When Steve Jobs
announced the iPod
Hi-Fi last month, he boasted of the $349 speaker system's "home stereo quality," and said that it
compared favorably to more expensive equipment from companies such as Bose and
Denon. For Jeff Talmadge of Denon, them's fightin' words. Now,
Talmadge has picked up the gauntlet, and declared Jobs' statement "grandiose," adding that "maybe we
should be flattered that they picked us, but it’s a completely different animal." Of course, Talmadge isn't
above his own boasts, stating that Denon's upcoming $1,000 receiver will "take it to a different level," and
that Apple's lower-end products are really just competition for companies "like Bose and Klipsch." But he
does have something of a back-handed compliment for Jobs: "They announce new products better than anyone else. I
look forward to every report after Steve Jobs gets up on stage, because he is great at it.” As long as he doesn't
pick on Denon's gear, that is.
posted March 17th 2006 2:15PM
Thats not just empty boasting...
Denon really is on a different level than Bose (though klipsh has some nice products).
hmm u guys just love "STEVE" and "APPLE" eh... i think we should call this enapple.com
I have to admit, it all sounds the same (i.e. ok, but not great), if you're listening to compressed music files!
Let's be realistic here -- people in the market for Denon equipment aren't exactly also considering ipod speakers.
Also, if Steve is going to talk about "same but cheaper" someone might want to ask him why his LCD's are priced higher than Dell's, when the panel itself is the same (there was that earlier Engadget post about that last year)? Funny guy.
Also anyone remember this great Apple spoof video? http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=switched.mov
I wonder if this means they will disable the ipod port on this little piece of goodness
http://smart.denon.com/s101.asp#
o
How compressed audio can be "Hi-Fi" is a contradiction in terms. Bottom line though, if you get more enjoyment from your compressed files than someone with a 5-6 figure cork sniffing system, then power to you.
hi, i'm a troll. spam me please: kamilmytnik@gmail.com
"...and said that it compared favorably to more expensive equipment from companies such as Bose and Denon."
Ok, Bose speakers suck, ask anyone in professional audio. And if I was Mr. Jeff Talmadge I would be insulted that Mr. Jobs says that his Microwave box of an "home stereo system" is on par with Denon products.
Denon makes speakers??
Denon does make HTiBs, which, although still quite a few levels above such gimmicks as iPod Hi-Fi, is not as ridiculous a comparison as, say, their dedicated receivers and preamp/pros.
People hating on Bose...
If you'd like to invest in either some 901s or 802s and the matching amplifiers and still say that they're shit, let me know.
We use 802s where i work and they're clear as, with a fantastic bass and sweet mid/treble.
I think Denon makes some great stuff, but they dont make speakers right??? And yeah, I like Bose speakers. Not sure I'd spend the money on them, I'd probably go with JBL, Polk, or whatever was the best deal and best sounding.
Also, yes, you can have Hi-Fi sounding compressed audio files. They actually did a study on it in a PC mag. Audiophiles could not tell the difference when the MP3 was ripped at 192Kb or higher as compared to an uncompressed AIFF file found on a CD.
Not that everything Denon makes is that great. We have Denon CD players at my radio station whose play and eject buttons constantly break. There are at least 4-5 failures a year.
The irony is, you've probably never heard the iPod Hi-Fi.
Yes, Denon does have some cheaper products, but their high end recievers and amps are excellent. Better than most other brands in their price range.
as far as Bose, I've never understood what people think they hear when they listen to bose equipment. The products are cheap and the sound doesn't even compare to other brands half their price. And don't even get me started on Bose' car audio, it's just plain bad.
Apple competing with Bose?
Who cares?
It's like celebrity boxing. Famous competitors but not true contenders.
Jamie, Bose IS shit. Are you even aware of other hi-fi components within that pricerange that you can compare your Bose speakers with?
If you're a professional recording company using Bose speakers, then that's just plain terrible. I'm willing to bet that you're missing some fairly major parts of the sound spectrum.
Do yourself a favor and read this:
http://www.intellexual.net/bose.html
bose
no highs
no lows
Buy
Other
Sound
Equipment
bose blows
I'll agree with the "Bose sucks" movement. For at least for home theatre stuff, you can get a nice Onkyo reciever and a pack of Infinity or Polk speakers and it's going to sound a lot better for less money.
Bose is all name and hype.
i would imagine the hifi will sound very similar to bose stuff... but denon? i kind of doubt it. but its not like apple users care; their main goal is to support apple, not carefully evaluate products.
I think Jeff at Denon is going to offer a new leather cover for his new receiver too, for $499!!!
Steve better watch out.
I think Klipsch should be pissed that the Denon guy lumped them in with bose.
I agree with all the Bose bashers...I have never been all that impressed with Bose merchandise. I don't mean any personal attacks, just a comment.
@Jamie
"People hating on Bose...
If you'd like to invest in either some 901s or 802s and the matching amplifiers and still say that they're shit, let me know.
We use 802s where i work and they're clear as, with a fantastic bass and sweet mid/treble."
Bose is ass. They might sound ok when you don't have anything to compare them to, but sit them next to ANY middle of the road speaker and they will get beat down. Infinity, KEF, Klipsch, Definitive Technology. Def Tech's in particular, as they are Bipolars. If memory serves me, the Bose 802's are bipoles too, and any DefTech's will rape the Bose 802's.
I'm getting sick and tired of people complaining about Apple articles here!!! What should this site be? All gadgets based on Microshit devices?
Which $1000 receiver is Denon talking about?
I understand that Steve Jobs has a Linn Products hi-fi system at home rather than Bose or Denon.
iPods are arguebly the best portable mp3 players and Bose are great at selling their own stuff, their adverts are everywhere. Denon do fairly good hi-fi domestic equipment.
But if you want the best audio quality, where portability and price don't matter, then Linn trouces everyone.
@ 23/Aleks : "I'm getting sick and tired of people complaining about Apple articles here!!! What should this site be? All gadgets based on Microshit devices?"
You are correct, because we need more second by second coverage of Steve Jobs revealing a $99 sleeve & overpriced crappy countradictory "hifi" speaker system.
@ 25/Chris Gilmour : "iPods are arguebly the best portable mp3 players and Bose are great at selling their own stuff, their adverts are everywhere."
Arguably, iPods suffer the same fate as Bose regarding their quality.
lol @ Steve Jobs even mentioning the iPod Hi-Fi in the same league (or even the same sentence) as a Denon product, dumbass.
You can't put Bose, Klipsch, and Denon in the same sentence. Bose is not in the same league as Klipsch and/or Denon. Bose is crap. Their speakers are made of paper and foam. Their receivers digitally enhance the sound a lot. What you hear with today's Bose is an artifical digitally enhanced sound. Hook a set of Bose Speakers up to any Denon, Onkyo, Yamaha, Harmon Kardon receivers and you'll hear the true crapiness of Bose speakers. Bose imo would be great if they cost 1/10th of their MSRP. For the price you pay, you expect quality...something Bose cannot deliver.
I also was able to demo the huge 'hi-fi' iPod speakers and they're not impressive. They of course lack bass...I wasn't expecting any. But their highs are muddy and their midbass lacks as well. I was very dissapointed...for $350 I atleast expected quality highs.
Denon distribute Mission Speakers outside Europe, they also use them on a lot of their systems (www.mission.co.uk) which make some awesome speakers. What does Apple know about sound quality? there is a lot of engineering that goes into making loudspeakers & amplification, may as well buy Jbl stuff.
Bose serves a purpose, they make some beautiful lifestyle systems but you can do better for your money it's all down to taste. I agree with Denon though on this one, nothing beats proper hifi even if you are using lowly 128kbps music files.
Stevie J would be much better off keeping his Linn system, if that is indeed the case. Their components are absolutely exceptional.
At least he doesn't try to compare to the similarly named products http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/
Also for some really aweseome speakers check out http://www.paradigm.com/
I've heard Bose 802s, correcty set-up - and I wouldn't say they are ass... maybe not quite what they are worth in cost... but they are not quite ass. I'd pay £600-700 for a pair, just not £1000
I think some people dunno how to set them up, as I went to a store today with 802s and they sounded crap as anything... why.....? because panaray controller was incorrectly configured. Go figure.
I'm not a yey sayer, just saying - I dont think they are totally ass... maybe the car audio and home audio are different story.