ralphpnj;683644 Wrote: > But, but, but what about those mega-buck asynchronous USB DACs used to > connect one's MacBook, via a $500 USB cable, and running the $700 Pure > Music software? Surely this set up has to sound many orders of > magnitude better than the lowly $300 SB Touch connected to a DAC with > $10 coax cable? > > If not then we are talking about ten of thousands of dollars in > advertising income going out the window. > > Okay so the above statement goes a long way in explaining why all those > worthless high end audio rags, oops I mean, magazines are deeply vested > in promoting many, many audio myths but how does one explain the many > audiophiles who actually believe this drivel?
Until recently, I had never heard the name "Veblen Good". To quote that all-seeing oracle of everything, wikipedia: In economics, Veblen goods are a group of commodities for which people's preference for buying them increases as their price increases, as greater price confers greater status, instead of decreasing according to the law of demand. A Veblen good is often also a positional good. The Veblen effect is named after economist Thorstein Veblen, who first pointed out the concepts of conspicuous consumption and status-seeking. I think this explains quite a bit of this stuff. As to why anyone would think they got status from buying/displaying a $500 usb cable, I couldn't say. I would think that it would mark one as a credulous fool, but then who am I to judge :) -- totoro sb3 -> mccormack dna .5 -> audio physic tempo 4 + rel storm 3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ totoro's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=5935 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=92918 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list audiophiles@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/audiophiles
