[sjsfiveo]

Anybody else noticed the big price increase over $1,000? Definitely add's something to think about as I was contemplating between m3s and x5s.

[reillyzing]

Anybody else noticed the big price increase over $1,000? Definitely adds something to think about as I was contemplating between m3s and x5s.

Yes, I was disappointed to see this last night. Now I wonder what the price will be six months or a year from now.

[Randy]

That pretty much ends my thoughts of getting a pair of the x - 5s.   $7000?  I could have swung $6000, but not $7 grand.

[FullRangeMan]

There may have been some improvement in the product for this big increase.

[Dsaldivar]

Nope, no explanation about why the price was increased.
$8500??

Is it possible that such a group of enthusiastic owners and number of people talking about being interested in buying a pair day after day somehow influenced the rationale of increasing the price? After all AudioCircle is an excellent thermometer of audiophiles behavior and data source. Same with Tekton Double Impact speakers on Audiogon, at least they added SE to this model with the price increase.
Again $8500 in the middle of a recession with more than 25 million jobs lost and a lot of them maybe forever.
No biggie, nobody is forcing anybody to buy them, a pair of speakers is not an essential commodity after all.
Dan

[Jon L]

OT, but I always wondered why Spatial Audio Lumina costs $25,000

https://www.spatialaudio.us/lumina

[rajacat]

OT, but I always wondered why Spatial Audio Lumina costs $25,000

https://www.spatialaudio.us/lumina

Me too! I wonder if the sales price includes that comfortable listening chair?

[Dsaldivar]

These speakers M3 and M5 Sapphire have no box and tweeters that cost $64





https://www.madisoundspeakerstore.com/hard-dome-tweeter/peerless-da32tx00-08-1.25-corundum-dome-tweeter/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1KO_t_-r6QIVVT2tBh2oZQBMEAQYASABEgIPjvD_BwE

[Rusty Jefferson]

What's with all the hating on this company?  If you don't think their products are worth the prices being asked, don't buy them. No reason to whine about it. I'm sure they considered the ramifications of this decision.

If you want to complain about the price of something going up, try N95 masks, toilet paper, food.....

[SnowPuppy77]

The M Series has a custom version of this tweeter with ferrofluid cooling and a modified voice coil so it is not the same.  Have you seen the price of the non custom version of those woofers?  Jatzen toroidal inductors of which there are 4 with M3s?  Yes the price increase is unfortunate.  But this is a very superficial and uninformed way of understanding what it costs.  All high end speakers have significant markup due to not being mass market. 

[Early B.]

What's with all the hating on this company?  If you don't think their products are worth the prices being asked, don't buy them. No reason to whine about it. I'm sure they considered the ramifications of this decision.

If you want to complain about the price of something going up, try N95 masks, toilet paper, food.....

True.

Also, keep in mind that if you're a small business in the midst of a pandemic, your costs could skyrocket due to supply chain issues. Imagine trying to get parts from China right now. It's a slow boat. 

[Tyson]

Plus those speakers were underpriced to begin with.  Those people that got them at the original price ended up with one of the bargains of the decade.

[undertow]

Not hating, but...

Yeah I have never even heard of this company so seeing a circle here was a bit interesting.

But anyway I would never pay over 3500 for any open baffle speaker like this. The parts are not even 1000 bucks in these things. Nice finishes and stacks of MDF are relatively cheap when they don't have to be closed cabinets hence there are hundreds of DIY designs out there for this type of project, and for good reason.

Generally on a product like this you would be better to lower the price if you plan to stay in business especially now not the opposite.   

[Dsaldivar]

Since most of us are not in the speakers business is possible that we have no idea how much does it cost to run this company.  These speakers are made in the US and I hope paying real living salaries with benefits to all its employees.  If we want products that show

then we have to support our entrepreneurs that are willing to keep production of their products in the US. 
But what is wrong with expressing an opposite point of view?
Isn't the whole idea of AC to provide a platform where audiophiles exchange ideas?
I do not think that is hateful to question "how is that possible the cost increased by that much"
Anyways, Spatial Audio has the right to charge whatever they want for their products.
Dan

[Rusty Jefferson]

Not hating, but...

"Yeah, no disrespect but....."

Then start a thread stating that position and defend it. Don't whine about a company needing to raise prices to stay in business.

Is someone going to contact every other audio equipment company and see if they've raised prices in the last year and then whine that NOW their products aren't worth consideration?

[geerock]

Not hating, but...

Yeah I have never even heard of this company so seeing a circle here was a bit interesting.

But anyway I would never pay over 3500 for any open baffle speaker like this. The parts are not even 1000 bucks in these things. Nice finishes and stacks of MDF are relatively cheap when they don't have to be closed cabinets hence there are hundreds of DIY designs out there for this type of project, and for good reason.

Generally on a product like this you would be better to lower the price if you plan to stay in business especially now not the opposite.

Less than a thousand bucks for parts?  You must be kidding.  And those baffles are not MDF.

[jtnt]

This recent conversation between Steve Guttenberg and Sean Fowler is a relevant watch for anyone buying audio gear (or literally anything else, as the same issues apply), but certainly for those solely looking at the price of parts in relation to audio component pricing. (Spoiler alert: to run a business, you have to do more than just buy parts.)

"If you think audiophile speakers, amps, and even cables are too expensive, Sean has some answers": https://youtu.be/A7lZi8hJsxI

I'd also point you to this recent conversation I had with Clayton where he discusses some of the difference between his speakers and DIY open baffle speakers, since there were some comparisons made in this thread: https://youtu.be/vYHjNc3kWAQ


~Nicholas @ LTA

[SnowPuppy77]

Ultimately a speaker is worth what people are willing to pay for it.  If you give me two speakers and one has more expensive parts but the other one sounds better, I will pick the one that sounds better.  The expertise and the R&D time and cost makes a huge difference in the results.  It boils down to how do they sound compared to other speakers of the same price to the consumer.  I think what I paid, which is the old price, for the M3S was a good deal and I can't think of anything for that price that sounds better that I have heard.  To me at the $5k price level the Magnepan 3.7i for just $1k more becomes some stiff competition.  But that is for my personal listening priorities.  And if I got the 3.7i I would need much more expensive more powerful amplification.  My Dad has a pair of 3.7i by the way.

[aniwolfe]

Nope, no explanation about why the price was increased.
$8500??

Is it possible that such a group of enthusiastic owners and number of people talking about being interested in buying a pair day after day somehow influenced the rationale of increasing the price? After all AudioCircle is an excellent thermometer of audiophiles behavior and data source. Same with Tekton Double Impact speakers on Audiogon, at least they added SE to this model with the price increase.
Again $8500 in the middle of a recession with more than 25 million jobs lost and a lot of them maybe forever.
No biggie, nobody is forcing anybody to buy them, a pair of speakers is not an essential commodity after all.
Dan

Speaking of Tekton...the prices have actually gone down on a lot of models. For example the Electron SE were $4000 now they are on sale for $3000.  Double Impact SE were originally $6500...now $4000...just sayin.

I LOVE MY M3 TM's!!

[Brettio]

If you don't think their products are worth the prices being asked, don't buy them. No reason to whine about it.

Totally agree.