Pls remember folks, it was never my intention to question the performance or value of the 950 nor any of other Outlaw's products for that matter. But when you can both good looks and performance, why not shoot for both? Remember there are great a number of folks out there who have to the approval of their spouse to bring some beast like the 770 home. I can tell you most of us would have a great deal of hard time to convince the other half, if we can convince them at all. I have no doubt that Outlaw have lost many potential customer because of the cheap cheesy look of their product.

eskendir:

I see your point, and I actually agree. I wonder how much of the mindset of the Outlaws is that a product must 'look the price'? This is something that the Head Outlaw has to ask himself. I'm not bothered by "the look",. but then again, I am not bothered by the look of 'industrial electronics' - I admit it, I'm a gearhead. You have brought up an intresting thread, and a very useful one. Let's see what happens......

You're welcome to dislike the current logo, but all I ask is that you don't question our sanity, belittle us or act incredulous when some of us say that we actually like the logo as is. Because some of us do. Me for one.


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pat----

email: pat@sklenar.info ---===--- home page: Grumpy's Lair

Now that's funny. It looks like your examples may prove that good design IS expensive. Starting in the thousands. I will admit though, that Halo equipment does look good! So, what's CHEAP and looks good according to all you design experts?

I guess we all need to remember that whatever each of us thinks, is opinion. Not meant to denigrate what anyone else thinks or feels.

Oh, cheap gear that looks good: Acurus, in my opinion. "Value oriented audiophile gear." You can make good sounding gear that looks good too. And depending on what the upper ceiling for "cheap" is, I say that the B&K Ref 50 is hands down the best looking pre/pro out there right now. The old Ref 7250, 2220, etc. amps are also very nice looking. The Rotel 1066 ain't half bad either. But I wanted the features, performance, and quality inside the 950 in spite of its "underwhelming" looks. *My* opinion...


[This message has been edited by Kevin C Brown (edited January 18, 2003).]

soundhound:
Thanks, I hope the debate will continue to intesify with more sound input/thoughts from many other Outlaw owners and non-owners alike.

I think the point here is that a product like the 950 doesn't have to look butt-ugly to work right. The AT clone will perform exactly the same, but uses a slightly different finish on the faceplate and buttons, which couldn't possibly add that much more to the price. Most high-end preprocessors have been "beautified" by their manufacturers, which means that most have decided that high-end gear should also be relatively attractive. I keep my gear in an open rack for maximum ventilation, so everyone has to look at this stuff. But, if you have those tasteful paintings of dogs playing poker and pool and stuff on the wall of your AV room, maybe cosmetics aren't such a big concern.

That said, Outlaw could probably make even more money and please even more customers by at least offering a silver finish with complementary buttons on the faceplates of their gear and charging another $100 or so for it... A win-win situation for everyone.


[This message has been edited by dmeister (edited January 18, 2003).]

I think, at least for me, you're absolutely on the right track. Cosmetics alone won't kill a sale (for me) but they do contribute to the overall value of the package. So if the overall value can be substantially boosted with a minor amount of cost - go for it. It's a business choice, in the end.

I just got my 950 yesterday and the only thing that I was worried about was the looks of the unit. I was not worried about its performance at all. I was actually a little nervous while opening the box. I have read a lot about the unit over the past couple of months and always read about how cheap their gear looks. After looking at it for a day now, the only thing that stand out in my eyes is the volume knob. The logo, buttons, and finish do not bother me at all. I just wish it had a aluminum or nicer looking volume knob. The rubbery look just doesn't do it for me.

But the rubber protects you from injuring your fingers if you have to lower the volume in a hurry