of a piece of gear over its sound?? I ask because I find myself doing this over a future choice of phono amp. I know a lot of people are really crowing about the gear from Trinity and I am interested in their phono amp someday....

However, a number of people seem to find the gear unattractive to down right ugly....despite the glorious sound! I sort of fall in between the unattractive and ugly camp....

SO I wonder just how important it is, in the end, to people purchasing new audio components.

Cheers,

[Still-One]

If a piece is ugly I won't purchase it no matter how great it sounds.

The problem is that no two individuals agree on what is esthetically pleasing.

[Pider]

Originally Posted by ILUVAUDIO

Hey all.....

Just wondering; how many folks really place the look of a piece of gear over its sound?? I ask because I find myself doing this over a future choice of phono amp. I know a lot of people are really crowing about the gear from Trinity and I am interested in their phono amp someday....

However, a number of people seem to find the gear unattractive to down right ugly....despite the glorious sound! I sort of fall in between the unattractive and ugly camp....

SO I wonder just how important it is, in the end, to people purchasing new audio components.

Cheers,

I'm all in with your sentiment. If ugly (to me), I'll not even want to turn it on for a listen. What I fight against is leaning towards a piece because I like how it looks, rather than how it sounds, or I like one sales environment over another, and thus dismiss a brand because I don't like who's selling it. Heck I'm still trying to accept something in a color other than black!

[antipop]

Originally Posted by Still-One

If a piece is ugly I won't purchase it no matter how great it sounds.

The problem is that no two individuals agree on what is esthetically pleasing.

+1

I've already picked a gear over an other based on looks alone ... Well not only gear

[-E-]

Originally Posted by Still-One

If a piece is ugly I won't purchase it no matter how great it sounds.

The problem is that no two individuals agree on what is esthetically pleasing.

^^^This.

[Rod#S]

Originally Posted by Still-One

If a piece is ugly I won't purchase it no matter how great it sounds.

I'm with Jim on this. I ultimately have to live and look at the purchase so if I can't stand how it looks it's never coming home. For me this is more of a speaker thing than say an amp, SSP, etc. as those can be hidden if they look a bit funky

[2fastdriving]

It can even go further than that...the matching of the components needs to look pleasing as well. If you have some silver components, some black, etc...it can look a bit odd, depending on the variety of brands.

Sizes too. My LP1 phono pre looks silly between my pre and power amps. I just don't have anywhere else to put it right now.

But in general I agree, I want great sound first, but if it looks really unattractive, I don't want to spend big bucks on it no matter how great it sounds. Fortunately this isn't usually an issue - I like most designs.

[Mikado463]

so……..if you listen 'blind' and piece 'A' sounded better than 'B' but 'B' looked better than 'A' , you'd select 'B' ??????

I Can honestly say that I have never listened to a piece of gear that it's looks would have kept me from buying it with one exception…….. certain speakers, while sounding superb are not what I'd call 'eye candy'

[W9TR]

so……..if you listen 'blind' and piece 'A' sounded better than 'B' but 'B' looked better than 'A' , you'd select 'B' ?????

I take every new purchase in its entirety. Aesthetics, build quality, sound quality perceived by me, and manufacturer's reputation all contribute to the decision. I give less weight to the specifications.